Solo Pianist - Diary entries
Many of the initial performance details listed here were compiled from Zarui Apetian’s important research, published in Literaturnoye Nasledie [Collected Literature] (Sovietskii Kompozitor: Moscow, 1980, vol. 3, pp. 439-467). These details have been subsequently cross-referenced and checked with the many itineraries and other corroborating materials, especially substantial research that identified precise program details, collected by Rachmaninoff’s sister-in-law, Sophia Satina, housed in the Rachmaninoff Archive of the Library of Congress, Washington, D.C (LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R22, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89). Further information has been gathered from Barrie Martyn’s book Rachmaninoff: Composer, Pianist, Conductor (Scolar Press: London, 1990), A Catalogue of the Compositions of S. Rachmaninoff by Robert Threlfall and Geoffrey Norris (Scolar Press: London, 1982), and research undertaken at the Glinka Museum of Musical Culture, Moscow.
March 7 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: Satina notes the word ‘manuscript’ for the piece by Medtner, likely indicating that it was unpublished at the time. Rachmaninoff's Etude-Tableau is not mentioned in the attached review, yet it is listed on the program in the attached press clipping. The Prelude in C sharp minor, op. 3, no. 2, is noted as the encore. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
March 9 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: Satina notes the word ‘manuscript’ for the piece by Medtner, likely indicating that it was unpublished at the time. Chopin's Waltzes in E flat major and C sharp minor, the Prelude in C sharp minor, op. 3, no. 2, and Rachmaninoff's transcription of Rimsky-Korsakov's Bumble Bee are noted as the encores in the second attached review. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
March 12 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: Satina notes the word ‘manuscript’ for the piece by Medtner, likely indicating that it was unpublished at the time. The Prelude in C sharp minor, op. 3, no. 2, is noted as one of the encores in the second attached review. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
March 17 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: Satina notes the word ‘manuscript’ for the piece by Medtner, likely indicating that it was unpublished at the time. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
March 19 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: Satina believed that the Chopin Waltz was in F major, however the first of the attached reviews notes A flat major. Tchaikovsky's Troika and the Prelude in C sharp minor, op. 3, no. 2, are noted among the encores. The Scarlatti Sonata in D minor is presumably L. 413, which he recorded. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
March 20 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: While the attached reviews and press clipping refer to Mozart's 'Sonata no. 14', the tempo indication for the final movement suggests that this was an error that has been noted at other venues, presumably a result of incorrect information being forwarded by Rachmaninoff's management. The Scarlatti Sonata in D minor is presumably L. 413, which he recorded. Tchaikovsky's Troika and Rachmaninoff's transcription of Rimsky-Korsakov's Bumble Bee are noted as the encores. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
March 21 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: It is likely that the keys for the Chopin works were the same as performed in similar programs in Cleveland, Boston and New York. The Scarlatti Sonata in D minor is presumably L. 413, which he recorded. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
March 23 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: The details for the Chopin works were not known to Satina, however the attached review indicates that the pieces were the same as performed in similar programs in Cleveland, Boston and New York. The Scarlatti Sonata in D minor is presumably L. 413, which he recorded. The Prelude in C sharp minor, op. 3, no. 2, is noted as the first of two encores. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
April 3 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: Satina notes the word ‘manuscript’ for the piece by Medtner, likely indicating that it was unpublished at the time. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
April 4 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: Satina notes the word ‘manuscript’ for the piece by Medtner, likely indicating that it was unpublished at the time. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
April 6 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: Satina notes the word ‘manuscript’ for the piece by Medtner, likely indicating that it was unpublished at the time. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
April 7 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: Satina notes the word ‘manuscript’ for the piece by Medtner, likely indicating that it was unpublished at the time. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
October 22 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
October 28 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
October 29 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
November 3 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: A Chopin waltz and the Prelude in C sharp minor, op. 3, no. 2, are noted in the attached review as two of three encores given at this concert. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
