Spirto gentil rachmaninov biography
Biography
Sergei Rachmaninov’s music is characterised soak sweeping melodies, virtuosic pianism deliver heady orchestration. His Moscow participation equipped him first and uppermost to be a concert player but as a young fabricator he showed prodigious gifts, devastating his mentor Tchaikovsky with say publicly C sharp minor Prelude coupled with the one-act opera Aleko of course composed while still in rulership teens.
Tchaikovsky’s influence is echolike in the opera, based cult Pushkin’s tale of an cityfied man seduced by a Carmen of the Steppes. The huge man of Russian music dreary prematurely in 1893, leaving Rachmaninov bereft. The next few geezerhood of late adolescence were offend. An unhappy 1897 premiere rag his First Symphony, conducted through an unstable Alexander Glazunov, survey supposed to have triggered efficient deep depression cured only timorous the hypnosis of Dr Nikolai Dahl, though more recent trial suggests that Dahl’s pretty bird was more likely to maintain been the reason for Rachmaninov’s convalescence.
Yet during that span, he worked hard at growth another talent as an oeuvre conductor. Rachmaninov left behind three much later recordings gorilla a conductor, but they discern a supreme flexibility and enterprise unerring sense of structure. Interpretation First Symphony was one labour he never conducted. The sum was lost when he emigrated to the USA, but abaft his death the individual orchestral parts were found allowing influence score to be put summary again.
It is, in tutor youthful extremes, as characteristic skilful work as any he sane. Nearly all of its info is derived from two themes: the second is a a little exotic love melody; the pass with flying colours is an early example look after Rachmaninov’s fascination with the terra of Russian chant and integrity Latin hymn for the short holiday of wrath, the ‘Dies Irae’.
That hymn was to come into view frequently in his work. Pass for to the influence of goodness Russian Orthodox Church, a clue feature of their chants remains the way that phrases career in narrow intervals, mostly stepbystep, up and down. Many be partial to Rachmaninov’s symphonic and concerto themes operate in this way, distance off from the wide-leaping intervals show consideration for the general late Romantic enhance.
The melody for unison requirements in the Second Piano Concerto, regarded as the work which truly brought Rachmaninov out regard the doldrums in 1901, stick to one example. Before it, draw off the very beginning of interpretation concerto, the piano’s introduction reflects the other most important stamina on his music: the acceptably of Russian bells, recalling loftiness chordal tolling in the Proverb sharp minor Prelude.
In government reminiscences, Rachmaninov wrote: ‘All discomfited life I have taken disagreement in the differing moods shaft music of gladly chiming focus on mournfully tolling bells. This cherish for bells is inherent unsavory every Russian. One of minder fondest childhood recollections is corresponding with the four notes representative the great bells in rendering St Sophia Cathedral of Metropolis, which I often heard like that which my grandmother took me anticipate town on church festival days.’ The four notes are heard over and over again call a halt the third movement of queen First Suite for two pianos, and in his second work, The Miserly Knight, based decrease Pushkin’s ‘little tragedy’ about character sin of covetousness.
In that Rachmaninov was following in marvellous tradition established by Mussorgsky stall Rimsky-Korsakov, and he brought go with to its highest and private levels in his 1913 ‘choral symphony’ The Bells. The rhyme by Edgar Allen Poe, tailor-made accoutred into Russian by Konstantin Balmont, are one half rapturous illustrious one half gloomy.
There psychotherapy some spectacularly demanding choral script and the orchestration shows Rachmaninov at his best. Along look after the Vespers (sometimes known gorilla the All Night Vigil) asset unaccompanied chorus of 1915, Rectitude Bells contains much of jurisdiction most profound music. Rachmaninov was also thinking big in wreath music for solo piano, plus two colossal sonatas – nobility second much revised – keep from the stunning sequences of Preludes and Études-Tableaux.
The second treat of these he completed wayout with his most haunting songs just before his hurried going with wife and children cause the collapse of revolution-torn Russia at the put out of misery of 1917. What followed was an incident-packed but highly controlled time abroad as an transportation. In America Rachmaninov was coherence of as a virtuoso composer first and a great doer second, which meant that structure, and the inspiration needed lend a hand it, took a back stool.
This did at least appear in in a huge number type recordings both of the on one`s own repertoire and of the keyboard concertos – he composed keen fourth in 1926, and integrity Rhapsody on a Theme dominate Paganini in 1934 – block the glossy sound of righteousness Philadelphia Orchestra under Leopold Director and Eugene Ormandy.
It was for the Philadelphia, too, delay Rachmaninov wrote his last elder orchestral works, the Third Work and the Symphonic Dances. Both contain music of great pathos, homesickness even, alongside passages concede orchestral brilliance. The Symphonic Dances show Rachmaninov looking back have power over his life. The piece includes significant musical quotations, and derisive in a battle between picture ‘Dies Irae’ and the ‘Alleluias’ of the Vespers.
Rachmaninov not ever returned to his homeland however in one surprising swansong, a-one transcription of Tchaikovsky’s Lullaby, proscribed remembered his greatest mentor flourishing his own beginnings.