Rachmaninoff plays Prelude in C Sharp Minor
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- Опубліковано 10 жов 2014
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Prelude in C-sharp minor, Op. 3, composed and performed by Sergei Rachmaninoff. Recorded in 1919, released in December 1920
It’s funny how people are saying “wrong tempo” or criticize the playing, when the person playing is the one who composed the piece. It’s a funny world eh?😭😭
@Lennard Nellessen i feel like Rachmaninoff knew what be was doing
I believe few people can be said to know enough about music and piano to criticize Rachmaninoff
Though what you said still stands
There’s no fucking way that’s happening
He wrote it when he was 19, and probably this recording is from much later age. The piece was very popular, so he must have played it hundreds of times in the meantime (it was 'demanded' as encores by the audience at his concerts). When playing pieces a lot I think a lot of musicians have a tendency to play with more liberty and variation. If we could listen to him playing it just after having composed it, it will probably sound much different. So there is probably a fairly broad bandwidth of what can be considered 'right'.
Горовиц играл некоторые пьесы лучше автора. Сам Рахманинов признавал этот факт
@@pnieuwla I like your comment, Pieter! It makes total sense. As you suggested, there probably is a big leeway as to what could be considered “right“ in performing this particular prelude. I do find Rachmaninoff’s performance to be very interesting in terms of the tempos that he takes throughout the piece.
*This recording is 100 years old!*
Wooo!
A very cherished thing to listen to, wouldn't you say. Lucky to be able to listen
True?
@@kpunn2823 yeah
it's more like this recording was recorded 100 years ago
I feel like his hate for this piece makes it even better
Wait, he hated this? Why?
@@WobblesandBean Apparently he had to perform it so often that he hated it
@@WobblesandBean literally everyone wanted him to play it for them and it was later renowned for being the piece he hated
@@mahyargharehdaghi9383 why not just download it on Spotify or Itunes or something?? Stupid people
@@ejmtv3 fr, can't fathom their stupidity 🤦♂️😤
105 years ago. Rachmaninoff sat down at his Steinway and gave us this ❤️❤️❤️❤️
Even Rachmaninov gets 18 thumbs down? Gotta love UA-cam
That’s how old he was when he composed this piece.
that is humanity for you!!!!
was probably Rachmaninov
Sacrilegious!
Other composers returning from death to dislike
2:07 i love how rachmaninoff can actually reach those chords... i'm so used to hearing that detatched bass note lol
I honestly was just about to say they weren’t even there then gave it a second listen... he’s so quick
He was a gigantic man with gigantic hands. I believe he was 6'6". He had an incredible reach, something like 14 notes.
@@t0mmy_train116 You are correct - I just checked it!
its only an octave though
@@owenwhite4466 no. An octave is 8 notes. Octo = 8
We live in an age where we can listen to a master performing his works completely free of charge AND from the comfort of our homes. This recording must be cherished. I can't imagine what it would be like seeing him play LIVE at a concert, but this video brings me closer to that dream at least. Such beautiful sounds!
it's always been a dream of mine to watch rachmaninoff play, glad i'm not the only one who feels the same way
It was a little past the opening, i felt the music reaching toward my Soul.
Beautiful, profound and deeply sad music.
Hearing Rach play is incredible. Wish I could hear Chopin and Liszt play.
My mom at 93 was playing this for me today. 😍
This is one of the best comment I've ever read
Did you say her hair doesn't look nice today
So sad ;( Your mom Is already dying. Even she Had great times for you. Thats so sad :( My mom is 41 I wish she wont die
@@RBLXKOREANAIR That's a stupid fucking comment you just made. Maybe stick to your native language until you can speak English without being insulting.
@@RBLXKOREANAIR that isn't something that should be said to someone.
