Rhapsody Sergei Rachmaninov (Rachmaninoff) / Arr. Christiaan Janssen

Titel / Title: Rhapsody
Untertitel / Subtitle: on a Theme of Paganini
Herausgeber / Publisher: Baton Music
Instrumentation: Piano and concert band
Produkttyp / Product: Partitur + Stimmen
Serie / Series: Baton Music solo series

In the summer of 1934 Rachmaninoff composed the 'Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini' at his summer home, the Villa Senar in Switzerland. It's a concertante work written by for piano and orchestra, closely resembling a piano concerto in a single movement. After a brief introduction, the first variation is played before the well known 'Paganini theme' and then followed by the other 23 variations. The work is performed in one stretch without breaks but it can be divided into three sections. These correspond to the three movements of a concerto: up to variation 10 corresponds to the first movement, variations 11 to 18 are the equivalent of a slow movement, and the remaining variations make a finale. Dutch arranger Christiaan Janssen transcribed this 'Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini' for Piano and Symphonic Band.