A couple of weeks ago, I went to
the symphony for a performance of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto #3, in D minor,
Op. 30, which is, possibly, my favorite piece of music. This performance was part of RachFest, as the
Houston Symphony has called the package, three performances over three weeks in
January. The moment I saw this on the
web site, I was on the phone with the box office for tickets. I used to be a season’s ticket holder at the
symphony, but surrendered my seats a couple of years ago, so I was particularly
excited about RachFest. The package
includes Piano Concertos #1, #2, #3 and #4.
The pianist performing is Krill
Gerstein, a Russian-born pianist. In
2010, he won the Gilmore Award, only the sixth musician to be so honored.
Sergei Rachmaninoff composed
Piano Concerto #3 in 1909. The Rach 3 is
famous for its technical and musical demands on the artist and has a reputation
for being one of the most technically challenging piano concertos. Rachmaninoff composed the concerto in the
peaceful setting of his family home, and first performed it himself on November
28, 1909. Rachmaninoff was a Russian
pianist and composer and was considered one of the finest pianists of his
day. He was born in April of 1873 and
died in March of 1943.
In my as-yet unpublished Sinners’ Opera, the hero is a classical
pianist, a British lord and a vampire.
In the book, he plays the Rach 3 with the Atlanta Symphony in a scene
where he takes the heroine on stage while he plays. It’s one of my favorite scenes.
