Rachmaninov: The Piano Sonatas Rustem Hayroudinoff

• Sergei Rachmaninov (1873-1943): Piano Sonata No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 28:
• 1 I. Allegro moderato 12:57
• 2 II. Lento 09:33
• 3 III. Allegro molto 14:54
• Lullaby:
• 4 Lullaby (Arr. Rachmaninov) 05:27
• Piano Sonata No. 2 in B-Flat Minor, Op. 36:
• 5 I. Allegro agitato 10:13
• 6 II. Non allegro 06:56
• 7 III. L’istesso tempo. Allegro molto 06:33
• Total Runtime 01:06:33

Info for Rachmaninov: The Piano Sonatas

Rachmaninov started composing Sonata No. 1 Op. 28 in the spring of 1907, in Dresden, whilst also working on his Symphony No. 2 and the opera 'Monna Vanna'. He wrote to a friend on 8th May 1907: 'The Sonata is without any doubt wild and endlessly long... No one will ever play this composition because of its difficulty and length'. The composer revealed later that the 1st movement related to [Goethe's] Faust, the 2nd one to Gretchen and the 3rd was the flight to the Brocken and Mephistopheles. The 2nd Sonata op. 36 is an astounding feat of compositional ingenuity, created out of a single thematic seed. As with several of his works, Rachmaninov felt dissatisfied with the first version of 1913 and eventually revised it in 1931, significantly shortening it and thinning out the texture. The transcription of Tchaikovsky's 'Lullaby' for piano, Op. 16 No. 1, which Rachmaninov made in August 1941, is his last work. It is a remarkable coincidence that one of the very first pieces that he wrote as a 13-year-old in 1886 was the arrangement of another composition by Tchaikovsky. Described by London s Classic FM Magazine as a 'sensationally gifted' musician of 'stunning artistry', Rustem Hayroudinoff graduated from the Moscow Conservatory, where he studied with Lev Naumov. He was one of the first students (if not the first) from the Soviet Union to study at the Royal Academy, where he is now a professor of piano. He has recorded for various labels including Chandos and Decca. This is his debut for Onyx.

Rustem Hayroudinoff, piano

Rustem Hayroudinoff
Described by London’s Classic FM Magazine as a “sensationally gifted” musician of “stunning artistry” and by the Gramophone magazine as “a player in the great Russian virtuoso tradition”, Rustem Hayroudinoff is an equally charismatic communicator. Like Leonard Bernstein before him, he demystifies the world of classical music by engaging his audience in a light and humorous, yet informative rhetoric about the works he performs. As a result, his listeners have a deeper understanding of the music and often comment on the huge difference his oration has made to their listening experience. This direct approach and informal style is also perfect for attracting younger audiences.

Rustem Hayroudinoff has performed to great critical acclaim in Japan, the USA, Latin America, Canada, his native Russia and Europe. In the UK he has appeared at major concert venues including the Barbican, Cadogan Hall, Wigmore Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall and Leeds Town Hall.

He has performed with such orchestras as BBC Philharmonic, London Philharmonic, NHK Symphony, Tokyo Symphony, Osaka Century, Czech Philharmonic, Czech National Symphony, Bournemouth Symphony, Bochum Symphony, Buenos Aires Philharmonic and has collaborated with conductors Vladimir Ashkenazy, Marin Alsop, Ken-David Masur, Gianandrea Noseda, Giancarlo Guerrero and Vladimir Lande amongst others.

Hayroudinoff has recorded for NAMI Records (Japan), Decca, Chandos. and Onyx Classics. His recordings of Shostakovich’s Theatre Music and Dvorák’s Piano Concerto with the BBC Philharmonic were greeted with universal acclaim, garnering praise such as ‘dazzling and ... electrically compelling’ (Gramophone) and ‘utterly magical’ (Classic FM), and were selected among the CDs of the Year by both BBC Music and Gramophone magazines. The Gramophone and Classic FM magazines favourably compared the latter recording to the celebrated EMI recording by Sviatoslav Richter.

His CD of the complete Rachmaninoff Preludes was selected by Classic FM magazine as part of its ‘Essential Rachmaninoff Collection’ alongside the recordings of Arthur Rubinstein and André Previn, and the recording of the complete Études-Tableaux by Rachmaninoff was hailed as a ‘benchmark recording’ and selected as Instrumental Choice of the Month by BBC Music magazine, as well as being nominated for the Best Instrumental CD of the Year award. It was also selected as the finest existing version of these pieces by BBC Radio 3’s ‘Building a Library’.

Rustem Hayroudinoff studied with Lev Naumov at the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatoire and with Christopher Elton at the Royal Academy Music, where he is now a Professor of Piano.

He is also proud to be the Goodwill Ambassador for Rainbows4children, an independent foundation that provides education for disadvantaged children in Ethiopia.

Booklet for Rachmaninov: The Piano Sonatas