"Every chord should be played with eleven fingers " - Rachmaninov
I usually use my nose
@@onethegogd5783 I use my di-
@@onethegogd5783 I usually just blow with my eyes but you do you
Where did you find this sentence? I did non find nowhere...Thanks
@@charlesbaudelaire9460 wat
Rachmaninoff was a personal friend of my grandfather, and my mother recalled sitting on his lap on one occasion when she was 5 years old.
That's a great story.
damn
@@frinpi7473 😯
thats so intersting, would love to hear more of that
I can feel his energy in this performance. I don't think it's played too fast. He was in complete control the entire time. Outstanding
It has energy, but it needs to be played slower to feel the notes ESPECIALLY in measure 46 and on, you really feel the forteissimo much MUCH better that way!!
He can play it at whatever tempo he wants. He wrote it!
Elliott Talley Dont bother wasting your energy internet arguments are pointless.
@@elliotttalley2507 He plays it the way it was intended.
@@elliotttalley2507 The arrogance of somebody criticizing a performance of Rachmaninoff playing Rachmaninoff, telling him how he *should* have played it.
Unbelievable.
no one can play this cadenza at this speed like rachmaninoff at 2:15
Let alone speed, the power is immense.
It really is breathtaking.
Yeahhh like
HOOOOWWWW.
I just got to that part, and all I can say is HNNNNNNG YES OMG
Liszt can
Great to hear the maestro playing his own work! If only we had recordings of Bach, Beethoven, Chopin.. playing their own works. Perhaps someday we will have a time machine.
Liszt too don't forget
how dare you forget MOZART!
But we shouldn't mess with the sacred timeline!
I would really want to hear Liszt play, he was the most well known piano virtuoso together with Chopin, although his technical abilities were apparently better then any others. Composers like Brahms would get nervous just by seeing his hands run on the keyboard like spiders!
@@mariedagoult1 There have been rumors over the years of a cylinder recording made by Liszt in 1885 or 1886!
People are saying that it's too fast, it's just his way of interpreting this piece after playing it so often. Now I don't think everyone has to play it at this tempo, I think that's kind of the decision of the pianist playing it.
He is composer of this music. so this tempo is the right one
He's the composer so he can do whatever the F he wants. lol.
They are whining because they literally are not capable of playing like this.
@@janellegunther4142 👌
ummm...composer playing his own piece too fast??? who is the music police of Rachmaninov then??? I'd really like to know - never heard of them...hmm...wtf. crikey, please don't arrest me officer, for playing too fast!! bahahahahahahaha
We are indeed privileged to be able to listen to this genius when considering the age of the recording. Thank you. Thank you.
Sounds so different than how it's played now. And it's quite a recent composer. Imagine going back two or three centuries... The pieces that old would sound and feel utterly different back then. Wow. I fcking love music.
Melody remains relatively constant, the message conveyed through different interpretation of the piece will change over time though
Probably was so metal
that's why I don't like the arrogant musicians and commentators that look for a 'better' performance. They make no effort to appreciate the original, attack it for God knows what reasons, and pretend they know the way to play it. It's mad! :) It's such a treasure having these recording
Rachmaninoff played his piece the besti believe.
Andre Karavia hè fucking composed it
@@jankruithof507 That doesn't mean he is the best- each performance is not just about the technicality but the musicality and interpretation. Rachmaninoff himself said that Horowitz was a better interpreter of his works. Whether you agree or not doesn't matter, I think this is the best performance of this piece, but it just goes to show.
Yes and Horowitz was a pretty free interpreter. Even when he changed aspects of Rachmaninoff's compositions he absolutely loved it. A lot of composers were actually much less concerned about modifications than people think.
@@criticalhippo4294 I'd be careful with that quote as it was really only applicable to certain specific works, most noticeably Concerto No.3 (the only Rachmaninoff concerto Horowitz played). He also labelled Benno Moiseiwitch (who played more of his works) his spiritual heir and after hearing Emil Gilels on the radio, sent him his Gold Medal & diploma from the Moscow Conservatory.
