Svistelnikova Elena Vladimirovna
Piano teacher
GBOU SPO SK Stavropol Regional Music College named after. Safonova,
Mineralnye Vody
Performance and pedagogical analysis
Rachmaninov's Preludes in D major
and G minor
essay 23
Work on an artistic image is closely related to the analysis of the work being performed. Analysis is needed not only by the performer, but also by the teacher. The ability to analyze and deeply comprehend a musical text is also necessary when students work independently on works of different styles.
This work is devoted to the performing and pedagogical analysis of two preludes by Rachmaninov D major And G minor Op. 23. These preludes attract, first of all, their high artistic merits. Contrasting in nature, the preludes in D major and G minor are among the characteristic images in Rachmaninov’s work.
The richness and variety of artistic images of preludes, their deep content, bright concert style of presentation - all these qualities contribute to the enormous popularity of many preludes.
Rachmaninov's Preludes are not miniatures in the generally accepted sense of the word. Most of them are characterized not only by the scale of their images, but also by their intensive development. And this reflects the great originality of the artist.
The most important source in working on the artistic images of these works are the author's editorial instructions and the texture of the preludes. It is known that Rachmaninov himself edited all of his works, so the author's editorial instructions are an extremely important key to understanding the nature of his works.
D major The prelude is one of Rachmaninov's bright lyrical statements. Smoothness and melodiousness, wide breathing, light, soft coloring, improvisational nature of development - these features give the music of preludes attractiveness and poetry.
Asafiev notes in Rachmaninoff’s soulful lyrics “the presence of a landscape, not pictorial, but overheard in the Russian environment by the sensitive soul of the musician.”
Indeed, many pages of Rachmaninov’s lyrics are associated with the beauty of Russian nature, with the endless expanses of our Motherland. That is why M. Gorky noticed “how well Rachmaninov hears silence,” and Repin, listening D major prelude, “saw” the lake in the spring flood, the Russian flood.”
The prelude is written in three-part form. Despite the general lyrical character, it is characterized by internal dynamics of development: a calm, contemplative mood (first section) gives way to a more excited one (development), reaching a climax in the third section of great vividness of feeling.
Genre:piano miniature.
Time of creation:summer 1910.
Autograph:State Central Museum of Musical Culture named after. M. I. Glinka. F. 18, No. 98.
First edition:Company A. Gutheil, 1910.
The date of creation of the prelude is given by us from the composer’s letter to B. Asafiev dated April 13, 1917, 1 in which S. Rachmaninov, responding to Asafiev’s request to send a list of his works, reports, in particular, that it was during this period that the cycle of preludes op. 32, which includes this prelude.
This summer, S. Rachmaninov wrote a large choral work - “The Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom.” Having finished it, the composer began a cycle of preludes for piano. Each of the preludes in the autograph is dated specifically: this prelude is “August 23, 1910.”
Regarding this particular piece, there is an interesting clarification made by Professor A. B. Goldenweiser, a friend of S. Rachmaninov, who performed many of his works: “In August - September 1910, in Ivanovka, Rachmaninov wrote a series of Preludes op. 32. PreludesG- dur(this play– A. M.) Andgis- moll ( ), apparently not yet recorded, were performed as an encore in April 1910, when his Third Piano Concerto was performed for the first time in Moscow, at a concert of the Moscow Philharmonic Society. 2 In his subsequent concert programs, S. Rachmaninov included both of these preludes, clearly giving them preference. This was the case, for example, at the pianist’s St. Petersburg concert, which took place on December 5, 1911 (his program has been preserved). And later - in exile (which is probably not at all accidental: these plays very much express the composer’s nostalgic feeling) - at concerts in Oslo (October 9, 1928), Stockholm (October 16, 1928), in Paris (December 2, 1928) and much later: S. Rachmaninov performed it in his concerts of the last season - 1942/43.
