Rachmaninoff: Complete Songs

Rachmaninoff: Complete Songs

Rachmaninoff: Complete Songs
List Price: $18.98
Our Price: $14.87
You Save: $4.11 (22%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Category: Music CD
See more CD details
Listen soundtracks from this album


(Click here)
Buy this Music CD at online store in your country
Canadian Music Store

CD Details

Composer: Sergey Rachmaninov
Performer: Maria Popescu
Performer: Howard Shelley
Performer: Joan Rodgers
Performer: Alexandre Naoumenko
Edition: Music CD
Audio: English (Unknown)
Format: Box set
CD Release Date: 2008-01-08
Music Label: Brilliant Classics
Soundtracks:
Music CD 1
  1. At the Gates Of the Holy Cloister
  2. Nothing Shall I Say To You
  3. Again You Are Bestirred, My Heart
  4. April! A Festive Day In the Spring
  5. Dusk Was Falling
  6. Song Of the Disenchanted
  7. The Flower Died
  8. Do You Remember the Evening?
  9. O, No, I Beg You, Do Not Leave
  10. Morning
  11. In the Silence Of the Secret Night
  12. Sing Not, O Lovely One
  13. Oh, My Field
  14. It Wasn't Long Ago, My Friend
  15. Water Lily
  16. My Child, Your Beauty Is That Of a Flower
  17. Thoughts, Reflection
  18. I Fell In Love, To My Sorrow
  19. A Dream
  20. Prayer
  21. I Await You
  22. Small Island
  23. How Fleeting Is Delight In Love
  24. I Was With Her
  25. Summer Nights
  26. You Are So Loved By All
  27. Do Not Believe Me, Friend
  28. Oh, Do Not Grieve
  29. She Is As Beautiful As Midday
  30. In My Soul
  31. Spring Torrents
  32. It Is Time
Music CD 2
  1. Were You Hiccoughing, Natasha?
  2. Night
  3. Fate
  4. By a Fresh Grave
  5. Twilight
  6. They Replied
  7. Lilacs
  8. Fragment From A. Musset
  9. How Peaceful
  10. On the Death Of a Siskin
  11. Melody
  12. Before the Icon
  13. I Am Not a Prophet
  14. How Painted I Am
  15. There Are Many Sounds
  16. All Was Taken From Me
  17. We Shall Rest
  18. Two Farewells
  19. Let Us Leave, My Sweet
  20. Christ Is Risen
  21. To My Children
  22. I Beg For Mercy
  23. I Am Alone Again
  24. At My Window
  25. The Fountain
  26. Night Is Sorrowful
  27. Yesterday We Met
  28. The Ring
  29. All Passes
Music CD 3
  1. Letter K.S. Stanislavsky
  2. The Muse
  3. In the Soul Of Each Of Us
  4. The Storm
  5. A Passing Breeze
  6. Arion
  7. The Raining Of Lazarus
  8. It Cannot Be
  9. Music
  10. You Knew Him
  11. I Remember This Day
  12. The Herald
  13. What Happiness
  14. Dissonance
  15. Vocalise
  16. From the Gospel Of St. John
  17. At Night In My Garden
  18. To Her
  19. Daisies
  20. The Pied Piper
  21. Sleep
  22. 'Au'
  23. A Prayer
  24. All Glory To God

Music reviews of Rachmaninoff: Complete Songs

Music Review: The best recording of the Rachmaninov songs at an unbeatably low price
Rating: 5 Stars

If one loves Rachmaninov and doesn't know his songs, one is missing a LOT! They are every bit as important, richly detailed and appealing as anything in his oeuvre. As is the case with all composers of "art song," only a handful of Rachmaninov's 85 songs are performed with any regularity, but the others are every bit as much worth knowing. The exception may be Op.21 No.1--an embarrassingly melodramatic monster called "Fate," based on the opening motif of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony! Oh well, composers are only human--each is entitled to write at least one unmitigated stinkeroo!

The singers are almost uniformly excellent. Joan Rodgers and Serge Leiferkus need no introduction, and Maria Popescu, a mezzo-soprano hitherto unknown to me, is fully worthy of sharing their spotlight. Tenor Alexandre Naoumenko is not on the same level. The voice has a nice color and heft, but the top register needs work. Sometimes, he gets around this with a soft voix mixte. However, when big top notes are called for, he pushes through a tight throat--the results are tolerable, but not really beautiful. Luckily, he sings only 16 songs on these three discs.

