Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto #3 “The Last Romantic Composer: Seven Interesting Facts about Rachmaninoff.” (Source: CMuse.org: On-line site for music industry news and articles.)
• Composed in 1909 as preparation for his first American tour. Written in Dresden and at Ivanovka, the family estate in Russia and finished on board the ship on a silent keyboard. Written for Rachmaninoff, himself, to play as virtuoso performance.
• Rachmaninoff defined himself as the last romantic composer. He described his harmonic arrangements and tonalities as in the genre “of flowing, lush effects and illuminated vista viewed from a romantic point.” Rachmaninoff deemed Romantic music timeless, as it reflected the warmth and depth of compassion in human nature.
• Rachmaninoff said that he wrote music that reflected the philosophy of Old Russia “with its overtones of suffering and unrest, its pastoral but tragic beauty, its ancient and enduring glory.”
• Many pianists fear Rach 3 as one of the most difficult concertos in the classical repertoire: Joseph Hofmann, to whom the work was dedicated, never performed it in public. Gary Graffman lamented that he had not learned the concerto as a student, when he was “too young to know fear.”
• In 1928: Rachmaninoff asked the great pianist Vladimir Horowitz if he (Rachmaninoff) could accompany Horowitz in a performance of it. Horowitz said “[Rachmaninoff was] the musical god of my youth … To think that this great man should accompany me in his own Third Concerto … This was the most unforgettable impression of my life! This was my real debut!” Rachmaninoff praised Horowitz’s performance. “He swallowed it whole … he had the courage, the intensity, the daring.”
Three movements: 1. Allegro ma non tanto 2. Intermezzo: Adagio 3. Finale: Alla Breve
Allegro ma non tanto Sonata form: Theme #1 Theme #2 Development section (with short cadenzas) Recapitulation Extended cadenza Coda & quiet finale
Intermezzo: Adagio Ternary form (ABA): A: Luxuriant theme: First by the orchestra, then by the piano B: Waltz A: Luxuriant theme in orchestra
Finale: Alla Breve A: Staccato theme in piano then in the orchestra B: Variations on finale theme (plus on one a theme from Mvt. #1) A: Staccato theme explored in piano with orchestra; cadenza-like finale Performance: Yefim Bronfman, Valerie Gergiev, Vienna Philharmonic (Resources Page. Class Website)
Sections in Mvt #1 Timing Notice: Theme #1 00.28 - 02:56 Piano plays theme, then orchestra plays the theme while piano embellishes it.
Theme #2 02.56 – 03.07 Transition 03:38 – 06:40 Theme #2 played staccato then in a song-like manner (at 4:10); then theme #2 explored
Development 6:40 –09:36 Theme #1 returns and explored and shared with (with Mini cadenza) orchestra, including mini cadenza. Theme #2 also explored Bridge 09:36 – 10:12 Extended cadenza 10:12 – 12:35 Recapitulation 12:35 – 14:55 Return to main themes, especially Theme #2 (13:30+ mini cadenza) (especially at 13:30) Coda & quiet finale 14:55 – 16:55 Return to Theme #1, piano and orchestra.
Sections in Mvt. #2 Timing Notice: Part #A 16:20 – 18:30 Orchestra plays the luxuriant Adagio theme. 18 30 – 18:55 Piano enters, forte and slightly dissonant
18:55 – 23:00 Piano embellishes and explores Adagio theme, at length; increasingly at forte.
Part #B 23:00 – 24:30 Shift to ¾ time, which is Waltz time. Adagio theme is explored in an upbeat tempo.
Part #A 24:30 – 25:40 Orchestra takes back the Adagio theme in a manner evocative of the opening nostalgic mood.
Sections in Mvt #3 Timing Notice Part #A 25:40 – 27:57 Piano introduces the staccato Finale theme with a molto forte entrance. 27:57 –29:09 Piano returns to luxuriant theme #2 of Mvt. #1
Part #B 29:10 Variation #1 Variations on Finale theme 30:00 Variation #2 30:50 Variation #3 32:21 Variation #4 (on Mvt #1 theme #2) 33:48 Variation #5 Part #A 34:10 – 38:52 Orchestra returns to Finale theme, piano joins in a recapitulation of the finale themes, with a grand cadenza-like ending.