A concerto is a piece of music for one solo player and an orchestra. The soloist stands or sits at the front, beside the conductor. The two sides take turns, answer each other, and play together. Most concertos have three movements: fast, slow, and fast.
The parts of a concerto
| Part | What happens |
|---|---|
| First movement | Fast, and often the longest of the three. The orchestra and the soloist share the main tunes. |
| Cadenza | Near the end of the first movement, the orchestra stops, and the soloist plays alone |
| Second movement | Slow. The soloist sings a long tune. |
| Third movement | Fast and bright, often with a tune that keeps coming back |
Read what is a movement in classical music? and what is a cadenza?
Who plays the solo?
Any instrument can have a concerto. The piano and the violin have the most. There are concertos for cello, flute, clarinet, trumpet, horn, harp, guitar, and even tuba.
The concerto is named for its solo instrument: a piano concerto, a violin concerto, a trumpet concerto.
What to watch at a concert
- The soloist walks on last, with the conductor, to applause.
- The soloist often plays from memory. There is no music stand.
- The conductor follows the soloist. Watch the conductor glance over to keep the orchestra with the solo.
- The orchestra waits. During the cadenza, the players sit still and the conductor’s arms rest.
- Clap at the end. The three movements make one piece. Read when to clap at a classical concert.
Other kinds of concerto
- Concerto grosso. A Baroque kind with a small group of soloists in place of one. Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos are the best-known set. See the Brandenburg Concertos guide.
- Double concerto. Two soloists share the front of the stage. Bach wrote one for two violins.
- Concerto for orchestra. No single soloist. Each section of the orchestra takes a turn in the lead. Bartók wrote a famous one.
A short history
The concerto grew up in Italy in the Baroque era. Vivaldi wrote more than 500 of them, and he set the pattern of three movements. The Four Seasons is a set of four violin concertos.
Mozart wrote 27 piano concertos and played many of them himself. Beethoven wrote five for piano and one for violin. In the 1800s, concertos grew longer and harder, and the soloist became a star.
Read Vivaldi for kids and Baroque music for kids.
Concertos to hear first
“Spring,” from The Four Seasons, by Vivaldi. A violin concerto with birds, a brook, and a storm. See the guide.
Trumpet Concerto, third movement, by Haydn. A bright, quick tune that is easy to hum.
Clarinet Concerto, second movement, by Mozart. A slow, calm song for the clarinet.
Piano Concerto No. 1, by Tchaikovsky. It opens with horns and great crashing chords on the piano.
Piano Concerto, by Grieg. A drum roll, and then the piano tumbles down the keyboard.
Violin Concerto, by Mendelssohn. The violin starts singing almost at once. There is no long wait.
Concierto de Aranjuez, second movement, by Rodrigo. A concerto for guitar. Read the classical guitar for kids.
Concertos and students
Students play concertos too. In a lesson or a recital, a pianist plays the orchestra’s part.
Suzuki violin students meet their first concertos in Books 4 and 5, by Seitz, Vivaldi, and Bach. Read Suzuki violin books 1 to 10.
Some youth orchestras hold a concerto competition. The winner plays a movement with the full orchestra. Read youth orchestras.
Concerto, symphony, or sonata?
| Piece | Who plays | Movements |
|---|---|---|
| Concerto | A soloist and an orchestra | Three, as a rule |
| Symphony | An orchestra | Four, as a rule |
| Sonata | One or two players | Three or four |
Read what is a symphony?, what is a sonata?, and symphony, concerto, and sonata explained.
Things to do together
Spot the soloist. Watch the start of a concerto video. Ask your child to point to the soloist and to name the instrument.
Who has the tune? Raise one hand when the soloist has the tune and two hands when the orchestra has it.
Fast, slow, fast. Play ten seconds from each movement, in order. Your child shows the speed with their hands.
Wait for the cadenza. Watch for the moment the conductor’s arms drop and the soloist plays alone.
Pick a solo instrument. Ask which instrument your child would choose for a concerto of their own, and why.
Print and play
Use a listening journal page for each concerto. Find the soloist’s spot on the orchestra seating chart.
More from this guide
This article is part of Music theory for parents: what your child is learning and how to help.
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Use it with your kids
Print a listening page, a practice chart, or a composer fact sheet. Or try a tool, such as the composer timeline or the piece picker.