What if Rachmaninoff played a Sousa March?

[arnerich]

My wife simply wondered what Sousa's famous Washington Post march would have sounded like if Rachmaninoff had played it. So just for the fun of it I made my own arrangement! Is it convincing? If you'd like a copy of the sheet music shoot me a message. If you have an idea for a transcription put it in the comments below, I'm all ears. Enjoy guys, thanks for listening! 

[arnerich]

No replies? Shucks... You're missing out guys! Oh well, maybe it's not your style. 

[mjames]

I feel like it's to "textbook-y" for it sound like something Rachmaninoff would have arranged. He would have embellished the melodies, added daring counterpoint, played around with the rhythm, and added a little bit more of a virtouso flair to the piece - to completely transform it into a piece solely for solo piano. Right now it still sounds like just an arrangement, however it is a very good one. I enjoyed it!

[arnerich]

I feel like it's to "textbook-y" for it sound like something Rachmaninoff would have arranged. He would have embellished the melodies, added daring counterpoint, played around with the rhythm, and added a little bit more of a virtouso flair to the piece - to completely transform it into a piece solely for solo piano. Right now it still sounds like just an arrangement, however it is a very good one. I enjoyed it!

Hey thanks for your reply! I completely agree with your comments. A part of me wants to bring back the initial march theme (i.e. the famous part) and compose a new dramatic coda because it's pretty unsubstantial as a solo piece. But as it stands it's simply a verbatim variation of the march measure for measure from beginning to end in Rachmaninoff's language (which has a novelty factor at the very least). I'm glad you enjoyed it!

[indianajo]

I play this out of the Everybody's Favorite Series #80 PIano Pieces for the Young Student by AMSCO music published about 1950. 
I've fooled with it a bit to move the tuba part to pedal for organ, with simulated trumpets to start and clarinets on the trio.
If you cruise the charity resale shops some, you might save yourself some time. maybe not. I buy novels and history books there, and sometimes an old collection shows up.  Masterpieces of Piano Music ed Albert Weir, publ. Carl Fischer, was another gem.  Lots of opera themes in that  without the pesky words.   

[mrcreosote]

Funny you should mention Rach and Sousa - since that is EXACTLY how I feel about the G minor Prelude - especially after hacking through Horowitz's arr. of Stars and Stripes.

When I play, I visualize something from which to draw inspiration into my "performance" if you can call it that.

The G minor gives me a number of images and they are ALL military.

It starts as a strict march with a lot of pomp meaning slow and therefore big.  No rubato.

The BOOM  Da-Da-Da would be right out of a German or Prussian march.

So I'm dead set against trying to see how fast one can play the G minor and definitely against any of the exaggerations that people use to "make it theirs."