He may not have invented the genre, but Bach is unquestionably one of the first composers of harpsichord concertos, works performed nowadays on all keyboard instruments. One of his most famous, the Harpsichord Concerto in D Minor, opens the concert—a work likely inspired by a now-lost violin concerto. The concert continues with Haydn's Symphony No. 88, one of five symphonies dedicated to the French capital after the initial six Paris symphonies. Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 5, "The Emperor," closes the concert. The composer's last work of the genre, it was written for a more robust and modern piano than that of similar earlier works like Mozart's piano concertos and Beethoven's early piano concertos.

Photo: Sir András Schiff © Aline Paley