Biography
Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff (1873 - 1943) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor. He is considered one of the greatest pianists of the 20th century, one of the last representatives of the romantic tradition.He was born on April 1, 1873, near Lake Ilmen in the Novgorod region. His family owned vast fortune, most notably his mother, who was a general's daughter. His father was a retired tsarist officer but things went badly for the family, their sister died of diphtheriam the father lost their property and the parents eventually divorced. Sergei found himself in a bad psychological state until a pianist's cousin suggested that he take music lessons in Moscow. He quickly proved his talent on the piano and continued his composition studies at the Moscow Conservatory.
His reputation as a composer and pianist was established with Prelude in C major (1892), which became a public favorite for the following years, and with Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor (1901), which was a great success after a period of artistic inactivity.
After the first Russian revolution of 1905, Rachmaninoff moved with his family to Dresden, where he composed three of his most important works, the Symphony No. 2 in Mi Minor, the symphonic poem "The Island of the Dead" and the Piano Concerto. no.3 in Re minor. With the last work he toured for the first time in the USA, gaining a great reputation. He returned to Russia in February 1910. After the October Revolution, which he did not support, he spent his time between Switzerland and USA,. He didn't compose anything important at that period, he dedicated himself to concerts in Europe and the USA. His last work, "Symphony Dances for Orchestra", was written in 1940. He died on March 28, 1943 in the United States.