November 5 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: The program that Satina believed was played here was different to that outlined in The Scotsman in its review on November 6. Regarding Rachmaninoff's works, she understood that the Melody, op. 3, no. 3, Barcarolle, op. 10, no. 3, and a Moment musical were played, and that Liszt's Etude in D flat major appeared where the 'third' Sonetto del Petrarca was played. The review notes a Chopin Waltz in A flat major 'which is not often played in public', and the Prelude in C sharp minor, op. 3, no. 2, were played as encores. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
November 6 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: Satina's notes included slightly different works by Chopin and Rachmaninoff for this concert, however they have been corrected in accordance with the program that appears in the second attached press clipping. No review of this concert has yet been located. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
November 7 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: Satina noted that this concert was part of an ‘International Celebrity Series’. The Prelude in C sharp minor, op. 3, no. 2, is noted as an encore in the attached review. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
November 13 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: Satina believed that different works by Rachmaninoff were played (the Serenade, op. 3, no. 5, and one of the A minor Etudes-Tableaux), however the attached review refers to the works noted here. Satina also believed that two Wagner transcriptions closed the concert, however they are not mentioned in the review. It may be presumed the Moment musical was op. 16, no. 2. The Prelude in C sharp minor, op. 3, no. 2, Chopin's E minor Waltz, and Rachmaninoff's transcription of Rimsky-Korsakov's Bumble Bee are noted as the encores. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
November 14 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: Satina was unaware of the work by Medtner on the program, and mistakenly included transcriptions of Liszt at the close. Reviews in the Dundee Courier and Evening Telegraph outline the program in detail, with one noting that a work by Chopin and the Prelude in C sharp minor, op. 3, no. 2, were played as encores. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89. The images of the Dundee Evening Telegraph and Dundee Courier used with kind permission of DC Thomson & Co Ltd.
November 15 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
November 19 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: Satina indicated that this concert was part of the ‘International Celebrity Series’. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
November 20 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: Satina indicated that this concert was part of the ‘International Celebrity Series’. The Prelude in C sharp minor, op. 3, no. 2, is noted as the encore in the attached review. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
November 21 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: Satina believed that the program given here included Schubert and Wagner transcriptions, as played elsewhere on this tour, however the attached reviews indicate the inclusion of Chopin, etc. The Prelude in C sharp minor, op. 3, no. 2, is noted as an encore. The interview that follows the first attached review reads rather fancifully, but would be of great interest if it could be confirmed. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
November 23 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: Satina indicated that the reviews she had been sent for this concert, which was part of the ‘International Celebrity Series’, did not mention the Rachmaninoff works, ‘probably by mistake’. An insightful review by Neville Cardus in the Manchester Guardian is attached. The Prelude in C sharp minor, op. 3, no. 2, is noted as an encore. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
November 24 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: Satina indicated that this concert was part of the ‘International Celebrity Series’. Sources indicate that Rachmaninoff was in pain during the concert (see Bertensson and Leyda, p. 261, and the second attached review), and that the following concerts advertised for Hanley on November 25 and Cambridge on November 27 were cancelled. Satina had raised doubts about these two later concerts, noting that they were not included by Rachmaninoff in his 'red notebook'. A review of the concert in Leicester on November 21 notes that Rachmaninoff was suffering from lumbago. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
December 1 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: Satina notes that the Chopin Waltz in A flat major could be either op. 42, or op. 64, no. 3, or op. 69, no. 1. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
December 3 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: I am grateful to J. Falleyn for providing program information from the Essener Volks-Zeitung on December 2. In regard to Rachmaninoff's own works, a Moment musical op. 16 (presumably no. 2) is mentioned in place of the Etude-Tableau (as had been played in Paris on December 1), and a 'Prelude in B minor, op. 33' is indicated in place of the one in G major (which could be a misprint for op. 32, no. 10). Reviews following the concert in both the Essener Allgemeine Zeitung (December 4) and Essener Volks-Zeitung (December 5) do not provide details regarding Rachmaninoff's works. Satina noted that the Chopin Waltz in A flat major could be either op. 42, or op. 64, no. 3, or op. 69, no. 1, and that she believes that the Rachmaninoff Etude-Tableau was op. 39, no. 6. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.
December 4 1929
Rachmaninoff's role: Solo Pianist
Notes: Satina notes that the Chopin Waltz in A flat major could be either op. 42, or op. 64, no. 3, or op. 69, no. 1, and that she believes that the Rachmaninoff Etude-Tableau was op. 39, no. 6. LoC, Sergei Rachmaninoff Archive, ML31.R33, Papers of Sophie Satin, boxes 82-89.