Isabelle Faust conversa con Wieland Welzel (7 min)

Ludwig van Beethoven did not write a cadenza for his violin concerto, but he did write one for the version for piano and orchestra which he himself created. The violinist Isabelle Faust performed the violin concerto in a concert with the Berliner Philharmoniker in March 2015 and decided to play Beethoven’s piano cadenza for the first movement in an arrangement for violin. The cadenza is also particularly interesting because of the involvement of the timpani – and Beethoven’s only contribution to the genre of the violin concerto is also known for beginning with beats from the timpani. In this short video, Isabelle Faust, who made her debut with the Berliner Philharmoniker playing Schumann in 2009, talks to Wieland Welzel, timpanist with the orchestra since 1997. The two musicians also play a few passages from the cadenza. The violinist also tells an anecdote from Beethoven’s life which may explain the unusual use of the timpani at the beginning of the work.