“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.
op. 10/2
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 756023
Bb
for: Clarinet, piano
Instrumental Solo & Piano Accompaniment
Item no.: 1589496
Bb
for: Clarinet
Instrumental Solo & Piano Accompaniment
Item no.: 1612602
for: Piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1383384
for: Concert band
Score, Parts
Item no.: 1379654
for: Piccolo, guitar
Sheet music
Item no.: 1246285
theme from third movement
for: Violin, piano
Music score
Item no.: 792116
D
for: Piano
Piano Solo
Item no.: 1553219
op. 10/5
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 723220
for: Euphonium, piano [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1637118
Edition Schott
for: Orgel (2 Spieler)
Music score
Item no.: 758136
for: Horn (E-flat), piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1615170
theme from third movement
for: Trumpet, piano
Music score
Item no.: 792105
for: Violin, piano
Music score
Item no.: 792106
for: Horn (E-flat), piano [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1637103
op. 34 n° 14
arranged for cello and piano
for: Cello, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 6602
for: Trumpet or Cornet & Orchestra
Sheet music
Item no.: 1636610
for: Violin, orchestra
Sheet music
Item no.: 1636601
for: Viola & Orchestra
Sheet music
Item no.: 1636600
for: Piano Duets & Four Hands
Item no.: 1358431
for: Clarinet, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1251525
for: Euphonium, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1251519
for: Clarinet, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1250874
for: Violin, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1250861
for: Violin, piano
Instrumental Solo & Piano Accompaniment
Item no.: 1612553
Gb
for: Flute, piano
Instrumental Solo & Piano Accompaniment
Item no.: 1612505
F#
for: Alto saxophone, piano
Instrumental Solo & Piano Accompaniment
Item no.: 1612089
Bb
for: Flute, piano
Instrumental Solo & Piano Accompaniment
Item no.: 1589494
for: Piano
Piano Solo
Item no.: 1553475
for: Voice (high), piano
Piano/Vocal
Item no.: 1030812
for: Piano
Item no.: 1362106
for: Baritone saxophone, piano [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1246260
for: Trombone, guitar
Sheet music
Item no.: 1246249
for: Bass trombone, guitar
Sheet music
Item no.: 1246247
for: Euphonium, guitar
Sheet music
Item no.: 1246235
for: Solo o.kleine Gruppe, Chor, Klavier [Cello]
Score
Item no.: 1338084
for: Clarinet, piano
Music score
Item no.: 792070
theme from first movement
for: Trumpet, piano
Music score
Item no.: 792094
for: Cello, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1615163
for: Tuba (E-flat), piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1615166
op. 3/4
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 723222
for: Clarinet, piano
Music score
Item no.: 792074
for: Alto trombone, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1615169
op. 3/1
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 747472
Schott Piano Collection
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 736596
theme from first movement
for: Violin, piano
Music score
Item no.: 792107
for: Viola, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1615177
for: Horn (F), organ [piano]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1637104