Chill With Rachmaninov

The subsequent separation of his parents and failure in general subject examinations brought about Rachmaninov's move to the Moscow Conservatory, where he was under the strict supervision of Nikolay Zverev, under whom he developed much of his phenomenal talent as a pianist.

In 1891 Rachmaninov completed his piano studies at the Conservatory and graduated the following year from his composition class. In the immediately ensuing years he enjoyed success as a composer but this was halted by the failure of his Symphony No. 1 at its début performance in 1897. Unfortunately, it was conducted badly by Glazunov, apparently drunk at the time, and then reviewed in hostile terms by César Cui. This severely knocked Rachmaninov's confidence and was a major cause of his depression. He was only able to return to composing after a course of treatment with Dr Nikolay Dahl, a believer in the efficacy of hypnotism. The immediate result was the second of his four piano concertos, a work which has proved to be one of the most immediately popular of all he wrote.

Rachmaninov married Natalya Satina in 1902 and the years leading up to the Russian revolution saw him acquiring international fame due to his continued successful activity as a composer and writer.

The Communist Revolution of 1917 brought many changes. While some musicians remained in Russia, others, like Rachmaninov, chose temporary or permanent exile. Such estrangement forced him to concentrate mainly on performance and as one of the most distinguished pianists of the day, he was able to support his family but found himself with little time left for composition. He undertook demanding concert tours, dazzling audiences all over the globe, but eventually settled in the United States. Rachmaninov died in Beverly Hills in 1943.