A celebrated conductor of the Bolshoi Theatre and the Moscow Philharmonic before the October Revolution, and a renowned pianist in Europe and America during the last 25 years of his self-imposed exile, Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff longed above all to be remembered as a composer. The establishment of “serious” music in the 20th century often dismissed him with a condescending smile: what place could “a few pages of belated Romanticism” have in the radical ferment of modern music? Yet, more than eighty years after his death, his music not only endures but has won universal recognition—and, of course, the love of audiences—thanks to its expressive immediacy and rare compositional mastery, hallmarks of a true creator.
Among his vast output for stage, orchestra, chamber ensembles, solo voice, and choir, his works for solo piano and piano with orchestra stand out as defining achievements. His idiomatic, pulsating writing—perfectly attuned to the technical demands of the instrument—challenges performers to push beyond the limits of virtuosity and interpretation. It is no coincidence that the composer-pianist became a legend precisely for his steel-like technique and infinite tonal nuances.
The first recital of the cycle dedicated to Rachmaninoff’s piano works focuses on his last major solo composition: the Variations on a Theme of Corelli, Op. 42 (1931). A creation of his mature period, dense and full of dark lyricism, it feels like a spiritual testament that both recalls the past and points toward the future. The ideal interpreter is Titos Gouvelis, a leading representative of the Greek piano school: a brilliant virtuoso and a true artist, passionately seeking the hidden dimensions of musical interpretation.
Future concerts in the cycle will feature the Sonata No. 2, the Preludes, and the Études-Tableaux, performed by distinguished soloists such as Vassilis Tsabropoulos (Dec 9) and Alexandra Papastefanou (Feb 11). A rare treat will follow with the seldom-heard Sonata No. 1 in D minor, performed by Alexia Mouza (Feb 26). The cycle concludes with the four piano concertos and the Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, in two back-to-back concerts (Mar 31 & Apr 1), with soloist Denis Kozhukhin, the Athens State Orchestra, and Kornilios Michailidis on the podium.
