Successful German Premiere of David Garrett’s Piano Concerto One World

During the lockdown, David Garrett composed the piano concerto One World together with John Haywood. The work was performed in 2024 at the Interlaken Classics Festival by Olga Scheps under the direction of David Garrett.

The concerto has now been performed with the Munich Symphony Orchestra, once again featuring Olga Scheps as soloist at Munich’s Isarphilharmonie.

In an interview with the Süddeutsche Zeitung, David Garrett comments on his work:

“I believe that the audience will be fascinated. At its core, it is a romantic piano concerto. Deep in my heart and in my innermost soul, I am someone who truly appreciates Romanticism, especially in classical music. Brahms’s piano concertos and his violin concerto are particularly close to my heart, and I am also a great admirer of Sergei Rachmaninoff.”

In this context, it is hardly surprising that Michael Stallknecht writes in his critique published in the Süddeutsche Zeitung on February 25:

“In short: Garrett’s piano concerto sounds like an unwritten concerto by Sergei Rachmaninoff."

"The fact is: it works. The orchestration is assured and never slips into pop sentimentality, and the movements develop organically in both thematic and harmonic terms.”