Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini
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.Rachmaninoff, Stokowski, and the Philadelphia Orchestra made the first recording, on 24 December 1934, at RCA Victor's Trinity Church Studio in Camden, New Jersey.The English premiere on 7 March 1935 at Manchester Free Trade Hall also featured Rachmaninoff with The Hallé conducted by Nicolai Malko.[7] Due to the speed and the large leaps on the piano, the 24th and last variation of the rhapsody presents considerable technical difficulty for the pianist.Upon the suggestion of his friend Benno Moiseiwitsch, Rachmaninoff broke his usual rule against drinking alcohol and had a glass of crème de menthe, which he reputedly kept beneath the piano, to steady his nerves.
concertanteSergei Rachmaninofforchestrapiano concertomovementVilla SenarLyric Opera HousePhiladelphia OrchestraconductedLeopold StokowskiRCA VictorCamden, New JerseyFree Trade HallThe HalléNicolai MalkoWoodwindsflutespiccolocor anglaisclarinetsbassoonstrumpetstrombonesPercussiontimpanisnare drumtrianglecymbalsbass drumglockenspielStringsviolinsviolascellosdouble bassesconcert harpvariationstwenty-fourth and lastNiccolò PaganiniCaprices for solo violinA minorD minorF majorB♭ minorD♭ majorA majorconcertoBeethoven'sEroica symphonyDies iraeplainchantMass of the Deadinversion of the melodyglissandoBenno Moiseiwitschcrème de mentheMichel FokinechoreographingguitarThe Royal BalletRoyal Opera HouseCovent GardenLondonSymphonic DancesLeonid LavrovskyBolshoi BalletFrederick AshtonRCA Victor Red SealBasil CameronLiverpool Philharmonic OrchestraNaxos RecordsWilliam KapellFritz ReinerRobin Hood Dell OrchestraArthur RubinsteinChicago Symphony OrchestraLeon FleisherGeorge SzellCleveland OrchestraColumbia MasterworksLeonard PennarioErich LeinsdorfLos Angeles PhilharmonicCapitol RecordsVladimir AshkenazyAndré PrevinLondon Symphony OrchestraLondon RecordsDmitri AlexeevYuri TemirkanovSt. Petersburg Philharmonic OrchestraVan CliburnKirill KondrashinMoscow Philharmonic OrchestraYuja WangClaudio AbbadoMahler Chamber OrchestraDeutsche GrammophonDaniil TrifonovYannick Nézet-SéguinThe Story of Three LovesSomewhere in TimeSingapore SlingDead AgainGroundhog DayThe Walking Dead (TV series)The Good WifeWinifred AtwellThe KorgisList of variations on a theme by another composerAllMusicThe New York TimesLeyda, JayInternet ArchiveSteinberg, MichaelRealNetworksInternational Music Score Library ProjectList of compositionsThe Miserly KnightFrancesca da RiminiSalammbôMonna VannaPiano Concerto No. 1 in F♯ minorPiano Concerto No. 2 in C minorPiano Concerto No. 3 in D minorPiano Concerto No. 4 in G minor