Rachmaninoff had a distinctive melodic style, but would you agree that the opening subjects of his first three piano concertos are particularly alike? In fact, they share almost identical structural features. This finding, along with others on Rachmaninoff’s use of melodies in both large and small compositions, are discussed in this research project (Ph.D. Thesis, University of Sydney, 2009).
Rachmaninoff spent half of his life contemplating his Fourth Piano Concerto, from early sketches penned shortly after completion of the Third Concerto to its final reworking in 1941. Sadly, it has been less popular than his other works for piano and orchestra. More recently, the original version (1926) has been published, leading many to hope that it will receive a fresh hearing.
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The Performance Diary is a Database of all known performances and recordings by Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff, and is the result of over a decade of research. It gives an unparalleled insight into the intensity of Rachmaninoff’s performing career, and its geographical reach.
Scott Davie presents an enchanting program of works for piano by Rachmaninoff, who is probably the world’s most favourite composer of works for piano. Rachmaninoff’s music always captures the imagination, sometimes playful, sometimes profound.
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Mussorgsky: Pictures from an ExhibitionTulleries
Piano Piece in D minor
My understanding of the relationship between pianists and the pianos they play has been influenced by an event a few years back. Offered a choice between an ailing specimen of a leading European marque (an old instrument in extremely poor condition, weak in tone, and obviously in need of restoration) and a leading Asian brand in excellent working order (well regulated, with a strong, attractive sound), I witnessed a fellow student make a curious selection. Inquiring afterwards, I was told that a teacher had given an instruction to always choose the European make.
Clearly, the cachet of a label can have a significant effect on a pianist’s perception of what they are playing. In this light, it is interesting to view attitudes regarding acceptance of Australian-built pianos today.
Music from Grand, the highly acclaimed Graeme Murphy production of a modern ballet with piano in mind. Scott Davie creates a scintillating chemistry between pianist and dancer, taking the audience on a journey into a fascinating repertoire of piano composition.
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Asmira Woodward-Page on violinScott Davie on piano.A live performance of early Australian violin and piano music.
Recorded in the Concert Hall at the Sydney Opera House.
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Michaela Kowalski Interviews Scott Davie
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Scott Davie, a pianist and lecturer in Russian music history at the Sydney Conservatorium, recently found an unpublished sketch by Rachmaninoff in the composer’s archives at the Washington Library of Congress.
Whilst researching for his PhD on the composer’s melodies, Davies was amazed to uncover a two page sketch in Sergei Rachmaninoff’s hand, it was hidden in a pile of blank manuscript pages where it had languished for possibly 60 years. Davie was permitted to make a copy, which he brought back to Sydney.
[Read more…] about Rachmaninoff DiscoveredDavie described it as; eclectic, short-form, pictorial, experimental, harmonically unpredictable and modern – in fact, this was possibly the most modern phase of his composing life.