Rachmaninoff, Prelude Op. 32, No. 1 in C

[rachfan]

This prelude always reminds me of ocean waves gathering strength, crashing against a rocky shore, swirling in violent, foaming eddies as it retreats, only to roll in again to thunder and explode against the same steadfast rocks while tossing spray high into the air.  (You can tell I live near the ocean, ha-ha!   ) 

I just noticed a duplicate posting (put up in error) way back in the back pages of the archives with another 80 downloads on it.  So I suspect that maybe many had never heard this prelude before and have listened to it here.   I appreciate that!  It's a wonderful piece.

[rachfan]

Rachmaninoff composed this first prelude of Opus 32 in August 1910.  It is very brilliant with a subdued ending.  He even wrote some fingerings into the score, for which we can all be grateful.  Although Rachmaninoff did not call for it, the sostenuto pedal can be used to fine effect in this piece.  The best recording I ever heard is Richter's; but not being of Richter's artistic caliber (an great understatement!), rather than attempting to emulate his playing, I decided to form my own interpretation which resulted in a different sound.  I hope you like it.  Comments welcome.

[prongated]

...I think it sounds more like Star Trek...does that mean I live near...

Nice effort btw...not the kind that you normally post here ^^

[rallestar]

I love the ending of this piece. Reminds me of a particular beautiful place of his 3rd concerto.

I like your playing too - Clear and articulated. I don't have the score with me, but I think you could do well in making more clear to the listener what's going on in the middle section - Try to emphasize something particular there, so it doesn't seem to become all too big of a blur.

[rachfan]

Hey prongated,

Thanks for the compliment on this effort... but...  ARRRGGG!  Do you mean that I've never posted another good recording before?      But please don't misunderstand.  I put a lot of stock in your feedback, even when it's rather critical.  (It's a good thing I have a thick hide, ha-ha!)  Thanks again!

[gruffalo]

you have a nice idea with this page. to make that crashing effect of the waves (quite a nice description, i think), it would be nice to hear more sudden crescendos through those octaves. it may not be that you have to play louder, but simply start a bit more quiter and really put some energy into it. also, you need to sort out the fiddly bits. overall, good effort 


oh yea, and i like the ending. maybe a bit quiter though? the way you play it gives a really nice peaceful effect at the end, so it may be better suited to a quiter sound.

[rachfan]

Hi gruffalo,

I appreciate the point on the crescendos.  To put it differently, this could be treated as "contour dynamics"--on the rise of the phrase, more crescendo, and on the wane,  diminuendos.

On the quietness of the ending, I totally agree with you that it could be more subdued.  The problem is that the action on my Baldwin grand is on the heavier side, which for me is a good thing as it assists me in playing more evenly. The bad news is that it's more difficult to play pianissimo with a firmer action.  When I rebuilt the piano this past April (it's a 1983), it received new strings and hammers.   Samples of the original Baldwin hammers went to Ronsen Wurzen (suggested by Del Fandrich, a former long-time Baldwin design engineer) so that they could be replicated in shape and density, which they were.  So the touch weight of the piano did not need any adjustment, as there was no change in hammer weight.  So it's still a firm action.  I am working now more conscientiously on ways to better achieve softer dynamics, and am succeeding.  I'll be putting up some never-before-heard new recordings in the near future.  You can then judge for yourself.

Thanks again for the feedback!

[rachfan]

Hi rallestar,

Thanks for your compliment!

The middle section is very busy to say the least.  I did, in fact, try to bring out three separate descending chromatic "hidden" scales as points of interest.  The reason is that musically, historically and culturally, the ear attaches importance to scales occurring in passagework.  The first one occurs in measure 18, being the second note of each RH triplet: B flat, A, A flat, G, F# and E.  The next one appears in measure 20 but in the first note of each triplet: E, E flat, D, C#, C, B, B flat and A.  The third one in 22 appears in the LH, but still in the treble register: A, A flat, G and F#, echoed by the second notes in those duples, C, B and B flat.  I probably didn't succeed as well nearly as I had hoped to etch those scales for the listener.  As I say, that section is quite wild! 

[prongated]

Do you mean that I've never posted another good recording before?   

...oh ROFL I meant, normally the ones you post are not particularly technically challenging...but just now I remember that you did put up Vallee d'Obermann...hahaha the recs you put on here aren't bad!

[rachfan]

Whew!  I thought I had to sign up for lessons again, ha-ha!  FYI, I'll be posting Bortkiewicz's Impromptu Op. 24, No.3, "Eros" in the near future.  Although I'm admittedly more of a miniaturist (I love character pieces and can get better results with them given my very limited practice time), I sense that members expect me to occasionally post a bigger piece to keep up my end of the forum--my amateur status notwithstanding.  Hopefully "Eros" will fit the bill.      Thanks for the clarification!