Sergei Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor, Op. 30, was composed in the summer of 1909. The piece was premiered on November 28 of that year in New York City with the composer as soloist, accompanied by the New York Symphony Society under Walter Damrosch. [1] The work has the reputation of being one of the most technically challenging piano concertos in the standard classical piano repertoire. [2] [3] [4]
Rachmaninoff composed the concerto in Dresden [5] completing it on September 23, 1909. Contemporary with this work are his First Piano Sonata and his tone poem The Isle of the Dead.
Owing to its difficulty, the concerto is respected, even feared, by many pianists. Josef Hofmann, the pianist to whom the work is dedicated, never publicly performed it, saying that it "wasn't for" him. Gary Graffman lamented he had not learned this concerto as a student, when he was "still too young to know fear". [6]
Due to time constraints, Rachmaninoff could not practice the piece while in Russia. Instead, he practiced it on a silent keyboard that he brought with him while en route to the United States. The concerto was first performed on Sunday, November 28, 1909, at the New Theatre in New York City. Rachmaninoff was the soloist, with the New York Symphony Society with Walter Damrosch conducting. The work received a second performance under Gustav Mahler on January 16, 1910, an "experience Rachmaninoff treasured". [7] Rachmaninoff later described the rehearsal to Riesemann:
At that time Mahler was the only conductor whom I considered worthy to be classed with Nikisch. He devoted himself to the concerto until the accompaniment, which is rather complicated, had been practiced to perfection, although he had already gone through another long rehearsal. According to Mahler, every detail of the score was important – an attitude too rare amongst conductors. ... Though the rehearsal was scheduled to end at 12:30, we played and played, far beyond this hour, and when Mahler announced that the first movement would be rehearsed again, I expected some protest or scene from the musicians, but I did not notice a single sign of annoyance. The orchestra played the first movement with a keen or perhaps even closer appreciation than the previous time. [8]
The score was first published in 1910 by Gutheil. Rachmaninoff called the Third the favorite of his own piano concertos, stating that "I much prefer the Third, because my Second is so uncomfortable to play."
Public opinion regarding the Third Concerto was mixed following the premiere in New York. On November 30, 1909, two days after the premiere, a critic for the New York Sun wrote "Sound, reasonable music this, though not a great nor memorable proclamation." The New York Times, a few months later, included a review of Rachmaninoff's work: "On this occasion the favorable impression it had made when it was played before was deepened. It is more mature, more finished, more interesting in its structure, and more effective than Rachmaninoff's other compositions in this form…but it was felt by many yesterday…that many another pianist could play it better than the composer." [9]
However, by 1919, public perception of the concerto (as well as Rachmaninoff's pianistic capabilities) turned more positive. He was increasingly praised for his commitment to resonance and musicality rather than a display of technique and virtuosity. The concerto was "affected by this new appreciation for his convictions", according to Ruby Cheng. [9] In a 1930 letter, Rachmaninoff's brother-in-law Vladimir Satin expressed a feeling of nostalgia for a "lost Russia", thanking him for allowing listeners to live in the "good past" and forget the "bad future". Rachmaninoff became a symbol of an old, nationalistic identity of Russia; many believed he was among the last. The Third Concerto served the same purpose as the Second in this way: he "spoke directly to the Russian soul." [10] The concerto soon became more popular in the United States than the Second Concerto, partially due to the fact that Rachmaninoff wrote the Third specifically for his American tour. [11]
Vladimir Horowitz's 1930 studio recording of the concerto brought immense popularity to the piece around the world. In 1927, Horowitz met with Rachmaninoff in New York, where he performed the piece for him. By receiving feedback from the composer, Horowitz's interpretation of the concerto "most closely resembled Rachmaninoff's performance in its finely chiseled, almost steely delivery." Ruby Cheng writes, "With these expansions of musical expression and pianism, Horowitz brought the Third Concerto into a prominence that broke through any listener resistance." [9] Horowitz later said "Without false modesty, I brought this concerto to light. I brought it to life, and everywhere!"
