A piano concerto by a princess. Friederike Sophie Wilhelmine of Prussia (1709–1758) was a princess of Prussia (the older sister of Frederick the Great). In 1731, she married Frederick, Margrave of Brandenburg-Bayreuth. She had to move from metropolitan Berlin to the small town of Bayreuth, an uncultured backwater, and spent the rest of her life giving it culture - the baroque buildings and parks built during her reign shape much of the present appearance of the town.
Wilhelmine was also a gifted composer and supporter of music. She worked to develop the musical life of Bayreuth and make it one of the most brilliant cities of the time. Besides hiring an able Kapellmeister, she herself composed an opera, a harpsichord concerto and chamber music.
The Keyboard Concerto in G minor consists of three movements, allegro - cantabile and gavottes I & II. Each movement takes wing from solid and vigorous openings. It is a buoyant, fascinating concerto, that certainly can hold its own next to similar concertos from the first half of the 18th century. It is a very enjoyable piece of music.
Here played by Fernando Miguel Jalôto, harpsichord; Orquestra Barroca Casa da Música; and Reyes Gallardo, concert master.