Études-tableaux

Composed in the tranquillity of Rachmaninoff’s country estate, Ivanovka, southern Russia, in 1911, these works come a year after his Chopin-inspired preludes and mark the composer’s focus on smaller forms following the large-scale workings of the previous decade: the two operas, the Symphony No. 2, and the Piano Concerto No. 3, among other works. Op. 33 is the first of Rachmaninoff's two sets of études; though translated literally as “pictures", the tableaux of the title are not related to any specific extramusical associations—rather, Rachmaninoff lets the listener imagine the scenes for themselves. (He did later supply visual clues for five of the pieces when the Italian composer Ottorino Respighi came to arrange them for orchestra.) There is plenty here to challenge even the most technically able pianist: the tonal balancing act of the C-major No. 2, with its rapid left-hand figuration and soaring melody that navigate between joy and pathos, between the C major of its key signature and the darker inflections of its minor mode; the glistening runs in the E-flat minor No. 5, a perfect burst of vitality for any dazzling encore; and the drama of the C-sharp minor No. 8, with its rich, dark harmonies that recall his famous Op. 3 prelude of the same key.