“Music is enough for a lifetime, but a lifetime is not enough for music.” Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff (1873-1943)
Sergei Rachmaninoff was a Russian pianist, composer and conductor. He is considered the last romantic among the great Russian composers. Browse our sheet music and scores, and explore all his magnificent works today!
Unfortunately, Sergei Rachmaninoff’s childhood cannot be described as a particularly happy one. He was born into a wealthy aristocratic family, whose fortunes were soon dashed by his father’s decadent and debauched lifestyle, squandering all their money on mistresses and gambling. After his parents separated, the boy was sent to live with his grandmother, who recognised and nurtured his musical talents. At the age of nine, he joined the St. Petersburg Conservatoire. Despite his brilliant piano technique, and great musical talent, Rachmaninoff did not thrive at school, and was eventually sent off to Moscow, where he studied under the excellent teacher, Nikolai Zverev. It was in Moscow, that Rachmaninoff first began composing.
At the end of the 1890s, the young Rachmaninoff suffered two cruel turns of fate, both his close friend Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and his teacher Nikolai Zverev died. His 1st Symphony premiered in 1897, and although it was conducted by Alexander Glazunov, the performance was so lacking, that Rachmaninoff couldn’t bear to listen to any more, got up, and left the auditorium well before the end of the piece. The work was mercilessly slammed by the critics, and Rachmaninoff suffered a nervous breakdown. In the following three years, Rachmaninoff struggled to even pick up his quill.
It was not until after 1901 that Rachmaninoff finally turned back to music. He began to work as a conductor in Moscow, and slowly began to travel and perform again, first through Europe, and then the United States as a pianist and conductor. Soon however, the political situation in Russia became so dire, that in 1917, Rachmaninoff and his entire family bade a sad farewell to their homeland, never to return. They emigrated first to Scandinavia, and then in 1918, to America. He spent the final years of his life in the US and Switzerland, where he found peace in his villa, where he would retire after exhausting concert tours.
Stylistically, Sergei Rachmaninoff belongs to neo-romanticists, although his ideas were very original. His works are richly nationalistic, and encapture the essence of the Russian folk tradition. Rachmaninov was inspired by the typically Russian, expressive, romantic motifs and melodies of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Today, it is still possible to find recordings of Rachmaninoff’s piano playing; one can sit back, and admire his remarkable interpretive and expressive skills, and one can gain an insight into the composer’s inner thoughts, as he masterfully navigates his own magnificent works.
for: Descant (soprano) recorder, guitar
Sheet music
Item no.: 1246273
for: Bassoon, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1251524
for: Trumpet, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1251523
for: Cello, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1251516
for: Trombone, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1250867
for: Piano
Piano Solo
Item no.: 1553385
for: Flute, piano
Instrumental Solo & Piano Accompaniment
Item no.: 1589180
for: Alto saxophone, piano
Instrumental Solo & Piano Accompaniment
Item no.: 1589115
for: Bassoon, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1283965
for: Alto saxophone, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1283963
for: Bass trombone, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1283955
for: Trumpet, piano
Instrumental Solo & Piano Accompaniment
Item no.: 1612533
for: Piano
Item no.: 577175
for: Soprano saxophone, piano [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1636103
for: Mixed choir (SATB), piano
Choir score
Item no.: 866697
Dushkin Transcriptions
for: Violin, piano
Music score
Item no.: 739824
for: SATB divisi a Cappella
Choir score
Item no.: 1005132
for: Cello, piano
Piano score, solo part
Item no.: 1211442
for piano duet (one piano, four hands)
for: Piano 4 hands
Music score
Item no.: 161324
for: Voice (low), piano
Piano score, solo part
Item no.: 679868
for: Piano 4 hands
Music score
Item no.: 207297
for: Piano
Single edition
Item no.: 197553
for: Piano
Item no.: 356201
for: Violin, cello
Music score
Item no.: 1204655
Violin 1 (orchestral part)
Item no.: 430098
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 631129
arranged for violin and piano
for: Violin, piano
Piano score, solo part
Item no.: 896692
Piano Solo
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 291773
for: Violin, piano
Piano score, solo part
Item no.: 891321
for: Viola, piano
Music score
Item no.: 669887
for: Symphonic orchestra
Score
Item no.: 1121728
One-act Opera in Three Scenes op. 24
with Russian, German and English libretto
Reprint
Opera Explorer
for: Voices, orchestra
Study score
Item no.: 1344378
Prijidite, poklonimsja
for: Mixed choir (SSAATTBB) a cappella
Choir score
Item no.: 1105729
Blagoslowi, dusche moja, Gospoda
for: Mixed choir (SSAATTBB) a cappella
Choir score
Item no.: 1105722
Choral symphony for soloists, choir and Orchestra, Opus 35 vocal score
for: Soloists, mixed choir, orchestra
Piano reduction
Item no.: 1105773
for: Concert band
Score, Parts
Item no.: 948786
for: Oboe, piano
Piano score, solo part
Item no.: 895959
for: Concert band
Score
Item no.: 847924
theme from second movement
for: Alto saxophone, piano
Music score
Item no.: 792101
for: Trombone, piano
Piano score, solo part
Item no.: 369658
Tebe pojem
for: Mixed choir (SATB) a cappella
Choir score
Item no.: 1105708
Milost mira
for: Mixed choir (SATB) a cappella
Choir score
Item no.: 1105660
Theme from third movement
for: Saxophone, piano
Piano score, solo part
Item no.: 903260
Harmonie und Streicher 5-4-3-2-2
for: Piano, orchestra
Set of parts
Item no.: 1202285
for: Mixed choir a cappella
Score
Item no.: 1105775
for: Voice (high), orchestra
Score
Item no.: 903845
for: Mixed choir (SATB), piano
Choir score
Item no.: 985737
for: Soprano and Piano
Book
Item no.: 819743
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