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
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Фортепьяно и оркестр
Classical - Released by Bomba-Piter on 25 Sep 2015
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Brailowsky Plays Rachmaninov & Chopin
Classical - Released by Urania on 31 Mar 2004
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Morceaux de fantaisie, Op. 3: IV: Polichinelle in F-Sharp Minor (Live)
Stefano Miceli, Serge Rachmaninoff
Classical - Released by Appia Records on 30 Apr 2020
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Сергей Рахманинов. Романсы
Classical - Released by Bomba-Piter on 1 Jan 2005
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Work & Relax with Rachmaninoff
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on 23 Jan 2021
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Russian Music Society presents:Rachmaninov: Symphony No.2, Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra
Classical - Released by Russian Music Society on 18 Dec 2006
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The Classical Greats Series, Vol.39: Rachmaninov
Classical - Released by Global Journey on 8 Jul 2013
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Rachmaninoff Plays Chopin
Classical - Released by Superlative Classical Records on 24 Jan 2012
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Rachmaninoff plays Rachmaninoff: The Piano Concertos and Solo Pieces
Classical - Released by Warner Music Group - X5 Music Group on 26 Jan 2010
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Rachmaninoff plays Rachmaninoff: The Piano Concertos and Solo Pieces
Classical - Released by X5 Music Group on 26 Jan 2010
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Rachmaninoff: Moments Musicaux No. 3 in B Minor, Op. 16 (Digitally Remastered)
Classical - Released by EMG Classical on 9 Dec 2014
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Rachmaninoff Autumn Study Vibes
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on 24 Oct 2020
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Rachmaninoff Sergei: Concerto N. 2, in Do Minore, Op. 18., Recorded 1929 .
Classical - Released by World Classical Music Digital on 6 Feb 1963
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Sergei Rachmaninov
Classical - Released by Documents on 1 Sep 2008
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Los Grandes de la Musica Clasica - Sergei Rachmaninov Vol. 1
Philharmonic Orchestra Tübingen, Robert Alexander Bohnke, Michael Ponti
Classical - Released by ClassicalPirosDigital on 4 Jun 2015
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Rachmaninoff Study to the Classics Relaxing Classical Music for Quiet Study and Concentration
Serge Rachmaninoff, Eugene Ormandy, Leopold Stokowski and the Philadelphia Orchestra
Classical - Released by Superlative Classical Records on 17 Jan 2012
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Rachmaninoff: Symphony No. 3 in A Minor, Op. 44 & Piano Concerto No. 3 in D Minor, Op. 30
Serge Rachmaninoff, Philadelphia Orchestra, Eugene Ormandy
Classical - Released by Russian Compact Disc on 21 May 2021
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Rachmaninoff - Christmas Present
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on 19 Dec 2020
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Simply Rachmaninoff
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on 1 May 2021
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Rachmaninoff: Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Op. 43
Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO), Fritz Reiner, Arthur Rubinstein
Classical - Released by OBX Records on 19 Jan 2015
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Sergei Rachmaninoff: Symphonic Dances
Classical - Released by Russian Music Society on 3 Sep 2010
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