Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff[a] (Russian: Сергей Васильевич Рахманинов, Sergej Vasil’evič Rakhmaninov, 1 April 1873 [O.S. 20 March] – 28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor. He was one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, the l

20th-century music, Bombast, Classical, Complex, Dramatic, Euphoric, Intense, Monumental

Musicologists usually break up the great Ludwig van Beethoven's career into three periods: early, middle, and late. But to add a touch more flavor, you could call them the "I'm young and getting my feet wet" period, followed by the "Since I'm going deaf, I'm gonna get wacky and break some rules" peri

Dramatic, Manic, Moody, Pathos, Romantic music, Sublime

At age 12, Franz Liszt performed a rendition of Beethoven's "Symphony in C-minor" as the master composer sat in the audience. Legend has it that after the superb performance, the great maestro kissed the juvenile Liszt on the forehead. Liszt's future as the most brilliant of pianists seemed to be sea

Death, Dramatic, Eclectic, Moody, Organic, Religious, Romantic music

By all accounts, Peter Tchaikovsky was an emotionally troubled man. He suffered from nervous depression, which was heightened by the constant social presssure to hide his homosexuality. The composer had affairs with women and even married Antonina Miliukova -- with disastrous emotional effects to bot

Dark, Dramatic, Elegant, Grand, Lush, Psychological, Romantic music, Voluminous