I confess I don't care for Howard Shelley's sets of the concertos and solo works. His rubato in this repertoire always seems "synthetic" and self-conscious to me, but I know many listeners will disagree. At any rate, his playing in these songs is natural and convincing, and his technique meets Rachmaninov on the summit.

CAVEAT EMPTOR: The original CHANDOS CD's cost me almost $60! Depending on one's priorities, this inexpensive re-release may be the cheapest way to acquire recordings of all the songs, but not necessarily. Several considerations may influence one to buy this set or Ashkenazy's, or even seek out the CHANDOS CD's. (Personally, I find this Shelley set more satisfactory, for reasons explained below.) For professional musicians, a lot of what follows will belabor the obvious, but I'm trying to include everybody!

1.) THE SONGS ARE PERFORMED HERE IN THEIR ORIGINAL KEYS: Many of the piano parts are as difficult as anything Rachmaninov ever wrote. Transposition compounds difficulty, because it changes the shape the music takes on the keyboard. Because transposition up or down also inevitably changes tone color, there is something to be said for hearing the piano parts in the register of the instrument where this great pianist-composer conceived them. This is chamber music performed by two equal partners, not "solos with accompaniment." The listener does himself and the composer a grave injustice by listening only to the vocal line while "tuning out" the piano, so why not show off both participants to best advantage?

2.) THE SONGS ARE DIVIDED AMONG FOUR DIFFERENT VOICE TYPES: Except for Op.38, the printed music assigns each song to a specific voice classification. Whether or not these suggestions come from the composer himself, they heighten the effectiveness of each song. Because the songs are performed in the original keys, these classifications can be observed in Shelley's set. This also enhances variety--not a bad thing over the course of 85 tracks! Ashkenazy's set doesn't have this advantage because it is performed by only ONE singer, and inescapably, in transposed keys.

3.) BRILLIANT DOESN'T SUPPLY ENGLISH TRANSLATIONS--only transliterations of the Russian, and then gives a website address for translations. Can't say I've seen these, but if they are anything like what I've found on other "art song translation" websites, they will be wildly variable in quality and accuracy, and sometimes, only very approximate "singing translations." On the other hand, if Natalia Challis's name is mentioned as the translator, then go for it.

If one understands Russian, or merely wants to bathe in Rachmaninov, the lack of translations won't be a problem. If one wants to understand the words but doesn't want to spend the time, money and effort with Rosetta Stone, I suggest several possibilities:

a.) Buy this BRILLIANT set and check out the translations website it recommends. If you're satisfied, make printouts or copy the texts to a CDR. If you're not satisfied, buy Natalia Challis' "The Singer's Rachmaninoff," sold right here on AMAZON. If you are a professional musician, you will already know this invaluable book, containing ALL of the songs in Russian, word-for-word English translations, and pronunciations in the International Phonetic Alphabet. This will cost about the same as "b", and might be the best idea for professionals, because it offers the most "bang for the buck." OR...the book should be in most university music department libraries.

b.) Find the CHANDOS CD's, as of this date, still available. The booklets contain transliterated Russian with English, French and German translations. This will be much more expensive than BRILLIANT, but one will be absolutely sure of having Natalia Challis' excellent translations in a space-saving form, conveniently tucked inside the jewel cases with the recordings.

The bottom line: at ANY level of intimacy, these songs are worth knowing. At this price, this beautifully performed and well-thought-out set is a steal! If you love Rachmaninov, get acquainted with his songs.
More Rachmaninoff: Complete Songs free music reviews:
1

Description of Rachmaninoff: Complete Songs

All products are BRAND NEW and factory sealed. Fast shipping and 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed.

