“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.
Klassik
for: Alto trombone, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1283957
Klassik
for: Euphonium, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1283954
Special Arrangements for 2 Advanced Pianists
for: 2 pianos
Music score
Item no.: 780519
for: Brass ensemble
Score, Parts
Item no.: 973683
Music for String Orchestra
for: String orchestra
Score, Parts
Item no.: 479681
De Haske Pop Collection
for: Brass band
Score
Item no.: 887728
C
for: Piano
Piano Solo
Item no.: 1554734
Symphonic Dances
for: Piano
Music score, CD
Item no.: 893115
Simrock Original Edition
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 1341036
Critical Edition of the Complete Works
Rachmaninoff Critical Edition of the Complete Works Volume 18
for: Piano
Score (with critical report)
Item no.: 684138
op. 16
for: Piano
Item no.: 357258
for 2 pianos for hands
for: 2 pianos
Ensemble score
Item no.: 403692
Oper in 2 Akten
for: Opera
Score
Item no.: 277885
Le Christ renait
for: Cello, piano
Piano score, solo part
Item no.: 868135
op.34/14
for: Violine und Klavier
Score, solo part
Item no.: 1199738
for: Concert band
Score, Parts
Item no.: 864235
Nr. 5 Flieder
for: High Vocal [Soprano] and Piano
Book
Item no.: 911907
for: Piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1383385
for: Piano
Item no.: 1523400
for: Organ
Music score
Item no.: 138474
op. 39 Nr. 5
for: Piano
Item no.: 636585
for: Trumpet, piano
Music score
Item no.: 792093
for: Medium High Voice and Piano
Book
Item no.: 1076919
for: SATB divisi
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 1039201
БОГОРОДИЦЕ ДЕВО | boɡoˈrodʲitsɛ ˈdʲɛvo
for: Mixed choir (SATB) a cappella
Item no.: 1664425
9. Blessed art Thou, O most gracious Lord
for: Tenor and SATB
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 1041755
op. 10/2
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 756023
for: Organ
Music score
Item no.: 1203454
for: 2 violins, piano
Item no.: 343787
Bb
for: Clarinet, piano
Instrumental Solo & Piano Accompaniment
Item no.: 1589496
Bb
for: Clarinet
Instrumental Solo & Piano Accompaniment
Item no.: 1612602
theme from third movement
for: Violin, piano
Music score
Item no.: 792116
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 849662
Item no.: 610948
D
for: Piano
Piano Solo
Item no.: 1553219
Konzertwerk
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 129202
Konzertwerk
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 129200
G. Schirmer’s Library of Musical Classics
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 137626
Symphonic Series
for: Concert band
Score, Parts
Item no.: 1001256
Music Minus One
for: Piano
Music score, online audio
Item no.: 367793
Two-Piano Score
for: Piano, orchestra
Piano reduction
Item no.: 161409
for: Bass Clarinet & Orchestra
Sheet music
Item no.: 1635702
for: Soprano saxophone, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1601387
for: Tenor saxophone (B-flat), piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 1601385
for: Bass recorder, piano [organ]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1302929
for: Horn (F), organ [piano]
Sheet music
Item no.: 1302917
for: Alto trombone, guitar
Sheet music
Item no.: 1302912