(1873-1945). The first of five programmes in which Donald Macleod follows
Rachmaninov through hisyears of exile, exploring his later works and his recordings as a pianist and conductor. Rachmaninov and his family had a dramatic ecape from Russia afterthe
Revolution in 1917, travelling by train and then open sledge to Finland. During his years of exile, Rachmaninov reinvented himself as a virtuoso pianist, undertaking gruelling concert tours and leaving little time for composition. However, he did complete his fourth and final piano concerto and his Three Russian Songs in 1926. He also made a number of piano transcriptions which he played in concerts and in the recording studio. Sing Not, 0 Lovely One
Sergei Leiferkus (baritone) Howard Shelley (piano) Piano Concerto No 4
Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (piano), Philharmonia Orchestra
Conductor Ettore Gracis
Krelsler, arr Rachmaninov Liebesfreud Sergei Rachmaninov (piano) Three Russian Songs, Op 41
Russian State Symphonic Orchestra and ! Capella, conductor Valeri Polianski (R)
Producer Andrew Lyle