This recording uses 24-bit / 96 kHz technology, which offers a dynamic range up to 48 dB greater and 256 times the resolution of standard 16-bit recordings.
Composition History
Rachmaninoff's First Symphony was a "celebrated fiasco" that led to a period of depression and creative paralysis, which was only lifted with the help of hypnotherapist Nikolay Dahl.
Composer Biography
Rachmaninoff composed his Symphony No. 2 in Dresden, seeking refuge from the political and professional pressures in Russia.
Composition History
The famous C sharp minor Prélude was composed in 1892 and dedicated to Anton Arensky, a Russian composer and professor at the Moscow Conservatory.
Cultural Impact
The Prélude in C sharp minor earned Rachmaninoff widespread fame, and he often had to perform it as an encore, even if it wasn't on the program.
Compositional Technique
Rachmaninoff's Symphony No. 2 synthesizes Russian symphonic trends from Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, and his teacher Sergey Taneyev, with the grandeur of Lisztian symphonic poems.
Compositional Technique
The great clarinet melody in the slow movement of Symphony No. 2 has inspired numerous popular songs, such as 'You're just too good to be true'.
