Beethoven’s beloved violin concerto is a work built on the traditional concerto form with some unexpected rule-bending, and bold and brilliant strokes. It opens with unconventional repeated beats on the timpani. What follows is the Godinspired entrance of a solo violin which testifies to Beethoven’s composition abilities and penchant for challenging tradition, as it is also permeated with incessant momentum and modern sensibility. Upon first hearing, Bartók’s The Wooden Prince seems to be the opposite, steeped in tradition. However, he assimilated his predecessors’ techniques and turned the non-ostentatious and fixed rhythm of folk music into his own musical language, and explored psychological issues from his distinctive point of view. It tells a story of a prince using a puppet to catch a princess’s attention, not expecting the princess to fall in love with the puppet rather than him. The absurdity of love and irony of life are subtly yet nimbly conveyed in this work with an eventual happy ending.