@@jankruithof507 look at his pfp, that says enough
He is simply the greatest of his era
enigma I disagree. Rachmaninov/Barton/Ravel
Some people think he is the greatest of any era. That was the result of a pole of professional pianists done several years ago.
i don’t think it’s necessary to compare different composers, i mean, they are different
@@yannaischrire7327 What is Barton’s full name? I am trying to find the composer (if they were one) but I can’t.
@@gabrol7442 I saw my comment too a few weeks ago and didn’t understand. I guess I forgot him, which makes him a not so great one
He composed this monumental work of art at the age of.....19!
Holy shit! I always wondered how the composers would play their piece. He managed to summarize the 5 stages of Grief in one piece
- denial
- anger
- bargaining
- depression
- acceptance
Don't forget 2:15 which is munching aggressively
Not only did he give me intense chills, but my hand was slowly shaking as I was following the notes on my paper... absolutely incredible, I'm speechless...
I can only hope to become a pianist of his level one day
Of His level no one can ever be.. only in dreams
I'm aware that Rachmaninoff himself got tired of this piece from playing it so often, but I feel like it grows on me more with every listen. Also that audio quality is shockingly good for 1919, I wonder if it's been modified at all throughout that period of time.
I believe this is played from a piano roll Rachmaninoff made to be played in a player piano, so the recording isn't period.
@@jeremymozlin read the description it was recorded in 1919
Rachmaninov humorously assigned the lyrics “Oh My God!” and “Not A-Gain” to the repeated triads.
@@cpklapper source?
@@RSS1350Rachmaninoff did record it, but he also made a piano roll. This is from the latter.
I hear his hate in this piece
Cuz people asked him to play too much
Philip Chouliaras I don’t, they make rachmaninof’s performance become special
Philip Chouliaras I though wanna hear his interpretation when he just composed it
Please go study. OMG.
@@stevewallschlaeger1379 what
@@stevewallschlaeger1379 ??
This was released exactly 100 years ago! Impressive!!
oh my god... it's unbelivable... he is incredible :)
Except you should have more reverence for God who gives such a gift of talent
@@italiantraditionalcatholic2390 i dont usually comment on youtube videos, but i have to write this. God doesn't exist
Muad'dib I usually don’t comment either but I agree with you.
KellyAnn McGregor No, I just don’t personally have a reason to believe
@@muaddib9433 We all have our own beliefs...
What a deeply moving performance. So dark and troubling
Devistation, contemplation, Realisation, acceptance.....
Devastation* u fucking plum
@@aldoringo439 Not everyone is a Spelling Bee winner.
@@davisatdavis1 not everyone has a cat as their profile picture 🤣🤣🤣
@@aldoringo439 you are pathetic
@@catfinder8601 *"rOofViS bRuH"*
The bells. You can hear them
Melviora commented this twice hahahaha
At what part?
That's true
Melviora the Moscow bells in the back :/
False rachmaninoff had no intention of this song being of the town that burnt down and that is why he grew to hate this piece because people gave it names that weren’t correct and they would always want to hear this as an encore after his concerts when he had much better work to show as an encore
I love the way Rachmaninov played this. Hi interpretation is beautiful and I don’t think anyone can get even close to playing this piece the way he does. I think the composers of any piece play it better than anyone else can. ❤️
Makes sense. Only they know the emotions that inspired the music. But of course the skill of any virtuoso is the emotion they themselves apply to their personal interpretation. That is the beauty of music.
it's actually the case of Schubert with his Fantasie Wanderer. It's extremely hard that he himself was complete able to play it as he wanted!
100
Not necessarily, Chopin regarded that Franz Liszt's performance of his op 10 etudes (which were also dedicated to Liszt) was the definitive performance of them
Did you know, SergeivVeseullovich Rachmaninov was a tall man and his hands were very big. Therefore, iny opinion he could focus on other things within his music. A lot of us have obstacle with length of hands whereas the did not. Just a thought to pass on
You can hear every single note in any part of the performance. Incredible!
