Rachmaninov for beginners

Rachmaninov was probably the last of the great romantic composers. His piano pieces are extremely virtuosic, but are extremely melodic and listenable. I would start you with his Rhapsodies on a Theme of Paganini, then his Second and Third Piano Concertos. My favorite pianist for Rachmaninov has always been Ashkenazy, and he has fine recordings on the Decca label from both his early and later years, although Martha Argerich's Third Concerto on Philips was a great live performance and should not be missed if you can get it. For the second there is an old Richter recording on DG, released as a DG Original, that is as idiosyncratic as they come when it comes to tempos but is still one of my favorites. And Lang Lang has fine recent recordings on Telarc of the Second and Third Concertos.

Uru975: As I mentioned to Sean in a private e-mail, my father, then a young pianist and music major considering whether he should become a performing concert pianist for a career, heard Rachmaninoff play in concert and subsequently decided to become a lawyer (no jokes, please!) and play piano for his own enjoyment. His recollection to me was that he could never envision himself, let alone any other pianist, being that good. Wish I could have heard him in concert. The performances on record of Rachmaninoff in concert are interesting in that he seemed to rush tempos a bit, but his virtuosity was unquestionable.

I find it interesting to note that little mention is ever made of the 1st and 4th piano concertos. Having heard the first in concert a year or two ago, I was surprised at how comparatively "modern" it sounded--that's why I didn't mention it as Sean was asking for romantic pieces. As I recall reading, the criticism Rachmaninoff received early in his composing career, which led to his seeking professional counseling, resulted a marked change in his composing style. So I guess we can thank psychiatry for the later works.

I would also second the Cello Sonata recommended by Uru975. It is a beautiful, highly romantic, piece of music. Moving away from piano concertos and in addition to the other fine recommendations above, listen to the Vocalise, either in orchestral/vocal setting (you usually find it coupled with the 2nd Symphony) or with a violin/cello playing the singer's part with piano accompaniment. And if you ultimately want to venture more into the solo piano works, his preludes and Correlli Variations are terrific.