4. S.V. Rachmaninoff was born on April 2, 1873, on a
large estate near Novgorod.
He studied music with his mother from age 4;
continued at the St. Petersburg Conservatory, and
then graduated from the Moscow Conservatory in
1892, winning the Great Gold Medal for his new
opera "Aleko."
When Rachmaninoff was 24, his First Symphony
was premiered.
Rachmaninov composed his brilliant 2nd Piano
Concerto, and made a comeback with successful
concert performances.
From 1904-1906 he was a conductor at the Bolshoi
Theater in Moscow.
In 1909 Rachmaninov made his first tour of the
United States having composed the 3rd Piano
Concerto as a calling card.
5. In 1915 he wrote the choral masterpiece: "AllNight Vigil". The Russian Revolution of 1917
and the destruction of his estate forced him to
emigrate.
On December 23, 1917, Rachmaninov left Russia
on an open sledge carrying only a few books of
sheet music.
As a pianist, Rachmaninov made over a hundred
recordings and gave over one thousand concerts in
America alone between 1918 and 1943.
In 1931, Rachmaninov signed a letter
condemning the Soviet regime, that was published
in the New York Times.
He became a US citizen in 1943, just a few days
before his death. He died on March 28, 1943, in
Beverly Hills, California.
