Classical album review: Sergei Rachmaninov - 24 Preludes

SERGEI RACHMANINOV
24 Preludes

*****

Hyperion CDA67700, £12.72

Piano preludes might today be rather unfashionable, but they once regularly featured in the output of composers such as Mendelssohn and Liszt. Preludes started out as introductory works, but by the time Sergei Rachmaninov was writing they had become much more full-blooded, often appearing as concert encores, using all the acoustic and dynamic opportunities offered by the concert grand piano. In fact, these are more "finales" than preludes.

This high-class, hugely enjoyable recording by Steven Osborne features Ten Preludes Op 23 and Thirteen Preludes Op 32, together with the Prelude In C Sharp Minor, the early and perhaps best known of his Preludes. It brought the composer much fame, but no income (Rachmaninov having sold it for a one-off fee), even though he continued to perform it for the next 50 years.

Download this: Track 3, Prelude No 2 in B flat major