SERGE RACHMANINOFF

This new recording by Rustem Hayroudinoff offers a fresh interpretation of Rachmaninov’s Etudes-Tableaux.

Full recordings of the Etudes-Tableaux are rare.

Since his London debut in 1994, Rustem Hayroudinoff has performed in the US, Japan, Germany and Eastern Europe and has appeared at some of the UK’s most prestigious venues.

The music here represents some of Rachmaninov’s greatest piano music; universally loved and admired, evocative and virtuosic.

Rustem Hayroudinoff takes on the mighty Etudes-Tableaux, works recognised as an emotionally indispensable part of the virtuoso repertoire for most pianists.

Rachmaninov exploited the modern piano to produce elaborate tone poems of great emotional range. His first set of Etudes (Op.33) date from the summer of 1911, and the second set (Op.39) from 1917. These atmospheric solo piano pieces were essentially virtuoso showpieces for him to play while touring the world as a soloist, and were the last he composed in Russia before he emigrated. It seems that none were published during his lifetime, and only a few made it into print after his death in 1943. Rachmaninov pushed the boundaries of ‘picture studies’ even further than Chopin or Liszt, creating sets which are virtuosic in the extreme, with a tremendous passionate character and vivid rhythmic life.

Etudes Tableaux marked the virtual end of the nineteenth century virtuoso writings of the great composer pianists, and certainly Rachmaninov seemed to be writing less in the Russian tradition and more in the central and East-European tradition.

Rustem Hayroudinoff performs these difficult works with dazzling technique, and effortless fluidity.

Rustem Hayroudinoff proves himself to be a player in the great Russian virtusoso tradition.
These are meticulously prepared and observed readings – if Rachmaninov asks for ‘ppp legatissimo’ or sharply contrasted dynamics from one bar to the next, then Hayroudinoff takes the composer at his word, a courtesy to Rachmaninov not granted by every pianist. But Hayroudinoff goes much further than mere accuracy. If he cannot quite equal the composer’s breathtaking nonchalance in the three he recorded, he comes close… His rich tone and beefy attack serve him well… This is powerful Rachmaninov playing that transcends the artificial constraints of the recording studio.
This is one of the more successful traversals I’ve heard of the Études-tableaux in recent years… Hayroudinoff impresses me throughout this recital as a thoughtful pianist
There’s little doubt that Hayroudinoff’s warmly recorded interpretations are not only brilliantly characterised and absolutely masterly in terms of technique, but also sufficiently varied in colour and timbre to enable him to extract the maximum degree of impact throughout each piece – an extra dimension that makes his performances sound even more vibrant and imaginative that those of Howard Shelley and Vladimir Ovchinnikov, two of the undoubted front-runners in these works.
Right from the March at the beginning of the F minor Étude which opens the Op. 33 set, his forthright playing is never less than satisfying. Chandos has recorded Hayroudinoff relatively closely. He stands up well to this scrutiny and makes the most of the opportunities it affords, with some appealingly crisp playing.
Rustem Hayroudinoff is a well-prepared and stylish exponent…

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