Sergei Rachmaninoff: A Lifetime in Music

Throughout his career as composer, conductor and pianist, Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943) was an intensely private individual. When Bertensson and Leyda’s 1956 biography first appeared, it lifted the veil from several areas of Rachmaninoff’s life, especially the genesis of his compositions and how their critical reception affected him.

The authors consulted a number of people who knew Rachmaninoff, worked with him, and corresponded with him. Even with the availabilty of such sources and full access to the Rachmaninoff Archive at the Library of Congress, the authors were tireless in their pursuit of privately held documents, in particular his correspondence. Their labors masterfully incorporates primary materials into the narrative.

Almost half a century after it first appeared, this volume remains essential reading.