![]() ![]() At the end of the bar, observe the level of dynamic you have reached and use that as a starting point for the next bar. The long C# in bar 2 will naturally decrease in volume like the resonance of a bell. The Prelude has an underlying sense of nobility and grandeur: it shouldn’t sound tight or forced. However the fortissimo dynamic should not lead you to hit the keys or give rise to an aggressive interpretation. Imagine the entire brass section of an orchestra playing these opening notes – listening to Leopold Stokowski’s opulent orchestration of the Prelude below may give you some ideas. Draw each of these crotchets out of the keyboard with big, whole-arm movements. They complete this opening statement which is full of darkness and melancholy. You will seldom hear it done like that, possibly because in performance it can seem like a very long time to hold a single note! I find it easier to subdivide the note and count it in quavers, as it is the quaver beat that propels the melody which is to follow.ĭon’t overlook the preceding two crotchets of A and G#. This note should be held for the full four crotchet beats. One of the main problems comes in bar 2, on this long semibreve C#. This opening is so famous that it can be difficult to play it exactly as it is written and not just as you have heard it in many recordings. ![]() TIP 1: The lengthy notes in the opening should resonate like a bell Awareness of this will lend power and context to your performance. The more you think about the ffff climax the more you can hear the bells pealing in glorious unison. Indeed, this Prelude is steeped in bell sonorities. He commented that hearing these bells throughout his childhood had influenced many of his compositions, from large-scale orchestral works through to solo piano pieces. As a child, he was often taken to church by his maternal grandmother in the city of Novgorod. Rachmaninov loved the sound of bells all his life. Also, the central Agitato section (the triplet figuration) is technically quite challenging – especially in the final flourish cadenza. Firstly, the dynamics range from ppp to ffff, so finesse in terms of managing your levels of sound is required. It is a masterpiece in symphonic piano writing and it tests the pianist in many ways. We hope you enjoy it just as much.ĭon’t let the fame of this piece put you off. While we're struggling to find a recording of Mickey Mouse playing the piece (!), we did find a stunning performance from Evgeny Kissin. He reached a point where he no longer wanted to perform the Prelude and he simply ‘detested’ it: ‘I have heard my inescapable Prelude played superbly by many professional pianists and cruelly murdered by many amateurs, but I have never heard it played as well as by the great Maestro Mouse in the Walt Disney film, Mickey’s Opry House.’ Rachmaninov felt he was cursed by this piece in later years because he said it was all that people wanted him to play. The most famous piano piece ever written? So some have said. Don't have the score? You can download the full piece from our Scores store, here. ![]()
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