Taught by renowned pianist
Garrick Ohlsson
In this six-lesson course, Garrick Ohlsson sets out to demystify the work’s technical challenges and reveal the economy of means underlying the seemingly infinite surface of notes.
3rd Concerto – The Legend
No piece has struck more fear into the hearts of pianists than Rachmaninoff’s 3rd Piano Concerto in D minor, Op. 30. Owing to the treacherous cliffs of the mighty “Rach 3,” not to mention its unfathomable beauty, the work has acquired a mythological status among musicians and the public alike. In the first of his six-lesson course on the Concerto, Garrick Ohlsson delves into its mystique and positions it historically as the culmination of a century of Romantic concerto writing, standing at the pinnacle of Rachmaninoff’s own contributions to the genre.
3rd Concerto – Genetic Material
Rachmaninoff’s 3rd Concerto is not only a supreme depiction of the Russian Soul, it is a masterpiece of motivic unity and musical organicism following in the Germanic tradition from Bach through Beethoven and Brahms. As Garrick Ohlsson demonstrates in this second lesson of his six-part course on work, Rachmaninoff uses an economy of “genetic material” from which he spins out a living, breathing lifeforms of Brobdingnagian proportions. Tracing the inner relations of every theme and motive throughout the entire work, Ohlsson reveals Rachmaninoff’s unsung genius for musical craftsmanship.
3rd Concerto – Ensemble & Ergonomics (1st Mvt)
As mighty as the piano writing is in Rachmaninoff’s 3rd Concerto, the piece only acquires its majesty once combined with the orchestra. This is no easy feat. In this third lesson of his six-part course on “Rach 3,” Garrick Ohlsson considers extended passages from the 1st movement in terms of two overlapping challenges: on the one hand, the ergonomic question of how to most efficiently distribute the multitude of notes among the 10 fingers, and on the other hand, the ensemble difficulties that arise when trying to coordinate Rachmaninoff’s flexible tempi with an 80-piece orchestra.
3rd Concerto – Cadenzas, Big & Small (1st Mvt)
The first question people usually ask when they find out you learned Rachmaninoff’s 3rd Concerto is, “which cadenza do you play?” Rachmaninoff wrote a “lighter,” scherzando cadenza in-line with the rest of the 1st movement as well as an earth-shattering alternative cadenza as an Ossia in small notes above it. In this fourth lesson from his six-part course on “Rach 3,” Garrick tackles both cadenzas, breaking down their musical and technical differences while revealing how they line up ultimately merge into the same lane. As Ohlsson reveals, the cadenza(s) and their continuation into a reminiscence on the second theme serve as a recapitulatory function in the larger sonata form of the movement.
3rd Concerto – Tips & Tricks (2nd Mvt)
The second movement of Rachmaninoff’s 3rd Concerto is a formally complex theme and variations interpolated by flights of fancy, reminiscences on movement’s past, and a demonic waltz. In this fifth lesson from his six-part course on “Rach 3,” Garrick Ohlsson begins at said waltz and proceeds to dance around the movement to different passages offering his insider secrets on how to wrap your hands around the dazzling figurations and bold outbursts.
3rd Concerto – Technique & Practice (3rd Mvt)
The third movement of Rachmaninoff’s 3rd Concerto is, in Garrick’s Ohlsson’s words, a series of piano etudes that tests the dexterity and stamina of even the greatest virtuosi. In this sixth and final lesson of Ohlsson’s “Rach 3” course, Ohlsson faces the music’s obstacles one by one, showing how the daunting passagework can actually fit comfortably in the hand. Along the way, he provides invaluable advice on how to practice the piece with the aim of conquering its technical challenges, so the music may shine through in all its glory.
On Rests
Join celebrated American pianist Garrick Ohlsson as he tackles a subject that is not discussed often enough, but vitally important to piano playing – rests. There's a paradoxical old adage that says you must "play through" the rests, and Ohlsson shows you how. Drawing on examples from Beethoven and Brahms through Schoenberg and Webern, Ohlsson demonstrates how to treat rests musically – not as a cessation of the music, but its continuation. In some instances, you must "kiss" the rests, with subtle use of pedal and release points, as well as a feeling that the energy of the phrase continues to grow. In other places, you should feel rests as pregnant pauses and not cut them short, instead hearing the silence as generating uncertainty and anticipation on the part of the listener. Thecenterpiece of Ohlsson's discussion is Brahms's enigmatic E Minor Intermezzo, Op. 116 No. 5.
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Unlock Course →Since his triumph as winner of the 1970 Chopin International Piano Competition, pianist Garrick Ohlsson has established himself worldwide as a musician of magisterial interpretive and technical prowess.
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