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Posted on 06/27/2014 6:00:30 PM PDT by AZamericonnie
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So good to see you darlin'!
Btw.....happy late birthday!
Love this tune! I'm "happy" & hope you are the same & in good health.
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Good evening, Publius, and thank you for Rachmaninov’s “The Star Spangled Banner”.
~~Tunes For The Troops~~ |
| Want more information about the artists we play? Perhaps you'd like to buy concert tickets or their CDs? Click the links provided at the top of the thread for more information! |
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A few years ago, I went through the works of Sergei Rachmaninov, the Russian composer who fled the Bolsheviks and became one of America’s most beloved composers. He was also the greatest pianist of the 20th Century.
His Sonata for Cello and Piano dates from his most successful Russian years. In 1901 his Second Piano Concerto took the world by storm, and a month later at a chamber concert, this sonata was given to the world. It’s one of the greatest Russian chamber works.
It begins with a slow introduction in 3/4 marked “Lento” with little sense of key.
At 2:20, the first subject in 4/4, marked “allegro moderato”, sounds like the winds whistling across the Russian steppes.
At 3:27, the second subject in D Major, marked simply “moderato”, releases the tension. This is Sergei at his romantic and songlike best. The cello and sings and sobs its way through a glorious melody.
At 5:05, the exposition repeat is observed, which is a bit unusual.
At 7:50, development begins. Sergei bases it exclusively on the first subject, which gives him a structural problem he handles with brilliance. It’s a technique he will use in a few years in his Second Symphony. Note the crossovers on the piano! At 8:56 the cello plays pizzicato while the piano departs the usual scheme of tonality to give you sense of suspension. This is followed by a series of false starts of a recapitulation, each stopped by the piano with a chromatic chord. Then it really takes off! The cello soars above it all, and at 10:20 the first subject whizzes by so rapidly you can barely hear it. But it’s not the recap yet!
He lowers the tension and solves his technical problem by dropping you seamlessly into the recap of the second subject in G Major at 11:00.
The coda begins at 12:38 and is based solely on the first subject. It ends decisively.
Over the past 40 years, Lynn Harrell has put his stamp on this sonata like no other cellist. He has gone from having a full head of hair to looking like Bruce Willis. This performance is with Harrell and pianist Victor Asunsion in Santa Monica in 2010. Harrell explains a few things about the sonata at the beginning.
Rachmaninov: Cello Sonata in G minor, Op. 19, first movement
~~Tunes For The Troops~~ |
| Want more information about the artists we play? Perhaps you'd like to buy concert tickets or their CDs? Click the links provided at the top of the thread for more information! |
~~Tunes For The Troops~~ |
| Want more information about the artists we play? Perhaps you'd like to buy concert tickets or their CDs? Click the links provided at the top of the thread for more information! |
Good evening, spel, and thank you for the Friday Night Edition of the Salsa Addiction Emergency Room! ((HUGS))
Connie!!!!!
Isn’t that video the best, just makes one want to dance around. It’s a toe tapped for sure. LOL
I would love to dance around but my danged knee keeps me in check.
I am well thank you and thanks for the BD wishes.
Lotsa good wallerin’ stuff this weekend, I think! :)
Woohoo....coming home!!
G'Day, Janey...((HUGS))
Ruh-roh. Thanks for the warning. :)
Yes, I am doing well, considering. ;-) Thank you for asking.
(((( HUGS ))))
Hi Ma!
Hummer was around this morning looking for a sweet treat. I’ve stopped feeding for a bit as I have hanging baskets of the real thing for them. He did hum around this evening - did the dip. Smiles.
Lovely day today, not too hot, but hot enough for me.
# 50 to Ma! Congratulations! ;-)
No prob, Ma!
(((( HUGS ))))
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