“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: Flute & Orchestra
Sheet music
Item no.: 1635710
for: Oboe & Orchestra
Sheet music
Item no.: 1635694
for: Piccolo, piano [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1246286
for: Trombone, piano [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1246250
for: Tuba (E-flat), piano [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1246234
for: Tuba (E-flat), guitar
Sheet music
Item no.: 1246233
for: Bass trombone, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1250866
for: Concert band
Sheet music
Item no.: 1259977
Klassik
for: Oboe, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1283968
for: Euphonium, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1615183
for: Bass trombone, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1307518
STRINGS COLLECTION
for: Cello, piano [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1302901
for: Horn (F), guitar
Sheet music
Item no.: 1246255
for: Viola, piano [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1636109
for: Mixed choir (SATB) a cappella
Choir score
Item no.: 865781
Klassik
for: Organ
Music score
Item no.: 1111442
Piano Solo
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 291773
Klassik
for: Trumpet [cornet], piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1283960
Op 23 No 5
for: 2 Euphoniums and 2 Tubas
Score, Parts
Item no.: 995759
theme from first movement
for: Alto saxophone, piano
Music score
Item no.: 792092
op. 34/14
for: Cello, piano
Music score
Item no.: 1548711
for: Trumpet [cornet], piano [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1636117
for: Oboe, piano [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1636094
theme from first movement
for: Clarinet, piano
Music score
Item no.: 792072
for: Tuba (E-flat), piano [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1636095
for: Bass trombone, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1601375
No. 12 To Thee We Sing
for: S Solo, SATB
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 1005160
for: SATB divisi
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 906368
for: Flute, piano
Piano score, solo part
Item no.: 1215372
for: Alto trombone, piano [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1637102
for: Tenor and SATB
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 1037669
for: SATB divisi
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 1038716
for: Bass trombone, piano [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1637101
for: Trumpet, piano
Music score
Item no.: 792110
for: Alto Flute or Bass Flute
Book
Item no.: 994672
for: Concert band
Score, Parts
Item no.: 1198194
for: Violin, piano
Music score
Item no.: 792114
Bogoroditse Dyevo
for: Concert band
Sheet music
Item no.: 1314092
for: Mixed choir, concert band
Sheet music
Item no.: 1314774
for: Brass band
Sheet music
Item no.: 1315459
Klassik
for: Tenor saxophone (B-flat), piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1283962
Klassik
for: Tuba (B-flat), piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1283950
for: Euphonium & Orchestra
Sheet music
Item no.: 1635714
for: Eb Cornet & Orchestra
Sheet music
Item no.: 1635699
for: Viola, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1308168
for: Flute, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1307528
for: Horn (F), piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1307521
for: Cello, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1307511