''Diversions for Piano Left Hand and Orchestra'', Op. 21, is a

concertante Sinfonia concertante (; also called ''symphonie concertante'') is an orchestral work, normally in several movements, in which one or more solo instruments contrast with the full orchestra.Collins: ''Encyclopedia of Music'', William Collins Sons & ...

music composition by

Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten of Aldeburgh (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, o ...

History

Britten wrote the work for the Viennese-born

pianist A pianist ( , ) is a musician who plays the piano. A pianist's repertoire may include music from a diverse variety of styles, such as traditional classical music, jazz piano, jazz, blues piano, blues, and popular music, including rock music, ...

Paul Wittgenstein Paul Wittgenstein (November 5, 1887March 3, 1961) was an Austrian-American concert pianist notable for commissioning new piano concerti for the left hand alone, after his right arm was amputated during World War I. He devised novel techniques, in ...

, who lost his right arm in

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. Britten met Wittgenstein in New York in July 1940 and sketched the piece in August at Owl's Head,

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

. Although Wittgenstein complained about the orchestration, Britten initially declined to make any changes but later agreed to a few small alterations. Forever after, he felt bitter about them, and after 1950 he revised the score "to create an official version that would stop Paul playing it by rendering his version obsolete." Wittgenstein retained the performing rights for a good number of years, which kept other pianists from performing the work. Wittgenstein played the premiere of ''Diversions'' with the

Philadelphia Orchestra The Philadelphia Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra, based in Philadelphia. One of the " Big Five" American orchestras, the orchestra is based at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, where it performs its subscription concerts, n ...

under the baton of

Eugene Ormandy Eugene Ormandy (born Jenő Blau; November 18, 1899 – March 12, 1985) was a Hungarian-born American conductor and violinist, best known for his association with the Philadelphia Orchestra, as its music director. His 44-year association with ...

on 16 January 1942. The Philadelphia reviewers commented more on Wittgenstein and his work as a one-armed pianist than on the composition itself. ''

The Philadelphia Record ''The Philadelphia Record'' was a daily newspaper published in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from 1877 until 1947. It became among the most circulated papers in the city and was at some points the circulation leader. History ''The Public Record'' ...

'' did describe the score as "ingeniously written", while ''Musical America'' commented on the presence of both "pleasurable and dull moments" in the work. Wittgenstein gave the British premiere of the revised work in October 1950, with the (then) Bournemouth Municipal Orchestra under Trevor Harvey. Britten then made further revisions and in 1954 made his own first recording, conducting the London Symphony Orchestra with soloist Julius Katchen.

Music

The piece is in the form of a theme and 11 variations: * Theme * Variation I, Recitative * Variation II, Romance * Variation III, March * Variation IV, Rubato * Variation V, Chorale * Variation VI, Nocturne * Variation VII, Badinerie * Variation VIII, Ritmico * Variation IXa, Toccata I * Variation IXb, Toccata II * Variation X, Adagio * Variation XI, Tarantella. Britten utilised music that he wrote for a production of J. B. Priestley's ''Johnson over Jordan'' as source material for the work. Lyn Henderson has noted the influence of

Prokofiev Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''. , group=n ( – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor who l ...

-like rhythms in Variation IXa. Christopher Mark has discussed Britten's use of the

circle of fifths In music theory, the circle of fifths (sometimes also cycle of fifths) is a way of organizing pitches as a sequence of perfect fifths. Starting on a C, and using the standard system of tuning for Western music (12-tone equal temperament), the se ...

in various works, including the ''Diversions''.

Recordings

* Decca LXT 2981 (original LP): Julius Katchen, pianist;

London Symphony Orchestra The London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London. Founded in 1904, the LSO is the oldest of London's orchestras, symphony orchestras. The LSO was created by a group of players who left Henry Wood's Queen's ...

; Benjamin Britten, conductor * Desto Records DC-7168 (original LP):

Leon Fleisher Leon Fleisher (July 23, 1928 – August 2, 2020) was an American classical pianist, conductor and pedagogue. He was one of the most renowned pianists and pedagogues in the world. Music correspondent Elijah Ho called him "one of the most re ...

, pianist;

Baltimore Symphony Orchestra The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Baltimore SO has its principal residence at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, where it performs more than 130 concerts a year. In 2005, ...

;

Sergiu Comissiona Sergiu Comissiona (Hebrew: סרג'ו קומיסיונה; June 16, 1928 – March 5, 2005) was a Romanian- Israeli- American conductor and violinist. Biography Early life Born in Bucharest, Romania in a Jewish family, he began violin studies at ...

, conductor * Sony Classical SK 48188 (1992 CD):

, pianist;

Boston Symphony Orchestra The Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American orchestra based in Boston. It is the second-oldest of the five major American symphony orchestras commonly referred to as the "Big Five (orchestras), Big Five". Founded by Henry Lee Higginson in ...

;

Seiji Ozawa was a Japanese conductor known internationally for his work as music director of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the San Francisco Symphony, and especially the Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO), where he served from 1973 for 29 years. After cond ...

, conductor * EMI Classics: Peter Donohoe, pianist;

City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra The City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO) is a British orchestra based in Birmingham, England. It is the resident orchestra at Symphony Hall, Birmingham in Birmingham, which has been its principal performance venue since 1991. Its adminis ...

; Sir

Simon Rattle Sir Simon Denis Rattle (born 19 January 1955) is a British conductor with German citizenship. He rose to international prominence during the 1980s and 1990s, while music director of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (1980–1998). Rat ...

, conductor

History

Music

Recordings

References

Sources

See also