WEEK OF 080922: RACHMANINOV PRELUDES
Rachmaninov: Preludes (minor keys only)
I had a good success last week with Chopin's minor-key preludes (I had been hankering for something as splendid as Chopin's Nocturnes), noting with ever more cogency that it is minor-key works that I enjoy. I have once stated that "(noise and) dissonance are just extra colors with which one can paint a beautiful picture", but moreover dissonance directs the mind to the conflict of living. As I am also in utter rapture of Rachmaninov's Rhapsody, and his Third Concerto last week was also fulfilling, I felt a need to explore this composer some more, and follow the path I took with Chopin. Unfortunately, these pieces are not very stellar, and I found myself less compelled than usual to put on my headphones this week. Some of them are rather gaudy, like Liszt, and did not convince me of any urgency. So, now I've learnt that Rachmaninov, like most artists, is hit or miss. (Schumann and Beethoven, on the other hand, have yet to disappoint me.)