Well i'm pretty new on the piano but have enough eperience to start a piano concerto there are so many possibilities but i have my eye set on one... The Tchaikovsky concerto no.1, I love it. I didn't pick Rachmaninoff because it is overplayed and my hands don't compare to Rach's huge paws! But i think the Tchaikovsky concerto isn't that bad, i'm just worried about how long the first movement is (it's very long) and i need it memorized and how am i going to memorize something that is approx 20 minutes 17 seconds not counting the other movements... Any suggestions or any help? Will be greatly appreciated thanks in advance! And also, after all that work how would you find an orchestra that is willing to accompany you?

I've you are new on a piano don't pick a rachmaninoff or and tchaikovsky. See the other topic about the first pianoconcerto!

gr,

robert

Memorizing, that's something you can learn. First of all, don't worry too much before you have started on the piece. You don't know, maybe you'll memorize very easily.

There are many "tricks" to memorize. I'll pick some out for you.
Here's the first link:
http://members.aol.com/kwanmc/memory.htm
I suggest you to read this part. You'll understand more about memorization.

And here are some links to other forums where memorization is discussed:
http://www.pianoworld.com/ubb/ubb/ultim ... 12266.html
http://www.pianoworld.com/ubb/ubb/ultim ... tml#000000
http://www.pianoworld.com/ubb/cgi-bin/u ... 11894.html
http://www.pianoworld.com/ubb/cgi-bin/u ... 10086.html
http://www.pianoworld.com/ubb/cgi-bin/u ... 10111.html
http://www.pianoworld.com/ubb/cgi-bin/u ... /9924.html

Maybe they'll help you. You can even register there if you want help. They are usually very quick with responding (it's a huge forum).

As for finding an orchestra, I don't know. Maybe you can tell us a more about yourself, like how old you are, where you live, etc. If you are at a high school, mostly they have an orchestra. When you are at college/universiry, they usually have a student orchestra. When you are an adult, it's harder to find one. You should be able to find a local one, and ask if they want to play with you. Maybe they want a kind of audition. Of course you have to play well then. And if you can't find an orchestra, you can always use a second piano. Perhaps someone you know can play they orchestra part. Maybe your teacher? Do you have a teacher?

I hope this helped . Good luck with learning.

EDIT: I agree with Robert, as a first concerto, Tchaikovsky is not a very good choice. I don't know about your level or repetoire, but it seems to me that starting with Tchaik 1 is very difficult.

You could do Grieg's concerto if you are an advanced pianist, but Tchaikovsky is too much, really.

I agree maybe i should pick another concerto, thanks for all your help!

How about Beethoven No. 1 or 2, Schumann, or maybe even Chopin?

I would reccomend also checking out the Bach concertos Bwv 1052 - 1060's
70's I believe...

But anyway my main point is that most pianists don't rehearse with
an orchestra unless you've learned the piece thoroughly and you're
going to perform... more typically what you do is find a piano reduction of the orchestral part... then hire a professional accompaniest to play it along with you (for example two grands next to one another). This
is great for practice runs, etc... then the next stage would be finding
an orchestra...

Yes Bach is a good idea as well as Beeth, less complicated! But i must say i was very dissapointed with Chopin's idea of a concerto!

Mozart concertos_ and if You prefer something romantic and not so popular I recomend Arensky " Fantasy for Rjabinin theme"- Lovely music. All in one movement.