A Window in Time—Sergei Rachmaninoff, Ampico piano rolls (Telarc 80489 & 80491) April marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of Russian pianist/composer Sergei Rachmaninoff, so we dusted off our copies of two Telarc releases from about 25 years ago. The two volumes of A Window in Time feature what were new transfers of piano rolls made by Rachmaninoff between 1918 and 1929. Australian scientist and mathematician Wayne Stahnke used new techniques to realize these performances on a Bösendorfer 290SE reproducing piano. The process reveals with never-before-heard clarity the nuances and fine details of the phenomenal talent regarded as perhaps the greatest pianist of his time Vol. 1 contains performances of his own original pieces and transcriptions, including the arrangement of The Star Spangled Banner he made to open his American recitals starting in 1918, as the US entered WWI. Vol. 2 has Rachmaninoff playing the music of Chopin, Liszt, Tchaikovsky and others. A Window in Time represents fascinating insights into how Rachmaninoff thought his and other composers’ music should sound!
'A Window in Time' Reveals Rachmaninoff as Pianist