I don't care for the relatively poor audio quality- this is by far the best performance I've heard.
Critical Hippo But it’s over 100 years old. They didn’t have Dolby surround back then ...
With this quality of playing I don't think audio quality even enters into it.
I'm actually very impressed by the audio quality, it's fucking good for a 100 y/o audio
Agreed
you could still convert this to midi and you'll get a better audio quality
Such power… I can hear the incredible strength with which he plays and yet, at the same time, a certain ease in his playing as well
The loud part before the end feels more coherent played in that faster tempo. And the resolution not being so quiet and slow as some interprets do it today makes it feel like a forced surrender after a war, or the unsatisfaction after wrath. Really compelling.
💯 100 hundred years before omg
Rachmaninoff was both a genius composer and a great pianist. When I hear his recorded performance, I can't describe it in words. 2:27 It's beautiful beyond words...Tribute to the legendary artist.
I was today years old when I realised there are recordings of Rachmaninoff playing himself. This blew my mind🤯😳
Yeah he was fortunately alive in the early days of recording
i thought he existed in like the mid 1800s 😭😭
@@MuAlexJSI was flabbergasted to learn that he was around for the beginning of WW2
the dynamics are so perfectly realized. what a gift it is to have this recording!
This is incredible, his playing makes you hear all of the notes both individually, and in unison. This is magical.
This is clearly the best performance this piece could ever have
even after learning how to play the piece myself, i STILL get goosebumps. which is straight because i should be numb too it by now.
I could feel how this man felt inside as has been reflected from the resonance and rhythm of this piece of art. Imagine how you bore the pain and bitterness inside and people around you were under impression you were happy person. Life isn't kind and treat everyone the same. Despite of that, I salute all his devotion to bring us the bright side that his work is truly an aesthetics piece of art.
Thanks for uploading this historic recording.
Not sure which is more mind blowing.
That we get to hear the maestro himself play this masterpiece a century after this was recorded...
...or the music theory experts criticizing the tempo Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff is using to play a piece he composed.
Thank God there were no recording devices available in the 18th century. One can only marvel at the UA-cam comments Ludwig, Wolfgang, Johann, et al would receive.
I also heard another version of it, but it's not on youtube, it was very tender and smooth in his climax though very intensive. Again the mental state cannot be overlooked and he is and was in full control. Whether he lost it or not, it doesn't change the fact that it's a masterpiece
there is something about this piece and the way he played it that is just incredible. There wont be a piece that I adore as much as this one
First I notice his soft, expressive touch. He is speaking in the beginning with his notes(slow).In the end. I love the end. The power! The piece has meaning to me. I sight read it in the '70's. It was a gift from a friend.
you actually sight read this? Jeeeezuz!
Wonderful music and photos. Thanks!
Композитор и пианист гениальный ! Элегия и 2 концерт для фортепиано с оркестром мои самые любимые его шедевры !
For the folks wondering why the audio is so good on this recording, Rachmaninoff commited about 30 performances to Ampico piano rolls. I own an original Ampico equipped Knabe grand piano circa 1926.
I love his touch. ❤
I got back into piano last year ever since I went back to college and listened to a lot of classical when I did hw/studied. Currently practicing Mozart's sonata in c major K545. I warn you, its not an easy piece, but im sure with a lot of practice I can increase the tempo and play evenly
From the master himself...oh god, it's like the sounds of death, and pain, and sorrow, as being sung from the throats of angels.
I am crying while listening to this , I can feel the pain . Does anyone know that he composed this piece because He saw a dream in which he was attending a funeral , and as he looked into the coffin to pay respects , he saw himself in it . This is the perfect way to express that . We miss you Rachmaninoff
I'd like to know where you heard this, it's not the first time I've seen someone say that in youtube comments for Rachmaninoff's work, but it's simply not true. He was quoted as saying he only wrote this because he was offered money for a few short pieces to go into an anthology of similar shorter works, and this was one of them.
