A concerto is a work for one or more soloists and orchestra. Born in the Baroque era, it usually has three movements, fast, slow, fast, and often gives the soloist a cadenza, a virtuoso passage played alone. The most recorded are piano, violin and cello concertos.

Which concerto should I start my classical vinyl collection with?

Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons" is a natural entry point, short and full of melody. Move on to a Mozart piano concerto, then Beethoven's "Emperor" or Rachmaninoff's Second for full Romantic sweep. Each exists in many versions, both historic and recent, so you can compare performers.

What is the difference between a concerto and a symphony?

A symphony puts the whole orchestra in the spotlight with no featured soloist and often has four movements. A concerto sets a soloist, or a small group of soloists, against the orchestra, usually in three movements, so it showcases a performer's virtuosity and personality.

Should I buy vintage or modern concerto recordings?

Both have merit. Recordings from the 1950s to the 1980s include many references with legendary soloists. Modern recordings offer current sound engineering and fresh approaches, such as period instruments in Baroque music. Comparing two versions of the same work is the best way to decide.

Classical Concerto

Concertos invite us to a refined dialogue between a soloist and an orchestra, blending individual virtuosity and collective power. From the poetry of Mozart's piano concertos to the dramatic breadth of Rachmaninoff's, each work unfolds a subtle balance between emotion and technical mastery.

On vinyl, the clarity of the timbres and the depth of the orchestrations capture the magic of the moment, bringing the brilliance and grandeur of a concert hall to your ears.

Newest

990 result(s)

Pre-order

The Way We Were: My American Songbook - Vinyle

Itzhak Perlman

Musique ClassiqueClassique Concerto

Classical Concerto Vinyl: Piano, Violin and Cello Recordings to Know

Concertos on vinyl: what this section covers

This page gathers classical concerto vinyl, works in which a soloist spars and blends with the orchestra: piano, violin and cello concertos, plus Baroque concertos for several instruments. The classical form usually has three movements, fast, slow, fast, with a cadenza where the soloist plays alone. Vinyl suits this repertoire well, since a concerto typically runs twenty to forty minutes and fits on one or two sides. The catalog spans historic recordings and today's soloists, including Lang Lang, Khatia Buniatishvili and Théotime Langlois de Swarte.

Vintage pressings or audiophile reissues?

Any major concerto exists in dozens of versions, and the choice of performer matters as much as the pressing. The big labels, Deutsche Grammophon, Decca, EMI, Philips and RCA, recorded most of the reference versions between the 1950s and the 1980s. Their original pressings circulate used, at prices that vary widely with condition and edition. For reissues, Deutsche Grammophon's The Original Source series, Speakers Corner and Analogue Productions offer carefully made editions cut from the analog tapes.

With used copies, focus on quiet passages in the slow movements, where scratches and surface noise are most audible. For box sets, make sure every disc and the booklet are included. Also note whether a recording is mono or stereo, since both sit side by side in 1950s catalogs.

Essential concertos for your record collection

A handful of works form the core of a collection and exist in many versions, historic and recent. Comparing two performers in the same concerto, say Glenn Gould and a present-day pianist in Bach, is one of the real pleasures of collecting classical records. Here are the scores to start with:

Vivaldi: "The Four Seasons", long associated with I Musici's recording
Bach: the "Brandenburg Concertos" and the keyboard concertos
Mozart: Piano Concertos No. 20 and No. 21
Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 5 "Emperor" and the Violin Concerto