Many works of musical art can be classified as one or another type of music in accordance with the dominant musical images in the work. We know heroic, pathetic, dramatic, mourning, joyful music, etc. In large musical works, these and other moods can change, transform, contrast, etc. In such cases, it can be difficult to unambiguously determine the nature of the work. If you look at the Prelude in G major from this point of view, then without any hesitation it can be attributed to the sphere of lyrical music, and it can be recognized as an example of the amazing purity of this genre.
In essence, this piano piece is a romance with a dominant melody and carefully accompanying accompaniment. Moderate (moderato), prevailing quiet sonority (up toppp – that is, even quieter thanpianissimo), gentle (dolce) the nature of the sound, the author’s characteristic remarks to the performer, how to play it:perdendo(freezing, getting lost)leggiero(easy) - all together create a very touching, tender and fragile musical image. The feeling of instability and ephemerality is created literally from the first opening sounds of the accompaniment - it is built on the measured alternation of two harmonies (chords), the sounds of which are taken not simultaneously, but alternately, and the figuration does not consist of four sounds, as is much more common, but of five, which allows you to avoid “squareness” and creates the impression of that very instability. These two harmonies and constant figuration fill the first six bars of the prelude. In the second bar, above this accompaniment, a melody of extraordinary beauty enters in the soprano register. And probably the closest image to describe it is a flower bud that has not yet opened.
The prelude is structured like a romance: lines with an imaginary literary text alternate with piano “plays.” At some point (in the middle of the prelude) the lower voice becomes bOgreater independence comes to the fore, and we feel that the monologue has turned into a dialogue. This is how a very subtle and captivating development of the image occurs. In this development, the material of the interludes between poetic (conventional) lines is also more individualized and results in a sound flow leading to a climax (forteon one sound -re– decorated with a trill). At this moment, the general mood turns from major to minor, the fading trill flickers sadlyre –the original state returns, a light major key is re-established. The main melody of the prelude sounds like a farewell.The play ends with a coda - like a farewell wave of a hand...
Notes:
1 Rachmaninov S. Literary heritage. Volume 1. M. 1980. P. 99.
2 Goldenweiser A. From personal memories of S.V. Rachmaninov. - In the book. Goldenweiser A. About musical art. M. 1975. P. 217.
© Alexander MAYKAPAR
Each desk contains task cards and a score sheet.
Choose card number 1.
EXERCISE:
1Watch the presentation “Guess the Orchestra” carefully.
2 Determine the names of the orchestra based on the instruments.
3Write down the names of the orchestras on the card.
Goal: preparation for the perception of basic material.
“I was inspired by the desire to create something beautiful and artistic. One day the prelude just came and I recorded it. It came with such force that I could not get rid of it even if I tried. It had to be - and it became. “- this is how Sergei Rachmaninov wrote about his composition, which is known throughout the world as “Prelude in C Sharp Minor.” It has become loved and popular in different countries.
This is an amazing piece1 It lasts less than three minutes, and only a very good pianist can play it. However, the main intonation is remembered by everyone. There are only three sounds in it: A, G sharp, C sharp. Now I will sing these sounds to you, you will listen and repeat along with me.
Now listen to them. What does this musical motif tell you? (playing an instrument.)
It is opposed by another intonation (playing on an instrument.
Now let's listen to this piece and find out what this music sounds like. (Listening)
II. Complete the following tasks:
Task 2
On each desk there is a card with tasks. Complete them together with your desk mate.
We find card number 2
1How many characters are there in this play?
2This is the reflection of one person or a dialogue between two people
3Choose how the music sounds (menacing, trembling, triumphant)
4What feelings come over you when listening to this music (joy, anger, pain, hope, impulse, despair
“The composer composed this piece when he was 9 years old. It can be called an epigraph to the entire work of S. Rachmaninov. This music is called a “little tragedy,” a man’s fight with fate.”
PRELUDE is a piece of music intended to be performed before a larger piece of music or as an introduction to any action.
“The listener was excited, excited and calmed. Now he is ready to perceive the next work,” Rachmaninov saw the ethos as the purpose of his Prelude.