Russian critic Grigory Prokofiev wrote "The new concerto mirrored the best sides of [Rachmaninoff's] creative power - sincerity, simplicity and clarity of musical thought." [12] According to Varazdat Khachatryan, the Third Concerto was more piano-centric than Rachmaninoff's previous concertos, presenting the solo pianist as the main attraction, rather than the ensemble as a whole. Much of the structure of the Third Concerto echoes that of the Second, and further develops Rachmaninoff's writing style. The piece is far more structurally complex, however; advanced polyrhythms and texture feature throughout. Boris Asafiev writes that the Third Concerto departs from the "naive romantic features" seen in his earlier compositions, namely the Second Concerto. In addition, the three movements of the Third Concerto, in terms of motives and theme, resemble the cyclic form of the classical symphony, unlike his Second.
It is generally agreed that the melodic density and complexity found in the concerto, namely the ossia cadenza of the first movement, is among the most challenging in all of Rachmaninoff's works. The composition is seen by many as the pinnacle of Rachmaninoff's career as a composer. [12]
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The work follows the form of a standard piano concerto, constructed into three movements. The end of the second movement leads directly into the third without interruption.
The first movement is in sonata-allegro form. The piece revolves around a diatonic melody which Rachmaninoff claimed "wrote itself". [13] [11] The theme soon develops into complex and busy pianistic figuration.
The second theme opens with quiet exchanges between the orchestra and the piano before fully diving into the second theme in B♭ major. The first part of the first theme is restated before the movement is pulled into a loud development section in C minor which opens with toccata-like quavers in the piano and reaches a loud chordal section. The whole development exhibits features similar to a canon, such as an eighth note passage in the piano in which the left hand and the right hand play overlapping figures. The movement reaches a number of ferocious climaxes, especially in the cadenza.
Rachmaninoff wrote two versions of this cadenza: the chordal original, which is commonly notated as the ossia , and a second one with a lighter, toccata-like style. Both cadenzas lead into a quiet solo section where the flute, oboe, clarinet and horn individually restate the first theme of the exposition, accompanied by delicate arpeggios in the piano. The cadenza then ends quietly, but the piano alone continues to play a quiet development of the exposition's second theme in E♭ major before leading to the recapitulation, where the first theme is restated by the piano, with the orchestra accompanying, soon closing with a quiet, rippling coda reminiscent of the second theme.
The second movement is constructed around a theme and variations, in an ABACA form, while shifting around various home keys. The theme and first two variations are played by the orchestra alone. The piano then plays several variations with and without the orchestra. 
After the first theme development and recapitulation of the second theme, the main melody from the first movement reappears, before the movement is closed by the orchestra in a manner similar to the introduction. The piano ends the movement with a short, violent "cadenza-esque" passage which moves into the last movement without pause. Many melodic thoughts of this movement allude to Rachmaninoff's second piano concerto, third movement, noticeably the Russian-like E♭ major melody.
The third movement is in a modified sonata-allegro form, and is quick and vigorous.
The movement contains variations on many of the themes that are used in the first movement, which unites the concerto cyclically. However, after the first and second themes it diverges from the regular sonata-allegro form. There is no conventional development; that segment is replaced by a lengthy digression in E♭ major, which leads to the two themes from the first movement. After the digression, the movement recapitulation returns to the original themes, building up to a toccata climax somewhat similar but lighter than the first movement's ossia cadenza and accompanied by the orchestra. The movement concludes with a triumphant and passionate second theme melody in D major. The piece ends with the same four-note rhythm – claimed by some to be the composer's musical signature – as it is used in both the composer's second concerto and second symphony.
Rachmaninoff, under pressure, and hoping to make his work more popular, authorized several cuts in the score, to be made at the performer's discretion. These cuts, particularly in the second and third movements, were commonly taken in performance and recordings during the initial decades following the concerto's publication. More recently, it has become commonplace to perform the concerto without cuts. A typical performance of the complete concerto has a duration of about forty minutes.
