Werner Thärichen

Concerto for Drums and Orchestra Op. 66

Werner Thärichen, legendary timpanist of the Berlin Philharmonic under Furtwängler and Karajan, was also active as a conductor, author and composer. The best-known of his more than 70 works, doubtless, is his rousing Concerto for timpani and orchestra Op. 34. It was for his son Nicolai to whom he gave percussion lessons and who has meanwhile made a name for himself as a jazz pianist, composer and arranger, that Thärichen wrote the Percussion Concerto Op. 66 in 1988. The orchestral version was performed at a Berlin music school with great success. In view of the great interest in the work, the composer a little later wrote the present version, a fascinating 26-minute piece for this trio instrumentation which is not unusual at music schools.