Let's listen to the Prelude again and determine how many parts there are in it (raise your hand when changing the melody)
Task 3
Now take the card with number U3 and fill it out with a friend.
1How many parts are there in the Prelude?
2Choose the name of an instrument whose sound resembles measured chords sounding in different registers (violin, drum, trumpet, bells)
3Which instruments of the symphony orchestra would you entrust to perform
1 part,
part 2
(Maximum points 14)
Goal: Acquisition of vocal and choral skills.
II. Discuss the results of the work.
(Maximum score 19 points).
І. Summing up the lesson.
1. Read the purpose of the lesson.
2. Did you achieve the lesson objectives? In what degree?
ІІ. Homework.
- In the Music workbook, complete the task on page 21.
A composer of strong, brightly original talent, a brilliant pianist who has no equal among his contemporaries, an outstanding conductor - “a deity in three persons,” as one of the critics put it about Rachmaninov. Which aspect of the activity of this phenomenally gifted musician was the main, determining one? Contemporaries found it difficult to answer this question. “When you listen to his Trio or Second Concerto, or Cello Sonata, or Francesca, or another, better one,” Engel wrote, “you think: this is someone born to write! Drop everything and write!<...>And, listening to how Rachmaninov conducts “A Life for the Tsar” or “The Queen of Spades”, or Tchaikovsky’s symphony, or Grieg’s suites, you think: this is who was born to conduct! Drop everything and conduct! But Rachmaninov is also a pianist<...>And in your fascination with how Rachmaninov performs Tchaikovsky’s concerto or his own compositions, you think: this is someone born to play the piano! Drop everything and play!
Rachmaninov himself constantly fluctuated between his different callings, and when he composed music, he could not give concerts, and when conducting, he did not perform at the same time or rarely and performed little as a pianist, and vice versa. Once even to the question: “Does Rachmaninov the pianist harm Rachmaninov the composer?” he answered in the affirmative: “It’s very harmful.” But at the same time, Rachmaninov’s performing activity undoubtedly stimulated and fertilized his creativity to a significant extent, and the features of composer’s thinking were clearly manifested in Rachmaninov’s pianism. Asafiev rightly emphasizes the integrity of Rachmaninov’s appearance, in which the creative and interpretive principles were inseparably fused together: “Such was the nature of the composer that his works were created simultaneously as contemplation and effective artistic reproduction in one person, when what was written down becomes only material for the performer-sculptor.” .
It can be argued that Rachmaninov would not have made such a rich and vibrant contribution to the development of piano literature if he had not possessed a pianistic talent that was amazing in its power and originality. The same chased elastic rhythm combined with melodiousness, “vocality”, the same sculptural modeling of phrases, rich and varied “registration”, which were characteristic of the performing style of Rachmaninov the pianist, are contained in a hidden form in the musical notation of his works.
To characterize one of the main features of Rachmaninov’s piano work, D. V. Zhitomirsky introduces the concept of “concert performance”, without limiting it to the concert genre itself. Concertness is understood by him as the opposite quality of intimacy with its inherent detail of musical writing. “...In the sphere of concert performance,” the researcher notes, “the directly sensual principle usually manifests itself more fully. This is partly due to the fact that concert performance is inseparable from the individual artistic element.” This also results in a tendency towards a broad, sometimes somewhat lapidary style of presentation, a certain decorativeness and emphasized oratorical pathos. With this understanding of concert performance, one can detect its signs not only in large symphonized Rachmaninoff compositions for piano and orchestra, but also in many of his small-form piano pieces. The concert genre as such also occupies an important place in Rachmaninov’s work: for none of his contemporaries, whose creative interests were primarily associated with the field of piano music (Scriabin, Medtner), this genre was as important as for him. Each of Rachmaninov's four piano concertos (to which should be added and ) marks a specific milestone in the composer's path.
Genre:piano miniature,op. 32, No. 12 (in the full cycle of preludes - No. 23).
