1min chapter

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Rachmaninoff Symphonic Dances

Sticky Notes: The Classical Music Podcast

CHAPTER

The Shadow of World War II

It's hard to imagine Rachmananoff's combination of anxiety and homesickness as he wrote this piece, living peacefully on Long Island. The shadow of World War II cannot be escaped in this piece. It's actually a fairly simple movement in terms of its own. We have A, which is the main tune you've been hearing. There is also a short but very important coda or finishing section, and then the dance is over.

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Speaker 2
Remember though, these are called the
Speaker 1
symphonic dances. And could you imagine easily dancing to this music? In fact, throughout this first movement, I get the sense that this is more of a march. The shadow of World War II cannot be escaped in this piece. It's hard to imagine Rachmananoff's combination of anxiety and homesickness as he wrote this piece, living peacefully on Long Island as such horrors were going on. Thinking about this dance more practically now, that we have an idea of the historical background of it, it's actually a fairly simple movement in terms of its own. It's form. We have
Speaker 2
A, which is the main tune you've been hearing.
Speaker 1
We have a B section, which we'll get to in a few minutes, and then we go back to an A section. There is also a short but very important coda or finishing section, and then the dance is over. Of course though, the fun of a simple form like A, B, A is that it leaves infinite possibilities for development. In Rachmananoff's case, he develops a very small motif, not a theme.

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