Description
Barenboim celebrated his 70th birthday on November 15, 2012, by performing a gala concert at Berlin's Philharmonie, where he was joined by the Staatskapelle Berlin, of which he is Conductor For Life. Not only did the crowd give the great conductor-pianist a standing ovation on his first appearance, but they also sang Happy Birthday to him before he had played a note. Barenboim and orchestra were joined by his great friend, the celebrated conductor, Zubin Mehta. The program opens with Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor and finishes with Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 in B flat minor. Also included is the German premiere of Dialogues II, a brief and witty work for piano and orchestra, written in celebration of Barenboim's 70th year by Elliott Carter, who died at the age of 103, just 10 days before the concert. Proceeds from the evening were donated to the Berlin Music Kindergarten, which Barenboim founded in 2005.