WEEK OF 080602 PLAYLIST: RACHMANINOV
Rachmaninov: Rhapsody on a theme from Paganini.
(two versions, a recent one and another that is quite old, where the strings sound like wind instruments!) These are variations, and quite fun to listen to and compare, and hum. But skip the 18th variation. It has been overplayed in Hollywood movies, and is quite sentimental and fluffy.
Rachmaninov: Symphonic Dances.
(the orchestral version, and the adaptation for two pianos). I thought I'd like this, but it's not so enveloping. It probably merits its own weeklong study, but it was too complex to sink in this week. The two versions seem very different from each other; I prefer the orchestra version, but there is a lot to pay attention to in the piano version too. This is the last thing that Rachmaninov wrote.
Rachmaninov: Trio Elegiaque 1.
Can't get the theme out of my head. The arrangement of the parts is symmetrical. This goes along with my "sinister symphonies" original interest in classical music, it's a keeper.