RACHMANINOV Sonata for cello and piano g Minor, op. 19 Torleif Thedeen Marianna Shirinyan скачать в хорошем качестве

RACHMANINOV Sonata for cello and piano g Minor, op. 19 Torleif Thedeen Marianna Shirinyan

⁠ At the turn of the 20th century, Sergei Rachmaninov was still struggling with the profound crisis of confidence brought on by the disastrous 1897 premiere of his Symphony No. 1. For nearly three years he found himself unable to compose, until a course of hypnotherapy finally helped him overcome his creative block. Among the first major works to emerge after his recovery was the Cello Sonata in G minor, Op. 19, completed in November 1901. Yet the piece had the misfortune of following closely on the heels of the triumphant premiere of Rachmaninov’s Second Piano Concerto, unveiled just a month earlier. The concerto’s overwhelming success inevitably overshadowed the less expansive—though unmistakably related—chamber work that came soon after. Rachmaninov dedicated the sonata to the distinguished Russian cellist Anatoliy Brandukov, who performed the premiere in Moscow with the composer at the piano, tackling a notoriously demanding keyboard part. Despite their fourteen-year age difference, Brandukov and Rachmaninov were close friends: the cellist served as best man at Rachmaninov’s wedding, and the two frequently appeared in concert together. Brandukov had earlier premiered numerous cello works by Tchaikovsky, who greatly admired his refined and expressive playing. Rachmaninov clearly wrote the sonata with these qualities in mind. Believing the cello and piano contributed equally to the musical argument, he resisted calling it simply a cello sonata. Most of the thematic material is first presented by the piano before being elaborated and enriched by the cello, which is why the work is often described as the Sonata in G minor for Cello and Piano. Cast in four movements, the sonata is steeped in the hallmark lyricism and emotional richness of Russia’s Romantic tradition. Few composers before Rachmaninov had explored the cello’s capacity for such tender expressiveness and searing intensity, and Brandukov’s playing must have brought every nuance vividly to life. When Rachmaninov composed this remarkable sonata, he could hardly have known that it would be his final chamber work. From then on he would devote himself exclusively to solo piano repertoire and to large-scale orchestral and choral compositions. The sonata therefore stands as both a culmination and a point of departure—a work to cherish for its beauty and for the testament it offers to a deep and enduring musical friendship. www.mariannashirinyan.com www.torleifthedeen.com #rachmaninov #cello #sonata