“Music is enough for a lifetime, but a lifetime is not enough for music.” Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff (1873-1943)
Sergei Rachmaninoff was a Russian pianist, composer and conductor. He is considered the last romantic among the great Russian composers. Browse our sheet music and scores, and explore all his magnificent works today!
Unfortunately, Sergei Rachmaninoff’s childhood cannot be described as a particularly happy one. He was born into a wealthy aristocratic family, whose fortunes were soon dashed by his father’s decadent and debauched lifestyle, squandering all their money on mistresses and gambling. After his parents separated, the boy was sent to live with his grandmother, who recognised and nurtured his musical talents. At the age of nine, he joined the St. Petersburg Conservatoire. Despite his brilliant piano technique, and great musical talent, Rachmaninoff did not thrive at school, and was eventually sent off to Moscow, where he studied under the excellent teacher, Nikolai Zverev. It was in Moscow, that Rachmaninoff first began composing.
At the end of the 1890s, the young Rachmaninoff suffered two cruel turns of fate, both his close friend Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and his teacher Nikolai Zverev died. His 1st Symphony premiered in 1897, and although it was conducted by Alexander Glazunov, the performance was so lacking, that Rachmaninoff couldn’t bear to listen to any more, got up, and left the auditorium well before the end of the piece. The work was mercilessly slammed by the critics, and Rachmaninoff suffered a nervous breakdown. In the following three years, Rachmaninoff struggled to even pick up his quill.
It was not until after 1901 that Rachmaninoff finally turned back to music. He began to work as a conductor in Moscow, and slowly began to travel and perform again, first through Europe, and then the United States as a pianist and conductor. Soon however, the political situation in Russia became so dire, that in 1917, Rachmaninoff and his entire family bade a sad farewell to their homeland, never to return. They emigrated first to Scandinavia, and then in 1918, to America. He spent the final years of his life in the US and Switzerland, where he found peace in his villa, where he would retire after exhausting concert tours.
Stylistically, Sergei Rachmaninoff belongs to neo-romanticists, although his ideas were very original. His works are richly nationalistic, and encapture the essence of the Russian folk tradition. Rachmaninov was inspired by the typically Russian, expressive, romantic motifs and melodies of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. Today, it is still possible to find recordings of Rachmaninoff’s piano playing; one can sit back, and admire his remarkable interpretive and expressive skills, and one can gain an insight into the composer’s inner thoughts, as he masterfully navigates his own magnificent works.
for: Bass trombone, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1250866
for: Euphonium, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1615183
Two-Piano Score
for: Piano, orchestra
Piano reduction
Item no.: 161407
for: Viola, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1601393
for: Trumpet or Cornet & Orchestra
Sheet music
Item no.: 1635717
for: Flute & Orchestra
Sheet music
Item no.: 1635710
for: Oboe & Orchestra
Sheet music
Item no.: 1635694
for: Concert band
Sheet music
Item no.: 1259977
for piano duet
for: Piano 4 hands
Ensemble score
Item no.: 197700
for: Mixed choir, brass band
Sheet music
Item no.: 1298657
for: Bass trombone, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1307518
for: Euphonium, piano [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1636115
for: Viola, piano [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1636109
for: Horn (E-flat), piano [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1636099
for: Concert band
Sheet music
Item no.: 1314885
for: Brass band
Sheet music
Item no.: 1315450
for: Alto saxophone, guitar
Sheet music
Item no.: 1302924
for: Baritone saxophone, piano [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1302921
for: Bass trombone, piano [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1302909
for: Tuba, guitar
Sheet music
Item no.: 1302906
for: Cello, piano [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1302901
for: Oboe, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1283968
for: Trumpet [cornet], piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1283960
Score
Item no.: 638291
Score
Item no.: 638260
for: 2 pianos
Sheet music
Item no.: 1383393
for: Piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1383381
for: Concert band
Score, Parts
Item no.: 1382503
for: Piano
Item no.: 356200
for: Cello, piano
Piano score, solo part
Item no.: 245351
Southern Music
for: Soprano Saxophone
Buch
Item no.: 927180
for: Alto saxophone, piano
Book
Item no.: 166449
for: Cello, piano
Piano score, solo part
Item no.: 163745
for: Violin, cello, piano (piano trio)
Book
Item no.: 938671
for: Piano, orchestra
Study score
Item no.: 403791
for: Piano
Item no.: 403751
for: Piano
Music score, Playback-CD
Item no.: 694118
for: Piano
Single edition
Item no.: 850138
for: Piano
Music score, CD
Item no.: 849622
for: 2 Euphoniums and 2 Tubas
Score, Parts
Item no.: 995759
for: Symphonic orchestra
Book
Item no.: 940729
Klassik
for: 2 pianos
Music score
Item no.: 1591213
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 1326798
for: Mezzo-soprano [or Bariton] and Piano
Buch
Item no.: 935076
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 1178353
for: Violin, piano
Music score
Item no.: 792114
for: Trumpet, piano
Music score
Item no.: 792110
theme from first movement
for: Clarinet, piano
Music score
Item no.: 792072