Time of creation:summer 1910.
The date of creation of the prelude is given by us from the composer’s letter to B. Asafiev dated April 13, 1917, 1 in which S. Rachmaninov, responding to Asafiev’s request to send a list of his works, reports, in particular, that it was during this period that the cycle of preludes op. 32, which includes this prelude. The surviving autograph contains the date: “August 23, 1910 Ivanovka.”
Regarding this particular piece, there is an interesting clarification made by Professor A. B. Goldenweiser, a friend of S. Rachmaninov, who performed many of his works: “In August - September 1910, in Ivanovka, Rachmaninov wrote a series of Preludes op. 32. PreludesG- dur( ) Andgis- moll(this play– A. M.), apparently not yet recorded, were performed as an encore in April 1910, when his Third Piano Concerto was performed for the first time in Moscow, at a concert of the Moscow Philharmonic Society.” 2
No author's commentary on the content of this piece has been preserved (it has not reached us or did not exist at all) - statements similar to those that are widely known regarding the other, most popular, prelude - No. 1 in C sharp minor (see in the Collection). Nevertheless, one can hardly be mistaken about what exactly the composer expressed in this play: these are, undoubtedly, the winter Russian expanses, through which sleighs with jingling bells rush. The image of the play is so obvious that this music could be called literally “cinematic”: we seem to see how in the distance a dark dot has appeared against the background of a white snow-covered landscape, it is approaching... And now, we can already distinguish the rider in the sleigh, we guess his mood, his excited state (the melody in the alto register is assigned to the left hand; a bell continuously rings above it, shimmering) The melody flows freely - sometimes a little faster, sometimes calming down (all this is reflected in the composer’s performance notes in the notes). This is not a festive cortege - this is some kind of lonely soul - passionate, rebellious, romantic - lost in the snowy Russian expanses. Where is she heading? To whom?.. Music evokes a lot of feelings, conveys many shades. At the climax we hear both delight and despair. This impulse is replaced by a passionate plea. The hero does not give up hope. The middle part is stormy - the part depicts more drama than triumph. Gradually the excitement subsides, a phrase consisting of two-voiceddownstream“motives for a sigh” (feelings of bitterness, melancholy), answers the phrase based onascending"motive of hope" The sound of the bell, present throughout the play, but in the middle part giving way to the expression of the hero’s personal drama, returns in the final bars as an image of a winter landscape. The fading and dissolving sonority in a very high register of the piano, this time, creates an image of farewell and parting. The bell falls silent...
PS. Bell sounds - in all their diversity - from cheerful chimes to alarm bells - are one of the characteristic and impressive features of S. Rachmaninov's style of music. Many examples can be given, starting with the earliest opuses (Prelude No. 1 in C-sharp minor, Op. 3, No. 2), Concerto No. 2 in C minor and up to “The Bells,” a poem for orchestra, choir and solo voices, Op. 35 (the poem reflects the bell ringing of Novgorod churches and monasteries, which Rachmaninov heard in childhood). It is no coincidence that in his memoirs about S. Rachmaninov, his friend and deep admirer, another great composer N. K. Medtner, reflected on him, appealing to the image of a bell:“The theme of his most inspirational Second Concert is not only the theme of his life, but invariably produces the impression of one of the most striking themes in Russia, and only because soul this topic is Russian. There is not a single ethnographic accessory, not a sundress, not a Armenian jacket, not a single folk song, and yet every time from the very first strike of the bell you feel how Russia is rising to its full height.<…>Nowadays, when the bell has become a hindrance to our civilization and is gradually being squeezed out of the life of big cities, we musicians should especially appreciate every beat of it, a deep, powerful sound that covers the entire street cacophony.” 3
Notes:
1 Rachmaninov S. Literary heritage. Volume 1. M. 1980. P. 99.
2 Goldenweiser A. From personal memories of S.V. Rachmaninov. - In the book. Goldenweiser A. About musical art. M. 1975. S.
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