Rachmaninoff’s 3rd Piano Concerto Brought To You By The Tampa Bay Symphony Orchestra

If you’re looking of a good reading of any of the Rachmaninoff’s piano concertos, let me suggest Tampa Bay Symphony’s performance of Rachmaninoff’s Third Piano Concerto. The D minor concerto is another one of Rachmaninoff’s brilliant showcases, another decadent Romantic era offering with all the illustrious elements there for you to partake in.

There are several breaks for the piano that are wonderfully played and executed throughout the work. It would be a dream to see one of these concertos be played in person, or better yet to be a performer in one of them. There is one word that comes to mind when I think of Rachmaninoff and that is the word “rich.” His harmonies are so sweet and over-the-top that it takes your breath away. Even when you feel farthest away from the music, it has a way of drawing you back into the fold of its embrace. The lengths that the concerto goes to impress are staggering. It definitely commands utmost attention. The details are audaciously magnificent. The depths that the piano explores are almost too much to take. The piano work alone will have one standing there for hours listening and trying to decipher  how the pianist and for better part, the composer composed this majestic work. There are many forte chromatic leaps in this piece that finally lead to one of the main themes in the piece that is in G minor. This theme reminds me of  a dance. The dance texture is quickly renounced to go to a lyrical theme that will take us through a plethora of different keys before a long-awaited climax dots the landscape. Now, we’re in the key of E-flat major with just the piano playing solo. Slowly the orchestra chimes in behind it before returning to the home key of D minor. It is a fabulous return to form and is given a great performance by this one of kind symphony. Be sure to check out the Tampa Bay Symphony on YouTube. They have much content out there to be listened to. Give them your attention and you’ll be sure to find something that will pique your interest.