Ossia Cadenza from Rachmaninoff's Third Piano Concerto

Sergei Rachmaninoff: Ossia Cadenza from Piano Concerto No. 3 in d-minor Op. 30 Performed by Nick Lewis Listen in MP3 Format Notes: Since the release of the movie Shine, Sergei Rachmaninoff's Third Piano Concerto has enjoyed the reputation as "The Mount Everest of Piano Literature". The “Rach 3” runs about 45 minutes, and requires a full orchestra. On average, it contains more notes per second than any other piano concerto. In this recording, I play the Ossia Cadenza from the first movement. A cadenza is a section in a concerto where the orchestra stops playing; the idea is to give the soloist the full stage to show off.

Rachmaninoff wrote two cadenzas for his third piano concerto; the first cadenza is shorter, softer, and fluid; in contrast, the ossia cadenza (played here) is longer, grander, and more difficult. Rachmaninoff did not play the Ossia Cadenza. Somewhere, I read that he thought the ossia cadenza sounded too much like an ending, and was thus inappropriate for the first movement. It's also rumored that he muttered, "and it's too damn hard..."

Since I am a self-taught pianist, my recording of the Ossia Cadenza contains numerous errors. I hope the listeners will forgive me for them; at some points in this cadenza, there are literally over 70 notes per measure. I consider this recording a first draft. However, in the interest of educating the listeners, I have provided recordings of both cadenzas by two of the 20th Century's greatest piano virtuosos: Sergei Rachmaninoff, and Vladimir Ashkenazy.

Original Cadenza: Performed by Sergei Rachmaninoff
Ossia Cadenza: Performed by Vladimir Ashkenazy