The concerto plays the role of a leitmotif in the 1996 film Shine , based on the life of pianist David Helfgott. [14]
In music, a cadenza, is, generically, an improvised or written-out ornamental passage played or sung by a soloist(s), usually in a "free" rhythmic style, and often allowing virtuosic display. During this time the accompaniment will rest, or sustain a note or chord. Thus an improvised cadenza is indicated in written notation by a fermata in all parts. A cadenza will usually occur over either the final or penultimate note in a piece, the lead-in, or the final or penultimate note in an important subsection of a piece. A cadenza can also be found before a final coda or ritornello.
Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff was a Russian composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of the last great representatives of Romanticism in Russian classical music. Early influences of Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, and other Russian composers gave way to a thoroughly personal idiom notable for its song-like melodicism, expressiveness, dense contrapuntal textures, and rich orchestral colours. The piano is featured prominently in Rachmaninoff's compositional output and he used his skills as a performer to fully explore the expressive and technical possibilities of the instrument.
The Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Op. 43, is a concertante work written by Sergei Rachmaninoff for piano and orchestra, closely resembling a piano concerto, all in a single movement. Rachmaninoff wrote the work at his summer home, the Villa Senar in Switzerland, according to the score, from 3 July to 18 August 1934. Rachmaninoff himself, a noted performer of his own works, played the piano part at the piece's premiere on 7 November 1934, at the Lyric Opera House in Baltimore, Maryland, with the Philadelphia Orchestra conducted by Leopold Stokowski.
The Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 16, composed by Edvard Grieg in 1868, was the only concerto Grieg completed. It is one of his most popular works, and is among the most popular of the genre. Grieg, being only 24 years old at the time of the composition, had taken inspiration from Robert Schumann's only concerto, also being in A minor.
The Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op. 18, is a concerto for piano and orchestra composed by Sergei Rachmaninoff between June 1900 and April 1901. The piece established his fame as a concerto composer and is one of his most enduringly popular pieces.
The Piano Concerto No. 1 in B♭ minor, Op. 23, was composed by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky between November 1874 and February 1875. It was revised in 1879 and in 1888. It was first performed on October 25, 1875, in Boston by Hans von Bülow after Tchaikovsky's desired pianist, Nikolai Rubinstein, criticised the piece. Rubinstein later withdrew his criticism and became a fervent champion of the work. It is one of the most popular of Tchaikovsky's compositions and among the best known of all piano concerti.
Six moments musicaux, Op. 16, is a set of solo piano pieces composed by the Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninoff between October and December 1896. Each Moment musical reproduces a musical form characteristic of a previous musical era. The forms that appear in Rachmaninoff's incarnation are the nocturne, song without words, barcarolle, virtuoso étude, and theme and variations.
Sergei Rachmaninoff's Trio élégiaque No. 2 in D minor, Op. 9 is a piano trio which he began composing on 25 October 1893 and completed on 15 December that year. It was written in memory of Tchaikovsky and was inscribed with the dedication "In Memory of a Great Artist". It was first performed in Moscow on 31 January 1894 by Rachmaninoff himself, the violinist Julius Conus, and the cellist Anatoli Brandukov.
The Symphony No. 2 in E minor, Op. 27, is a four-movement composition for orchestra written from October 1906 to April 1907 by the Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninoff. The premiere was performed at the Mariinsky Theatre in Saint Petersburg on 26 January 1908, with the composer conducting. Its duration is approximately 60 minutes when performed uncut; cut performances can be as short as 35 minutes. The score is dedicated to Sergei Taneyev, a Russian composer, teacher, theorist, author, and pupil of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The piece remains one of the composer's most popular and best known compositions.
Piano Concerto No. 4 in G minor, Op. 40, is a major work by Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninoff, completed in 1926. The work exists in three versions. Following its unsuccessful premiere, the composer made cuts and other amendments before publishing it in 1928. With continued lack of success, he withdrew the work, eventually revising and republishing it in 1941. The original manuscript version was released in 2000 by the Rachmaninoff Estate to be published and recorded. The work is dedicated to Nikolai Medtner, who in turn dedicated his Second Piano Concerto to Rachmaninoff the following year.
Sergei Rachmaninoff composed his Piano Concerto No. 1 in F♯ minor, Op. 1, in 1891, at age 17-18. He dedicated the work to Alexander Siloti. He revised the work thoroughly in 1917.
