Piano Sonata No. 2 (Rachmaninoff)
Encyclopedia
Piano Sonata No. 2, Op
. 36, is a piano sonata
in B-flat minor composed by Sergei Rachmaninoff
in 1913. Rachmaninoff revised it in 1931, with the note, "The new version, revised and reduced by author." It has three movements:
A performance of the original version lasts approximately 25 minutes.
A performance of the revised version lasts approximately 19 minutes.
In 1940, with the composer's consent, Vladimir Horowitz
created a syncretic of the original and revised versions. Several pianists, including Ruth Laredo
and Hélène Grimaud
, have used Horowitz's edition when performing the piece. A performance of the syncretic version lasts approximately 22 minutes.
Opus number
An Opus number , pl. opera and opuses, abbreviated, sing. Op. and pl. Opp. refers to a number generally assigned by composers to an individual composition or set of compositions on publication, to help identify their works...
. 36, is a piano sonata
Piano sonata
A piano sonata is a sonata written for a solo piano. Piano sonatas are usually written in three or four movements, although some piano sonatas have been written with a single movement , two movements , five or even more movements...
in B-flat minor composed by Sergei Rachmaninoff
Sergei Rachmaninoff
Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of the last great representatives of Romanticism in Russian classical music...
in 1913. Rachmaninoff revised it in 1931, with the note, "The new version, revised and reduced by author." It has three movements:
- Allegro agitato
- Non allegro
- Allegro molto
A performance of the original version lasts approximately 25 minutes.
A performance of the revised version lasts approximately 19 minutes.
In 1940, with the composer's consent, Vladimir Horowitz
Vladimir Horowitz
Vladimir Samoylovich Horowitz was a Russian-American classical virtuoso pianist and minor composer. His technique and use of tone color and the excitement of his playing were legendary. He is widely considered one of the greatest pianists of the 20th century.-Life and early...
created a syncretic of the original and revised versions. Several pianists, including Ruth Laredo
Ruth Laredo
Ruth Laredo was an American classical pianist.She became known in the 1970s in particular for her premiere recordings of the 10 sonatas of Scriabin and the complete solo piano works of Rachmaninoff, for her Ravel recordings and in the last 16½ years before her death for her series in the...
and Hélène Grimaud
Hélène Grimaud
Hélène Grimaud is a French pianist.-Biography:Grimaud was born in Aix-en-Provence, France. Although her autobiography Variations Sauvages suggests a...
, have used Horowitz's edition when performing the piece. A performance of the syncretic version lasts approximately 22 minutes.
External links
- Recording by Cecile LicadCecile LicadCecile Licad is a renowned Filipina virtuoso classical pianist dubbed as a "a pianist's pianist" by The New Yorker, "her artistry, a blend of daring musical instinct and superb training." -Biography:...
from the Isabella Stewart Gardner MuseumIsabella Stewart Gardner MuseumThe Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum or Fenway Court, as the museum was known during Isabella Stewart Gardner's lifetime, is a museum in the Fenway-Kenmore neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, located within walking distance of the Museum of Fine Arts and near the Back Bay Fens...
in MP3MP3MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
format - History of the different versions of the piece