Simply Beethoven: The “Emperor” Concerto and Symphony No. 4

Rudolf Buchbinder concludes his complete cycle of Beethoven’s Piano Concertos with the towering Fifth, nicknamed “Emperor” for its ambition and grandeur. One of Beethoven’s foremost interpreters, Buchbinder has been described by The New York Times “as if he were channeling [Beethoven’s] music from some cosmic beyond.” Conductor Xian Zhang “is riveting to watch; her musical results are even more riveting to hear,” raves the Seattle Times. She opens the program with Beethoven’s joyous Fourth Symphony, which Robert Schumann cleverly called “a slender Greek maiden between two Norse giants,” noting its ideal Classical structure in between the imposing Third and Fifth.