Classical CDs
Music Genres
Bestsellers in Classical CDs
Winterscapes ImageWinterscapes
by London Philharmonic
Prophetic Voice; Published: 2000-07; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $2.75
Price in other shops: $6.99
The Queen, the Bear, & the Bumblebee ImageThe Queen, the Bear, & the Bumblebee
by Dini Petty
Children's Group; Published: 2001-03; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $13.38
Price in other shops: $13.98
Beethoven Lives Upstairs Cdr ImageClassical Kids - Beethoven Lives Upstairs Cdr
Release date: 2000-04-05; Music CD
Best price: $24.98
Tchaikovsky (Life and Works (Naxos)) ImageTchaikovsky (Life and Works (Naxos))
by Malcolm Sinclair, Jeremy Siepmann
Naxos; Published: 2003-11; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $35.99
Jose Carreras - Jubileum Concert [VHS] ImageJose Carreras - Jose Carreras - Jubileum Concert [VHS]
Sling Shot; Release date: 2000-04-18; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $5.86
Price in other shops: $9.99
Tchaikovsky - The Nutcracker / Nureyev, Park, Royal Ballet [VHS] ImageTchaikovsky - The Nutcracker / Nureyev, Park, Royal Ballet [VHS]
Kultur Video; Release date: 1997-09-09; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $29.89
Price in other shops: $29.95
Lonely Town Lonley Street / Sergeant's Early Dream [VHS] ImageRambert Dance Company - Lonely Town Lonley Street / Sergeant's Early Dream [VHS]
Kultur Video; Release date: 1997-10-28; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $14.99
Price in other shops: $29.95
Winter Music: Composing the North ImageWinter Music: Composing the North
by John Luther Adams
Wesleyan; Published: 2004-11-10; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $21.88
Price in other shops: $25.95
Puccini - La Fanciulla del West / Santi, Domingo, Neblett, Royal Opera Covent Garden [VHS] ImagePuccini - La Fanciulla del West / Santi, Domingo, Neblett, Royal Opera Covent Garden [VHS]
Kultur Video; Release date: 1999-05-25; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $6.38
Price in other shops: $29.95
Verdi - Falstaff / Giulini, Bruson, Ricciarelli, Nucci, Royal Opera Covent Garden [VHS] ImageVerdi - Falstaff / Giulini, Bruson, Ricciarelli, Nucci, Royal Opera Covent Garden [VHS]
Kultur Video; Release date: 1999-05-25; VHS Tape; VHS Video
Best price: $12.95
Price in other shops: $29.95
Similar CDs
Tchaikovsky: Romances ImageTchaikovsky: Romances
Release date: 2009-10-27; Music CD
Best price: $9.96
Price in other shops: $18.98
Anne Sofie von Otter ~ Berlioz - Les nuits d'été / Berlin Phil., Levine ImageAnne Sofie von Otter ~ Berlioz - Les nuits d'été / Berlin Phil., Levine
Release date: 1995-06-13; Music CD
Best price: $12.99
Price in other shops: $16.98
Tchaikovsky's Complete Songs: A Companion with Texts and Translations (Russian Music Studies) ImageTchaikovsky's Complete Songs: A Companion with Texts and Translations (Russian Music Studies)
by Richard D. Sylvester
Indiana University Press; Published: 2003-11-20; Paperback; Book
Best price: $30.04
Price in other shops: $39.95
The Songs of Chausson / Lott · Murray · McGreevy · Trakas · Chilingirian Quartet · G. Johnson ImageThe Songs of Chausson / Lott · Murray · McGreevy · Trakas · Chilingirian Quartet · G. Johnson
Release date: 2001-04-10; Music CD
Best price: $24.05
Price in other shops: $45.98
Strauss: The Complete Songs - 2 ImageStrauss: The Complete Songs - 2
Release date: 2007-06-12; Music CD
Best price: $13.96
Price in other shops: $21.98
Strauss: The Complete Songs, Vol. 1 ImageStrauss: The Complete Songs, Vol. 1
Release date: 2005-06-14; Music CD
Best price: $9.90
Price in other shops: $21.98
Rachmaninov: Complete Operas (Aleko, The Miserly Knight, Francesca di Rimini) ImageRachmaninov: Complete Operas (Aleko, The Miserly Knight, Francesca di Rimini)
Release date: 2004-06-15; Music CD
Best price: $13.82
Price in other shops: $23.98
Dvorak: Lieder ImageDvorak: Lieder
Release date: 2004-07-13; Music CD
Best price: $20.19
Price in other shops: $21.98
The Songs of Henri Duparc ImageThe Songs of Henri Duparc
Release date: 1993-06-21; Music CD
Best price: $13.71
Price in other shops: $21.98
Complete Songs for Voice and Piano (Dover Song Collections) ImageComplete Songs for Voice and Piano (Dover Song Collections)
by Serge Rachmaninoff
Alfred Publishing; Dover Publications; Published: 1998-02-17; Paperback; Book
Best price: $12.75
Price in other shops: $22.95
Books | DVD Video | VHS Video | Health and Personal Care | Digital Cameras and Photo | Kitchen and Housewares | Tools and Hardware | Sports Equipment | Dresses shirts shoes apparel pants
Copyright © 2004-2007 music-hills.com
Google
 
Web music-hills.com
Compare prices and find music notes for more than one million Music CD titles