Piano Concerto, 9, 17, 20, : Keith Jarrett(P)D.r.davies / Stuttgart Co

No instrumental form elicited more spirited response from Mozart than the piano concerto. The better of his more than two dozen combine the rigors of his symphonies with the transcendent grace of his operas, along with a playfulness that may be due in part to the fact that they were written as vehicles for his own performance. Keith Jarrett, renowned for his composing and improvisational skill in the jazz realm, has proven himself a sober and capable hand in previous classical endeavors, having recorded works of Bach and Handel.
In his second all-Mozart disc, Jarrett takes on three very different concertos. The D minor is one of Mozart's great, dark works, comparable in mood (and key) to 'Don Giovanni.' By contrast, the G major concerto is more on 'Magic Flute' turf, pure delight, while the much earlier E flat 'Jeunehomme' Concerto is a brilliant mixture of delicacy and drama. Its heroic attitude and the equality of soloist and orchestra make it a milestone in the output of the composer as well as the history of the piano concerto.