Serge Rachmaninoff
Sergey Rachmaninov was the last, great representative of the Russian Romantic tradition as a composer, but was also a widely and highly celebrated pianist of his time. His piano concertos, the Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, and his preludes famously test pianists' skills. His Symphony No. 2, the tone poem Isle of the Dead, and his Cello Sonata are also notable. The passionate melodies and rich harmonies of his music have been called the perfect accompaniment for love scenes, but in a greater sense they explore a range of emotions with intense and compelling expression.
Sergey Vasilyevich Rachmaninov, born in Semyonovo, Russia, on April 1, 1873, came from a music-loving, land-owning family; young Sergey's mother fostered the boy's innate talent by giving him his first piano lessons. After a decline in the family fortunes, the Rachmaninovs moved to St. Petersburg, where Sergey studied with Vladimir Delyansky at the Conservatory. As his star continued to rise, Sergey went to the Moscow Conservatory, where he received a sound musical training: piano lessons from the strict disciplinarian Nikolay Zverev and Alexander Siloti (Rachmaninov's cousin), counterpoint with Taneyev, and harmony with Arensky. During his time at the Conservatory, Rachmaninov boarded with Zverev, whose weekly musical Sundays provided the young musician the valuable opportunity to make important contacts and to hear a wide variety of music.
As Rachmaninov's conservatory studies continued, his burgeoning talent came into full flower; he received the personal encouragement of Tchaikovsky, and, a year after earning a degree in piano, took the Conservatory's gold medal in composition for his opera Aleko (1892). Early setbacks in his compositional career -- particularly, the dismal reception of his Symphony No. 1 (1895) -- led to an extended period of depression and self-doubt, which he overcame with the aid of hypnosis. With the resounding success of his Piano Concerto No. 2 (1900-1901), however, his lasting fame as a composer was assured. The first decade of the 20th century proved a productive and happy one for Rachmaninov, who during that time produced such masterpieces as the Symphony No. 2 (1907), the tone poem Isle of the Dead (1907), and the Piano Concerto No. 3 (1909). On May 12, 1902, the composer married his cousin, Natalya Satina.
By the end of the decade, Rachmaninov had embarked on his first American tour, which cemented his fame and popularity in the United States. He continued to make his home in Russia but left permanently following the Revolution in 1917; he thereafter lived in Switzerland and the United States between extensive European and American tours. While his tours included conducting engagements (he was twice offered, and twice refused, leadership of the Boston Symphony Orchestra), it was his astounding pianistic abilities which won him his greatest glory. Rachmaninov was possessed of a keyboard technique marked by precision, clarity, and a singular legato sense. Indeed, the pianist's hands became the stuff of legend. He had an enormous span -- he could, with his left hand, play the chord C-E flat-G-C-G -- and his playing had a characteristic power, which pianists have described as "cosmic" and "overwhelming." He is, for example, credited with the uncanny ability to discern, and articulate profound, mysterious movements in a musical composition which usually remain undetected by the superficial perception of rhythmic structures.
Fortunately for posterity, Rachmaninov recorded much of his own music, including the four piano concerti and what is perhaps his most beloved work, the Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini (1934). He became an American citizen a few weeks before his death in Beverly Hills, CA, on March 28, 1943.
© Michael Rodman, Patsy Morita /TiVo
-
Brailowsky Plays Rachmaninov & Chopin
Klassik - Erschienen bei Urania am 31.03.2004
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Morceaux de fantaisie, Op. 3: IV: Polichinelle in F-Sharp Minor (Live)
Stefano Miceli, Serge Rachmaninoff
Klassik - Erschienen bei Appia Records am 30.04.2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Сергей Рахманинов. Романсы
Klassik - Erschienen bei Bomba-Piter am 01.01.2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Work & Relax with Rachmaninoff
Klassik - Erschienen bei UME - Global Clearing House am 23.01.2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Russian Music Society presents:Rachmaninov: Symphony No.2, Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra
Klassik - Erschienen bei Russian Music Society am 18.12.2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Classical Greats Series, Vol.39: Rachmaninov
Klassik - Erschienen bei Global Journey am 08.07.2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rachmaninoff Plays Chopin
Klassik - Erschienen bei Superlative Classical Records am 24.01.2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rachmaninoff plays Rachmaninoff: The Piano Concertos and Solo Pieces
Klassik - Erschienen bei Warner Music Group - X5 Music Group am 26.01.2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rachmaninoff plays Rachmaninoff: The Piano Concertos and Solo Pieces
Klassik - Erschienen bei X5 Music Group am 26.01.2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rachmaninoff: Moments Musicaux No. 3 in B Minor, Op. 16 (Digitally Remastered)
Klassik - Erschienen bei EMG Classical am 09.12.2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rachmaninoff Autumn Study Vibes
Klassik - Erschienen bei UME - Global Clearing House am 24.10.2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rachmaninoff Sergei: Concerto N. 2, in Do Minore, Op. 18., Recorded 1929 .
Klassik - Erschienen bei World Classical Music Digital am 06.02.1963
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Sergei Rachmaninov
Klassik - Erschienen bei Documents am 01.09.2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Los Grandes de la Musica Clasica - Sergei Rachmaninov Vol. 1
Philharmonic Orchestra Tübingen, Robert Alexander Bohnke, Michael Ponti
Klassik - Erschienen bei ClassicalPirosDigital am 04.06.2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rachmaninoff Study to the Classics Relaxing Classical Music for Quiet Study and Concentration
Serge Rachmaninoff, Eugene Ormandy, Leopold Stokowski and the Philadelphia Orchestra
Klassik - Erschienen bei Superlative Classical Records am 17.01.2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rachmaninoff: Symphony No. 3 in A Minor, Op. 44 & Piano Concerto No. 3 in D Minor, Op. 30
Serge Rachmaninoff, Philadelphia Orchestra, Eugene Ormandy
Klassik - Erschienen bei Russian Compact Disc am 21.05.2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rachmaninoff - Christmas Present
Klassik - Erschienen bei UME - Global Clearing House am 19.12.2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Simply Rachmaninoff
Klassik - Erschienen bei UME - Global Clearing House am 01.05.2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rachmaninoff: Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Op. 43
Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO), Fritz Reiner, Arthur Rubinstein
Klassik - Erschienen bei OBX Records am 19.01.2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Sergei Rachmaninoff: Symphonic Dances
Klassik - Erschienen bei Russian Music Society am 03.09.2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Sergei Rachmaninov Performs His Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Op. 43
Klassik - Erschienen bei Past Classics am 28.04.2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo