Search Results for: symphonic dances

A dear friend of mine died recently of a sudden heart attack. I discovered that the only music I found consoling was the slow movement of Rachmaninoff’s Second Piano Concerto – the 1929 recording with the composer at the piano, accompanied by Leopold Stokowski and the Philadelphia Orchestra. I am of course aware that many people find this piece maudlin. But Rachmaninoff the … [Read more...] about “Rachmaninoff In His Own Words” – A Man of Firm Identity and Principle

Today’s on-line “The American Scholar” includes something of mine on a magnificent new recording of Sergei Rachmaninoff’s "Symphonic Dances" – and why it matters. You can read the whole thing here.. An extract follows:  Rachmaninoff left two versions of the Symphonic Dances: one for orchestra, the other for two pianos. He premiered the latter, privately, with Vladimir … [Read more...] about “A Validation Overwhelming and Unprecedented” — Babayan and Trifonov Perform Rachmaninoff

Reviewing Fiona Maddocks’ beautiful new book on Sergei Rachmaninoff in exile for The American Scholar, I write:  “With the waning of modernism, Rachmaninoff’s stock began to rise; for the first time, he became an object of serious scholarly inquiry. Today, he ranks with Igor Stravinsky, Dmitri Shostakovich, and Serge Prokofiev as one of four great Russian composers … [Read more...] about Rachmaninoff in Exile: “Implacable Poise and Sovereign Humanity”

Charles O’Connell, who commanded “artists and repertoire” for RCA Victor from 1930 to 1944, left a book of reminiscences – The Other Side of the Record (1947) – documenting an astute, querulous intellect and a meddlesome ego. It was often O’Connell who decided what music famous conductors, pianists, and violinists might commercially record. O’Connell admired Sergei … [Read more...] about Rachmaninoff Uncorked — Take Two: RCA, Ormandy, and the Cork

Today's "Wall Street Journal" includes my review of "one of the most searing listening experiences in the history of recorded sound" -- the new Marston Records 3-CD set: "Rachmaninoff Plays Symphonic Dances" -- which you can sample here. My review reads: One of the saddest and most paradoxical artistic exiles of the 20th century was Sergei Rachmaninoff, who fled the Russian … [Read more...] about Rachmaninoff Uncorked