Suite No. 1 in G minor, Op. 5, is a suite for two pianos written by Sergei Rachmaninoff. The suite was a musical depiction of four poems written in the summer of 1893 at the Lysikof estate in Lebeden, Kharkov. The premiere took place in Moscow, on November 30, 1893, played by Rachmaninoff himself alongside Pavel Pabst. The work was dedicated to Tchaikovsky, who intended to attend the work's premiere, but died five weeks prior. Its four movements alongside their respective poems are as follows:
Suite No. 2, Op. 17, is a composition for two pianos by Sergei Rachmaninoff, written in Italy in the first months of 1901. Alongside his Second Piano Concerto, Op. 18, it confirmed a return of creativity for the composer after four unproductive years caused by the negative critical reception of his First Symphony, Op. 13. The Suite was first performed on November 24 that year by the composer and his cousin Alexander Siloti.
The Symphony No. 3 in A minor, Op. 44, is a three-movement composition for orchestra written from 1935 to 1936 by the Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninoff. The Third Symphony is considered a transitional work in Rachmaninoff's output. In melodic outline and rhythm it is his most expressively Russian symphony, particularly in the dance rhythms of the finale. What was groundbreaking in this symphony was its greater economy of utterance compared to its two predecessors. This sparer style, first apparent in the Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, enhances the emotional power of the work.
The Bells, Op. 35, is a choral symphony by Sergei Rachmaninoff, written in 1913 and premiered in St Petersburg on 30 November that year under the composer's baton. The words are from the poem The Bells by Edgar Allan Poe, very freely translated into Russian by the symbolist poet Konstantin Balmont. The traditional Gregorian melody Dies Irae is used frequently throughout the work. It was one of Rachmaninoff's two favorite compositions, along with his All-Night Vigil, and is considered by some to be his secular choral masterpiece. Rachmaninoff called the work both a choral symphony and (unofficially) his Third Symphony shortly after writing it; however, he would later write a purely instrumental Third Symphony at his new villa in Switzerland. Rachmaninoff dedicated The Bells to Dutch conductor Willem Mengelberg and the Concertgebouw Orchestra. The US Premiere of the work was given by Leopold Stokowski and the Philadelphia Orchestra and Chorus on 6 February 1920 and the UK Premiere by Sir Henry Wood and the Liverpool Philharmonic and Chorus on 15 March 1921.
Piano Sonata No. 1 in D minor, Op. 28, is a piano sonata by Sergei Rachmaninoff, completed in 1908. It is the first of three "Dresden pieces", along with the Symphony No. 2 and part of an opera, which were composed in the quiet city of Dresden, Germany. It was originally inspired by Goethe's tragic play Faust; although Rachmaninoff abandoned the idea soon after beginning composition, traces of this influence can still be found. After numerous revisions and substantial cuts made at the advice of his colleagues, he completed it on April 11, 1908. Konstantin Igumnov gave the premiere in Moscow on October 17, 1908. It received a lukewarm response there, and remains one of the least performed of Rachmaninoff's works.
Caprice bohémien, Op. 12, also known as the "Capriccio on Gypsy Themes", is a symphonic poem for orchestra composed by Sergei Rachmaninoff from 1892 to 1894.
The Three Russian Songs, Op. 41 for chorus and orchestra were written by Sergei Rachmaninoff in 1926. It is the last of Rachmaninoff's three works for chorus and orchestra, the others being the cantata Spring, Op. 20 (1902), and the choral symphony The Bells, Op. 35 (1913). The work takes about 15 minutes to perform.
The Études-Tableaux, Op. 33, is the first of two sets of piano études composed by Sergei Rachmaninoff. They were intended to be "picture pieces", essentially "musical evocations of external visual stimuli". But Rachmaninoff did not disclose what inspired each one, stating: "I do not believe in the artist that discloses too much of his images. Let [the listener] paint for themselves what it most suggests." However, he willingly shared sources for a few of these études with the Italian composer Ottorino Respighi when Respighi orchestrated them in 1930.
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