Tag Archives: “Rachmaninoff at 150”

Scenes from amongst the lilacs (and a bit of Rachmaninoff!)

Posted on May 21, 2023 by ksedinger

The warm months of the year, for us, tend to be bookended by two specific festivals: the Rochester Lilac Festival in May, and the Ithaca Applefest in October. Lots of stuff happens in between, but those are the markers of … Continue reading →

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Tone Poem Tuesday (Rachmaninoff at 150)

Posted on May 9, 2023 by ksedinger

I’ve featured this piece before, and it’s not even by Rachmaninoff. So how does it tie in? Because when it was composed for the film Dangerous Moonlight, a World War II potboiler whose protagonist is a talented pianist and composer, it … Continue reading →

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Rachmaninoff at 150: Variations

Posted on April 30, 2023 by ksedinger

We’ve already heard the Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, which is one of Rachmaninoff’s enduring later works. By contrast here is another Theme and Variations, this time the Variations on a Theme of Chopin. Rachmaninoff composed this work in 1902, and … Continue reading →

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Something for Thursday: Rachmaninoff at 150

Posted on April 27, 2023 by ksedinger

Two syrupy 1970s love ballads today! The lead artist here is singer-songwriter Eric Carmen, who was a big star in the 70s and has had a good career all along. You generally can’t go wrong with the 1970s, where power … Continue reading →

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Rachmaninoff at 150: The Towering Third

Posted on April 26, 2023 by ksedinger

If you remember the movie Shine, for which Geoffrey Rush won an Oscar, you may remember something of the reputation of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concert No. 3 in D minor. I’m no concert pianist–hell, I’m not a pianist of any kind, so … Continue reading →

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Tone Poem Tuesday: Rachmaninoff at 150, the many lives of “Vocalise”

Posted on April 25, 2023 by ksedinger

There are some pieces of music that take on lives of their own, extending far beyond their origins to become something bigger. Rachmaninoff wrote a song cycle in 1915 called 14 Romances, op. 34. We’ve already noted that Rachmaninoff was … Continue reading →

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Rachmaninoff at 150: Not an easy interview, that Sergei (but who would be, over breakfast?)

Posted on April 21, 2023 by ksedinger

One thing I’ve discovered in reading a lot about Sergei Rachmaninoff over the last few months is that while he led a rich inner life, he didn’t really like to talk much about it. Interviews with him tended to be … Continue reading →

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Something for Thursday: Rachmaninoff at 150

Posted on April 20, 2023 by ksedinger

The last major piece of chamber music Rachmaninoff wrote was the Sonata for Cello and Piano in G minor, and what a work it is. I’ve only discovered it in the last few months, but it’s been slowly creeping toward … Continue reading →

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Rachmaninoff at 150: Six Romances

Posted on April 18, 2023 by ksedinger

Of all the various forms of classical music that composers have indulged over the last few hundred years, the one about which I know the least is almost certainly the art song. These works, for voice and piano, have never … Continue reading →

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Rachmaninoff at 150: The Isle of the Dead (on Substack)

Posted on April 16, 2023 by ksedinger

My celebration of Sergei Rachmaninoff’s 150th anniversary continues over on my newsletter! Today I discuss his astonishing symphonic poem, The Isle of the Dead. Check it out! Subscribe!  

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