The work was commissioned by the San Antonio Symphony and was first performed on April 7, 1968, by the pianist Hilde Somer [Wikidata] and the San Antonio Symphony under the direction of Victor Alessandro.
Here was a more than 30-minute-long concerto that promised satisfaction to virtuosos and audiences alike; and it was spiky enough in its Bartokian way to dispel the guilty pleasures that ensued from its sometimes Rachmaninoff-like, sometimes Mahler-like lyricism.
"[3] Reviewing a 1996 recording of the work, Edward Greenfield of Gramophone called it "a powerful and ambitious work in four sharply contrasted movements" He continued:The substantial opening Allegro, much the longest movement, is in modified sonata form, with a jazzy first subject prompting heavyweight virtuoso writing for the soloist, quickly leading to a broadly lyrical, meditative second theme.
If Corigliano unashamedly uses a freely eclectic style, his writing is consistently positive and energetic, never merely conventional, both in that first movement and the compact scherzo, the lyrical Andante appassionato slow movement and the Rondo finale which follow.
[4]The concerto was part of the Juilliard School's 2023 Piano Concerto Competition Finals and was performed by the winner Jack Gao in a concert in the presence of Corigliano, conducted by Simone Young.