Rachmaninoff Prelude Op. 3 No. 2 in C# Minor (Rachmaninoff)
Why Music: Practice & Theory Stack Exchange recommends it
Music Stack Exchange answerers and askers link it as a reference recording of the composer playing his own prelude, to check what he actually played, such as the D sharp and his chord and tempo choices.
Recommended by 0 people across 0 different months, 2013 to 2023.
What it is
A 3m49s recording of Rachmaninoff's Prelude in C# minor, Op. 3 No. 2 ('The Bells of Moscow'), played on a Bosendorfer 290SE reproducing piano from a roll the composer recorded himself. The uploader notes it lets listeners hear Rachmaninoff's own playing at modern audio quality.
What people said
Cites Nick · 2013-06 · Music: Practice & Theory Stack Exchange · on “Why is a particular measure of Rach Prelude in C# minor always played slowly?”
I've noticed that in many renditions of Rachmaninov's Prelude in C# Minor (Op. 3 No. 2) that the fourth measure of the Agitato section is always played in a slow, unusual (almost weird) fashion. You can hear what I'm talking about here: Video [this video] I normally play that part the same speed as the rest of the section, just quieter (since it says "dim.") but many famous performers do not. Is this something originated by Rachmaninov in his live performances that others just stuck with? What is the correct way to play that?
Cites PLL · 2019-08 · Music: Practice & Theory Stack Exchange · on “What does this double-treble double-bass staff mean?”
All four staffs should be played simultaneously. Both treble staffs are for the right hand, both bass staffs are for the left hand. It’s split up into double staffs just so that it doesn’t get as crowded as it would be on two staffs. This notation is fairly unusual but not exceptional, as a way to write densely-textured sections more readably. Reference performance on YouTube, with score (double-staff passage at 2:21) [this video]
Cites KeizerHarm · 2020-07 · Music: Practice & Theory Stack Exchange · on “Difficulty reaching lower E to higher G in left hand on piano”
@OldBrixtonian I get that now, but listening to this recording [this video] I am positive the performer is using the sustain. The first and second chord flow into one another a bit too smoothly. The third chord is separate, for it would be dissonant with the first two, but then the C#'s abruptly stop sounding as well.
Cites Quaerendo · 2021-05 · Music: Practice & Theory Stack Exchange · on “Meaning of a left bracket at the beginning of a chord”
I've come across this notation in the score of Gershwin's second piano prelude: a left bracket at the beginning of a chord. I have also seen it in the score of Rachmaninoff's C-sharp minor prelude, here [this video] and here [this video] . What would the meaning of these brackets be? Edit. At first I thought it meant that the chord should be played arpeggiated. But in the recordings I have found they are usually played at the same time. Moreover, the recording of the Rachmaninoff prelude I linked is played by Rachmaninoff himself, and here [this video] he plays them at the same time (although not in here [this video] , since it is physically impossible even for him...). [LINK]
Cites phoog · 2023-02 · Music: Practice & Theory Stack Exchange · on “Sharp getting erased without notation in Rachmaninoff's Prelude in C# Minor”
Well I also found a video on YouTube with D naturals there, and, guess what, it's wrong. Look for videos of well known professional pianists; they play the D sharp. Here's one of a piano roll that was recorded by the composer himself: As I learned from DjinTonic's answer, this error has a long pedigree, having appeared in the first edition. Furthermore, it has persisted through several other editions that copied the first (even though subsequent printings of the first were corrected). It seems likely, therefore, that the videos you've found with the D natural were recorded by people who leaned the piece from one of the erroneous editions rather than the one you've been looking at or another