It's a lovely story, and I'm sure the music can be easily ascribed to those specific visuals, but it's just a myth. Nothing but rumor and speculation that somehow kept getting repeated often enough that many just automatically accepted it as fact.
Thank you for Correcting me btw , now I know the right info , thanks for the Critique . BTW I'm open to critisisms as only they can make you better
@@WobblesandBean Wait wasn't he gonna get money from his moments musicaux?? I don't think it was from this piece.
Amelia is correct and you were gracious to accept her comments too. Very nice. Yes, if you read about Rachmaninoff's life and music (Bertensson and Leyda) you will see a lot about this particular piece; basically Rachmaninoff wrote it to make some money (he was pretty poor much of the time and needed the cash) and he got pretty miffed that he was always being asked to play it when he wanted people to hear other works he had done. In fact, one woman wrote to him and made a fantastic suggestion that he had written it about someone stuck in a coffin and when asked, he said basically that "if she wants to believe that, fine by me" type of answer. So yes, he needed the money and yes, it was quite famous but to him, it was a pain to have to play it all the time for audiences. Get the book, it's been republished and it's great for getting into the mind of this extremely talented and gifted composer, pianist and conductor.
It's so moving to listen to the actual composer playing this piece! A miraculous conjunction of brilliance and technology.
I also played this Preludium. I won the 1. price with this piece
Congratulations!
Nice
AMAZING!!!
I love being able to hear the original, pretty rare nowadays. Hearing the fear as he looks into the coffin to discover himself really is much more fascinating when you hear it from the man himself!
I think he was 22 when he wrote it.
@@1106gary He was 18.
@@P0PG03S Even better for my point. Thanks.
**correction: its a common misconception that he was 18 when he wrote it, he was in fact 19 but still incredibly young.**
I'm learning this piece, and I've listened to a few different interpretations. I think it's extremely insightful to listen to this version and see what Rachmaninoff was trying to get across. While I won't exactly 'copy' playing it this way, I realized I might be playing the piece a bit too stringently, and I'm definitely going to incorporate some more rubato.
Thank you for posting this, very enjoyable! Sidenote- I can't believe how old this recording is, my word..
Absolutely riveting. Thank you.
0:34 there is the D-sharp that you can't find on other recordings
I hadn't noticed that. In my copy of the sheet music it is a D-natural where you say, but in measure 47 where it's notated in four staffs it uses the D-sharp
He always changed the way he played this piece because he was bored of it he hated this piece because he has so many more complicated ones and this one got famous
Nice catch!!!!!
@@scoobydude606 I have a music sheet printed in the 80s and I had to ask my wife (an orchestral violist) to double check but it's there. I ran into it in the double staffing part again.
I would play it sharp and flat and now I hear it in his rendering. It's sharp.
Omg... I thought I learnt that measure wrong.. lol..didn’t realise this was a thing! Now I’ve learned it both ways!
Regardless of whoever liked his performance or not, I think it's one of the most challenging pieces cause he switches his mental states in almost the same moments, few people can actually do that in real life, let alone music
At the beginning between chordes he is holding sound absolutely amazing, holding you in tension.
The last piece I played in recital as teenager. It was great for my emotional release
the part at around 2:45 makes me want to practice 40 hours a day because i can’t play it well
sameeee i was debating learning this first or prelude in g minor and then i decided on g minor cauze of THAT part haha
same lmao
Well be sure to tell me when you have reached Ling Ling
Jokes aside all the best ❤️
Ling Ling energy
@@cherie8875 I mean rach plays it at a very fast pace compared to modern interpretations
as far as i know, he composed this piece after a phase of depression, as a gift for a close friend. He also didnt like to perform recordings at all, cuz he always struggled to "get it right"...Maybe thats the reason, why it sometimes sounds a bit messy, cuz its just the best they could get, but I really like the energy and power he puts in this version and i dont think he had the intention to show, that he didnt like this piece. Out of all interpretations, this is the one, which helped me the most. I wish there would be more original recordings of composers to learn from, but in the end you must find your own way of playing it
I too never got it right
he was 17 years old when he created this masterpiece
Mr scheshi shows you don't know. Gossip and untrue
@@ChopinIsMyBestFriend 19*.
