Rachmaninoff: Piano Sonata No. 1 in D minor, Op. 28 (reference recording: Howard Shelley)

Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943) Piano Sonata #1 In D minor, Op. 28 00:00 Piano Sonata #1 In D Minor, Op. 28 - 1. Allegro Moderato 13:36 Piano Sonata #1 In D Minor, Op. 28 - 2. Lento 23:11 Piano Sonata #1 In D Minor, Op. 28 - 3. Allegro Molto Piano: Howard Shelley Recorded in 1985, at London Label: Hyperion ❤ Support me on Patreon https://cutt.ly/ZezaldhI 🔊 Join us with your phone on our WhatsApp fanpage (our latest album preview): https://cutt.ly/5eathESK 🔊 Find our entire catalog on Qobuz: https://cutt.ly/geathMhL 🔊 Discover our playlists on Spotify: https://cutt.ly/ceatjtlB In November 1906, the Rachmaninoffs settled in Dresden, where the composer immediately began work on three large-scale compositions. These were an opera, Monna Vanna, the first act of which was completed in April 1907; a Symphony (No. 2) in E minor, also completed in April; and his First Piano Sonata, which he finished on 14 May. The Sonata in D minor is a brilliant, expansive masterpiece, one that certainly makes no attempt to court popularity. It is magnificently written for the instrument and demands a pianist of the very highest virtuoso calibre. Similar processes link Rachmaninoff's Second Symphony to the first movement of the sonata. The two principal themes (each endowed with subsidiary material that continually proliferates) share the same tonal root, making the conventional designation of 'first and second subjects' inappropriate. The tonality of the work deserves close examination, since the impression of monotonal unity is deceptive. Notice how what appears to be a third theme is in fact a combination of the two preceding themes. The rich and grandiose climax at which this theme is revealed is a breathtaking moment. The movement is a magnificent and perhaps original structure: rock-solid in form, its emotional design is deeply satisfying. Just before the coda reminiscenza, the composer suddenly shifts into the major mode in a passage of extraordinarily apt beauty, and the surprising final cadence is profoundly logical. The second movement, Lento, opens with a feminine, introspective theme, full of imaginative fancy, unfolding over a gently undulating line. The central section begins after a continuous development. It is marginally more agitated, but note the varied keyboard texture following the ascending sequence in the upper register, which initiates a recapitulation of the development. This is introduced by an apparently new idea in the left hand (marked by a significant semitonal inflection), set against the right hand's filigree-like ornamentation. In fact, this is yet another variation of the secondary theme from the first movement. The tranquil conclusion in F major is shattered by the eruptive opening of the finale, charged with burning passion. The first theme to emerge from this whirlwind bears a resemblance to the second subject of the finale of the Piano Concerto in D minor (No. 3). The sonata's finale is the most complex of its movements. Its material encompasses expanded themes and melodic cells that race across the keyboard, while Rachmaninoff weaves themes from the preceding movements into the texture. Combined with the composer's idée fixe throughout his oeuvre, the Dies irae, first hinted at and then finally revealed in the bass just before the second, agitated yet remarkably extended section of the recapitulation, the result is a work of astonishing compositional mastery. Other Album available // Rachmaninoff: Piano Concertos Nos. 1,2 & 3 by Byron Janis 🔥 Choose my streaming platform: https://lnk.to/rachmaninoffconcertosj... 🎧 Qobuz (Hi-Res) https://cutt.ly/stegC88X Tidal (Hi-Res) https://cutt.ly/WtegVk6k 🎧 Apple Music (Lossless) https://cutt.ly/ntegVOTA Amazon Music (Hi-Res) https://cutt.ly/etegV2kW 🎧 Deezer (Hi-Fi) https://cutt.ly/HtegBzUb Youtube Music (mp4) https://cutt.ly/5tegBMXf 🎧 Spotify (off) 🔊 Download the album (Hi-Res MASTER - WAV uncompressed) https://cutt.ly/classicalmusicreferen...