Sergei Rachmanninoff was born on April 1, 1873 near Norgorod, Russia. As a
boy he began studying with several Russian composers such as Anton, Arensky,
Sergey Taneyev, and Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky. Most will know of Rachmanninoff
as the Russian-American composer, pianist, and conductor, but many do not know
that he was considered the definition of the last major muscial expression of
the Romantic Era.
In 1892 Rachmanninoff's Prelude in C-sharp Minor for piano and orchestra and
his opera Aleko were the two pieces that established him as a composer. But in
1897 when his Symphony No. 1 in D-Minor was performed the negative reception from
the people was so harsh and blunt that it caused him to stop composing. He
then worked for the next three years as a pianist and a conductor and made sure
to stay away from orchestra compositions for the time being. In 1900 when he
composed the Piano Concerto No. 2 in C Minor he decided to return to composition.
He worked mainly in Moscow between 1904 and 1906 and conducted often at the
Bolshoi Theatre. In 1917, Rachmanninoff left Russia to work solely in the United
States on piano and conducting careers.
After 1917, he only composed a few more pieces such as Variations on a Theme
of Corelli (1934) for piano, Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini (1936) for piano,
Symphony No.3 in A Minor (1936) for piano and orchestra, and Piano Concerto No.4
in G Minor (1937).
Often it sounds as if a composer's life is filled with nothing but the joy of
creating musical masterpieces, but it is not what it is cut out to be. There are
many responsibilities involved in composing. Not only is the piece a complicated
work, but it is taken for granted often.
Rachmanninoff Links
Rachmanninoff's history
Musical Masterpieces
Classical Music Reviews
Rachmanninoff's Orchestra
Romantic/20th Century Rachmanninoff music
Email: rachele@n2art.com
