Igumnov Archive

RACHMANINOV: Piano Sonata No. 1 in d minor; 3 Etudes-Tableaux; 4 Songs; Variations on a Theme of Corelli – Sandro Russo, p. – Steinway & Sons

by Audiophile Audition | Apr 11, 2017 | Classical CD Reviews

Sandro Russo pays homage to the continuity of style and mood in early and late works of Sergei Rachmaninov. RACHMANINOV: Solo Piano Works = Piano Sonata No. 1 in d minor, Op. 28; 3 Etudes-Tableaux; 4 Songs (arr. E. Wild); Variations on a Theme of Corelli, Op. 42 – Sandro Russo, piano – Steinway & Sons 30077, 78:04 (3/17/17)  [Distr. by Naxos] ****: A graduate of the Vincenzo Bellini Conservatory and the Royal College of Music in London, pianist Sandro Russo means “to showcase the multiple facets of [Rachmaninov’s] artistic language.” Russo (rec. 13 & 20 June 2016) addresses the imposing Piano Sonata No. 1  (1908), a piece inspired by both the Faust legend and the Liszt Faust Symphony, with its musical portraits of Faust, Gretchen, and Mephistopheles. In fact, the sketches for the d minor Sonata suggest Rachmaninov’s symphonic ambitions, though he would discard any program from the piece, as such. In three large, intricate movements, the sonata resonates with the ubiquitous Dies Irae of the Requiem Mass, especially given Rachmaninov’s gothic sensibility and his admiration of the Liszt Totentanz. Rachmaninov presented the draft of the work to colleague Konstantin Igumnov, who premiered the work. Russo attacks the first […]