Concertos often owe their origins to the inspiration of a great performer. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was so impressed with the pioneering clarinettist Anton Stadler that he wrote a concerto – along with several other works – especially for him. A close friendship with Mstislav Rostropovich spurred both of Dmitri Shostakovich’s Cello Concertos. Edvard Grieg’s Piano Concerto owes a considerable debt to Robert Schumann’s, which Grieg first heard performed by its dedicatee: Clara Schumann. In the case of Magnus Lindberg’s Third Piano Concerto, an encounter with Yuja Wang proved the spark …
Read the full programme note on the London Symphony Orchestra website