Notes from pianist Dr. Duane Hulbert: "If you haven't discovered Sergei Rachmaninoff's Prelude No. 5 in G major before, you're in for a treat. It's simple, poignant and just lovely.
1) (0:02) Listen to the rolling left hand arpeggios in the introduction. Here Rachmaninoff shows off a gentle side to his musicianship. Hear that wonderful theme soaring above a rolling group of quintuplets which quietly murmur in the background. Some people swear they hear the beginning of Oh Shenandoah in the first few notes of the melody. Rachmaninoff did compose it in 1909, the year after his first tour of America. What do you think? • "Oh Shenandoah" Violin... (Hmmm....)
2) (0:28) A new theme marked leggiero appears at the bottom of the first page with a feathery accompaniment. The pianissimo filligree melody intertwines 32nd notes against a sprawling left hand accompaniment that's typical of Rachmaninoff.
3) (0:40) At the top of the second page, watch the hands cross each other with a counter-melody that glides into a singing baritone range.
4) (1:36) As the pianissimo lines continue to spin about with increasing speed, a flashy cadenza unwinds into a fortissimo trill that that slowly dies away with the marking perdendo, followed by another cross-hand passage. (I'm sure Rachmaninoff could master these easily with his hand span of 12 inches which could cover the interval of a thirteenth on the keyboard!)
5) (1: 44) A reprise of the opening theme occurs here with some extra filigree and another soaring melody.
6) (2:40) The final six measures are exquisitely beautiful, with intertwining 16th notes above the staff, accompanied by a quintuplets in the left hand...for musicians, we call it a 5 against 4 rhythmic pattern.
7) (2:58) The final three measures are marked perdendo, or dying away. Listen for a high trill, accompanied by huge sprawling leaps in the left hand near the end.
8) (3:06) Instead of a typical bravura one would expect of Rachmaninoff, the last three chords are reminiscent of a quiet "Amen" cadence.
Enjoy!"
Dr. Hulbert received his BM and MM from The Juilliard School of Music and his DMA from The Manhattan School of Music. Hulbert received the Gold Medal at the 1980 Gina Bachauer International Piano Competition, and also won prizes in the 1981 Leeds Competition and 1985 Carnegie Hall International American Music Competition. He has performed as a soloist with symphonies across the United States and has given recitals at Merkin Hall in New York, Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., and Benaroya Hall in Seattle. In 2002, his recording of the piano works of Alexander Glazunov was nominated for a Grammy Award. Dr. Hulbert taught at the university level for over thirty years.
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