Dream of Tchaikovsky

There is hardly another work that goes all out right from the start: Tchaikovsky's intoxicating Piano Concerto in B-flat minor is immediately at full throttle – with a striking orchestral tutti and massive piano chords that demand steely precision from the pianist. Incredibly, his teacher wanted to give him a good dressing-down for this concerto. "Perhaps one or two pages are worth saving, the rest must be destroyed," was his verdict. It's fortun...