First three notes:1. tension>resolution; V-i; the C# should be softer than the previous two notes. (Tension>resolution is something that you should be able to hear in your mind.)2. voicing: the lower notes should be more prominent than the top. This would express the depth of character better. Voicing applies to the rest of the piece.Keep a steady tempo. Never let technical issues get in the way of the music.
... but how on earth are the lower notes are supposed to be more prominent than the top? I, quite contrary to that, play the lower notes pianissimo possibile, so that it masks the harmonic simplicity.
So you're saying that the g# and the c# are soft?! It's not just any basic music. It's something like the ghost of death, waiting for you. You can't apply cliche classical rules to all music you hear.
You are so damn wrong... I'm not the one who is telling you, it's Rachmaninoff himself through his recordings of this very prelude:
So should everyone play it exactly that way?