Rachmaninov: Etudes-Tableaux, Op. 39

Alternating the roles of soloist and accompanist,Alexander Melnikov has brought together here two works emblematic of Rachmaninov at his creative peak, before it was brutally interrupted by the sound and the fury of 1917: the famous Études-tableaux Op.39 and Six Poems Op.38 were followed by a very long silence. In 1931, it was a broken man who produced the Variations on a Theme by Corelli, a bitter work that yearns for a past long gone. The coloratura soprano Elena Brilova studied with Nina Dorliac at the Moscow Conservatory. In 1985 she won first prize at the international singing competition in Holland and has since sung at the Bolshoi, the Vienna State Opera, La Scala, Düsseldorf from 1998 to 2005 and in Japan, China,Taiwan and Israel. She has worked with Alexander Melnikov for many years, exploring the Russian song repertoire from Glinka to Shostakovich. Alexander Melnikov’s CDs for harmonia mundi include a Scriabin recital and acclaimed collaborations with Isabelle Faust and Jean-Guihen Queyras. Since 2002 he has taught at the RNCM.

Freddy Kempf plays Rachmaninov

Rachmaninov - Etudes tableaux, Op. 33 & Op. 39

Rachmaninov & Schubert - Piano Pieces

These two works are all too often neglected by performers but pianist Alain Lefèvre has incorporated them into his concert repertoire for over twenty years. The intensely lyrical and poetic works of Klavierstücke are a testament to Schubert’s great maturity; and the finely crafted little symphonic poems for piano of the Études-tableaux Op. 39 are surely some of Rachmaninov’s finest compositions.

Rachmaninov - Etudes tableaux, Op. 33 & Op. 39

Rachmaninov - Etudes tableaux, Op. 33 & Op. 39

Rachmaninov - Works for Solo Piano

Nikolai Lugansky plays Rachmaninov

Rachmaninov: The Etudes-Tableaux