Beethoven's Piano Concerto 3 was first performed in 1803 on a concert in Vienna that also saw the premiere of Beethoven's Symphony 2 and his oratorio Christ On The Mount of Olives.
Beethoven himself performed as soloist, playing the majority of the work from memory as he had not yet written out the entire solo part.
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| BEETHOVEN'S CADENZA FOR THE FIRST MOVEMENT |
The 3rd piano concerto contains many elements that suggest Beethoven used Mozart's Piano Concerto 24 as a model for the work. Both concerti use C minor as the home key as well as a 6/8 Coda to end the final movement. The opening themes of both concerti also have similarities.
Beethoven's use of non-traditional modulations to remote key areas and contextual use of form figure prominently in all three movements, foreshadowing a dramatic shift in his compositional style that would begin with the groundbreaking 3rd Symphony.
