Friday, January 18, 2013, 8:15 p.m.
as a composer above his talent as a pianist, and he wished far more to impress Americans with his creative ability. First Movement: For a concerto with such a virtuosic reputation, the Third opens with surprising simplicity and tranquility. Over a rocking accompanimental figure (which will recur throughout the concerto), the pianist launches an expressive song, played in bare octaves between the two hands. Its stepwise motion, pivoting around the tonic note of D, and its narrow range suggest Russian Orthodox chant. This lengthy melody is eventually given to violas and horns, while the piano embroiders a free fantasia above. The movement’s second theme appears first as a choppy, rhythmic idea passed between orchestra and piano before the soloist smoothes it into a lovely flowing melody over rippling arpeggios. A return of the opening music launches the development section, built around the chant theme and giving the pianist plentiful opportunities to display his virtuoso skills. It ranges from high drama to eerie nocturnal passages before slipping into a big cadenza for the soloist. Rachmaninoff wrote two—the first longer and more showy, which most pianists play today; and the second shorter and slightly more understated, which Rachmaninoff himself preferred. Then the lyrical version of the second theme and the opening music are briefly reprised. Ghostly wind fanfares usher the movement to a soft, moody close. In the second movement Intermezzo, though the mode shifts from minor to major, the tone actually darkens as the orchestral introduction droops in sorrow. The piano sings a romantically melancholy song, which ebbs and flows in intensity and passion. Midway through this movement comes a faster, feathery dance led by the piano; listen to the woodwind solos that accompany it for they are singing a cleverly altered version of movement one’s chant theme. The pianist abruptly dismisses the dark mood, and with a burst of virtuosity sails directly into the finale. Rachmaninoff loved the sound of Russian church bells, and we hear their
tintinnabulation ringing in the piano as the finale opens. As in movement one, the second theme is first presented rhythmically, in thick, aggressively syncopated piano chords. Then it is transformed into the big soaring tune we wait for in every Rachmaninoff work. A series of variations on the bell theme, featuring coruscating pianism of extreme difficulty, takes the place of a development section. The concerto’s final drive begins with a roaring march for the
piano, spurred on by low strings. Rachmaninoff piles excitement upon excitement—accelerating tempos, bonecrunching virtuosity for the soloist, and a refulgent apotheosis on his big tune— to captivate his first American audience and all those to follow. Instrumentation: Two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, four horns, two trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion, and strings. Notes by Janet E. Bedell, copyright 2013
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