Russian concert pianist and composer Daniil Trifonov and the Armenian-American concert pianist Sergei Babayan perform Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Suite No. 2, Op. 17, a composition for two pianos. The piece was composed in Italy in the first months of 1901. Recorded during a recital of some of the composer’s more intimate piano repertoire at the Greene Space, a state-of-the-art, multimedia performance space and broadcast studio at WNYC Radio.
After his highly unsuccessful first symphony, Rachmaninoff did not produce anything for four years. This suite, like his 2nd Piano Concerto, came after that period. It was first performed on November 24, 1901, at a concert of the Moscow Philharmonic Society, by the composer himself and his cousin Alexander Siloti (9 October 1863, near Kharkiv – 8 December 1945, New York City), the Ukrainian pianist, conductor, and composer).
The four movements are:
- Introduction (Alla marcia, in C major)
- Valse (Presto, in G major)
- Romance (Andantino, in A flat major)
- Tarantelle (Presto, in C minor)
Sources
- Suite No. 2 (Rachmaninoff) on wikipedia
- Vaughan Williams: Toward the Unknown Region [Radio Filharmonisch Orkest, Groot Omroepkoor] - December 8, 2023
- Debussy: Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune [Netherlands Radio Philharmonic, James Gaffigan] - December 6, 2023
- Pavarotti sings Fra poco a me ricovero [Milano, 1990] - December 5, 2023
