“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: Soprano saxophone, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1615174
for: Baritone saxophone, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1615172
for: Oboe, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1615165
for: Double bass, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1615162
for: Voice (medium), piano
Piano score
Item no.: 209645
for: Bassoon & Orchestra
Sheet music
Item no.: 1636605
for: Contrabass & Orchestra
Sheet music
Item no.: 1636604
for: Piccolo & Orchestra
Sheet music
Item no.: 1636602
for: Piano
Item no.: 490195
for: Symphonic orchestra
Score, Parts
Item no.: 1386451
Italienische Polka
for: Concert band
Score, Parts
Item no.: 1560463
adapted from The Liturgy of St John Chrysostom
for: Mixed choir (SATB) a cappella
Choir score
Item no.: 893064
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 848030
for: Mixed choir (SATB) a cappella
Choir score
Item no.: 1613206
for: Piano
Music score, CD
Item no.: 898265
for: Organ
Music score
Item no.: 1004960
theme from third movement
for: Violin, piano
Music score
Item no.: 792120
for: Clarinet, piano
Music score
Item no.: 792069
for: Clarinet, piano
Music score
Item no.: 792065
for: Clarinet, piano
Instrumental Solo & Accompaniment
Item no.: 1638611
for: Piano
Piano Solo
Item no.: 1553807
for: Flute, piano
Instrumental Solo & Piano Accompaniment
Item no.: 1612612
for: Flute, piano
Instrumental Solo & Piano Accompaniment
Item no.: 1612610
for: Violin, piano
Instrumental Solo & Piano Accompaniment
Item no.: 1612550
for: Alto saxophone, piano
Instrumental Solo & Piano Accompaniment
Item no.: 1612521
for: Piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1357399
for: Women's Choir [SSAA]
Choir score
Item no.: 1168350
for: Mixed choir (SATB); piano ad lib.
Choir score
Item no.: 1005072
for: SATTB and Organ
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 1040656
for: Mixed choir (SATB), piano
Choir score
Item no.: 866611
for: TTBB divisi a Cappella
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 900004
for: Mixed Choir [SATB] A Cappella
Choir score
Item no.: 1329320
for: Choir (2 voices), piano
Choir score
Item no.: 1168903
The Seven Year Itch
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 1209781
for: String orchestra
Stimmen-Set (Streicher 3/3/2/2/1)
Item no.: 129125
for: Mixed choir (SATB), piano
Piano reduction
Item no.: 648373
for: 6 cellos
Score, Parts
Item no.: 1558958
for: Fanfare
Score, Parts
Item no.: 869017
for: GES-H KLAV / GES-M KLAV / GES-T KLAV
Item no.: 622441
for: Tenor saxophone (B-flat), piano
Piano score, solo part
Item no.: 769045
for: Cello
Music score, Playback-CD
Item no.: 465415
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 245659
for: 2 pianos
Ensemble score
Item no.: 217476
for: Symphonic orchestra
Study score
Item no.: 621810
for: Violin, piano
Piano score, solo part
Item no.: 152481
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 944382
for: Instrumental
CD-ROM
Item no.: 268942
for: Mixed choir (SATB), orchestra
Score, Parts
Item no.: 1285549
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