“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: Oboe, piano
Piano score, solo part
Item no.: 895959
Theme from third movement
for: Saxophone, piano
Piano score, solo part
Item no.: 903260
Theme from third movement
for: Flute, piano
Piano score, solo part
Item no.: 894308
for: Solo o.kleine Gruppe, Chor, Klavier [Cello]
Score
Item no.: 1338084
in E-Minor
for: Piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 6834
for: Soloists, mixed choir (SATB), piano
Choir score
Item no.: 1105657
for: Lead Sheet
Item no.: 1361287
Walton Choral
for: Mixed choir (SATB), piano
Choir score
Item no.: 985737
No. 12 To Thee We Sing
for: S Solo, SATB
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 1005160
for: Mixed choir (SSAATTBB) a cappella
Item no.: 312600
for: Choral
Item no.: 1374325
C#m
for: Piano
Piano Solo
Item no.: 1612542
Prijidite, poklonimsja
for: Mixed choir (SSAATTBB) a cappella
Choir score
Item no.: 1105729
Tebe pojem
for: Mixed choir (SATB) a cappella
Choir score
Item no.: 1105708
Budi imja Gospodne
for: Mixed choir (SATB) a cappella
Choir score
Item no.: 1105699
Blagoslowen grjady i Widechom swet istinny
for: Mixed choir (SAATTB) a cappella
Choir score
Item no.: 1105720
for: Mixed choir (SATB) a cappella
Score
Item no.: 228902
for: SATB divisi
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 1037416
for: SATB divisi
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 901304
op. 34 n° 14
arranged for cello and piano
for: Cello, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 6602
Choral Music Experience
for: CH KLAV
Chorpartitur
Item no.: 611090
op. 34 n° 14
arranged for alto saxophone and piano
for: Alto saxophone, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 6604
No. 16 O Praise the Lord from the Heavens
for: Mixed choir (SATB); piano ad lib.
Choir score
Item no.: 1077657
op. 34 n° 14
arranged for violin and piano
for: Violin, piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 6601
Op. 34 n° 14
for: Voice (high), piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 6600
op. 34 n° 14
arranged for clarinet (tenor saxophone) and piano
for: Clarinet (B-flat) [tenor saxophone], piano
Sheet music
Item no.: 6603
Konzertwerk
for: Soprano Solo, SATB Chorus [divisi] a Cappella
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 902895
for: Alto saxophone (E-flat)
Instrumental Solo
Item no.: 1051281
for: SATB divisi
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 1041502
for: SATB divisi
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 1039639
for: SATB divisi
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 1039201
for: SATB divisi
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 907979
for: Two-Part Treble Voices [SA] and Organ
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 1038476
Hymnen und Choräle
for: Mixed choir (SATB); piano ad lib.
Choir score
Item no.: 1004931
for: Male choir (TTBB) a cappella
Choir score
Item no.: 909089
for: Tenor and SATB
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 1041793
for: Tenor and SATB
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 1037669
No. 6 Lord, to Thee & O Thou Holy
for: Mixed choir (SATB); piano ad lib.
Choir score
Item no.: 1005072
for: SATTB and Organ
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 1040656
Konzertwerk
for: TTBB divisi a Cappella
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 900004
Pavane Choral
for: Women's Choir [SSAA]
Choir score
Item no.: 1168350
2-Part and Piano
for: Choir (2 voices), piano
Choir score
Item no.: 1168903
10. Having now beheld the resurrection of Christ
for: SATB divisi
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 1041785
for: SATB divisi
Einzelstimme
Item no.: 1038653
Sudien und Übungen
for: Piano
Single edition
Item no.: 850138
S.A.T.B., A Cappella
for: gemischter Chor (SATB), Klavier (for rehearsal only)
Choir score
Item no.: 1625864
op. 23/5
for: Piano
Music score
Item no.: 732369
for: Violin, piano
Music score
Item no.: 792117