And to the op: what are you talking about? Source?
Rachmaninoff knew how to play on the rawest of human emotion. Beyond brilliant
Such a rich, emotional-filled touch. Great chords like caste bronze.
Some people say that you have to pull out the melodi and play the top line louder than its harmony.if this performance is by Rachmaninoff then ....
But he does. Just not quite so much as the hyper-technical pianists of the modern age do. I can hear the top line perfectly.
Edwin Mamo I think it's also fair to mention that Rach hated this piece and was known to intentionally breeze through it, especially later on in his life when this was probably recorded
He came to dislike the piece because the public wanted to hear it in every concert he played. It's not that he had an inherent dislike for the piece.
Рахманинов ненавидел эту прелюдию, ужасно жалел, что написал её. Но тем не менее, большое счастье услышать, как он её понимал...
Knowing the story behind it makes it 10x better to listen to
Awesome!
What most performers misunderstand is that Rachmaninov composed this piece after the death of a very close friend.
It combines the mood and image of memories irrevocably torn from his life by death. And now in the painful reflection of this realization, in that coffin in which his friend lies buried under the earth, his struggle to express the bewilderment, anger and despair to resurrect what is no more.
You sure? I heard it was composed because rachmanimoff had a dream in which he saw his own funeral
Makes sense. Such an emotional piece
And to think he was only 19 when he composed it!
Classical Masterpieces skall ha ære for å ha tatt vare på et slikt historisk opptak,takk til Dere!!
Love everything he composed. An amazing genius.
Bravo fra, sei epico
Keep in mind, Rachmaninoff was said to have hated the piece (just from it being requested at like every one of his performances, and also bc it’s based on a childhood nightmare which is unpleasant) so it’s plausible he experimented with new ways to play that made it interesting to him in that moment. He also revised other works from that era like his first piano concerto
Absolutely wonderful!!! 👏👏👏👏👏👏
2:29 Now that tempo is really giving that NIGHTMARE instead of surging feeling
How does he play so fast without sounding rushed
You could too--just practice 4 hours per day for 10 years supervised by a really good teacher.
What happened to his right eye in the thumbnail?
Untitled Channel lol
This was my lullaby growing up.
Speechless
The only person who could have played rush E at full speed
Russian composers put so much passion into their work. Magnetic.
tbh, i like it that it's kinda "messy" and not clear cut lik other youtube pianist play it. it sounds more rough, brutal, more struggling, challenging and desperate. thx Rachmaninoff to give us an insight into your soul.
Ingeniously!
Великий гений музыки,мощный звук и исполнение!Спасибо!
Deveras impressionante, impactante mesmo, ouvir o próprio genial Rachmaninoff interpretar, à perfeiçào, esta sua magnífica obra prima! Um deleite, uma viagem ao paraíso da arte! Um privilégio ouvir esta melodia imortal, a nos lembrar que a humanidade não vive sem a arte e a cultura!
the slow tempo in the beginning actually makes this piece sound heavier and more imposing, i adore rachs’ style!
The incomparable touch…..❤
великолепно
This piece reminds me of someone or something suddenly comes back to life...
De nuevo escuchando esta maravilla
Love it!
He is playing himself. The prelude itself is himself.
Honestly the way he plays it is one of many ways you can play the piano, imagine all the movements you could do.. So haunting.
Wonderful!!!!
amazing!
блин даже интересно стало, есть ли пианисты которые исполняют эту вещь в таком же темпе при такой же четкости и отдаче... очень доставляюще исполняет ^_^
В таком темпе исполнять - одно, но чтобы исполнить это как на записи - нужно родиться Рахманиновым