Liebrecht vanbeckevoort rachmaninov biography

The early years

Rachmaninov had the good fortune to be born in a prosperous and musical family: his paternal grandfather composed songs and salon music after his career as an officer, and his mother gave him his first piano lessons. But as a result of his father’s lavish lifestyle, soon there was very little left of the family’s extensive lands. His parents’ marriage also did not last long, and so the young Rachmaninov moved with his brothers, sisters and mother to a small apartment in Saint Petersburg. As a teenager, he entered the conservatory there, but he lacked the motivation to study.

On the advice of a cousin, the pianist and composer Alexander Siloti, Rachmaninov was sent to Moscow. There, he studied with the renowned but strict piano teacher Nikolai Zverev. The latter’s iron discipline worked wonders. Moreover, through Zverev, Rachmaninov became acquainted with professional musical life in Moscow. Soon thereafter, he was also accepted into Anton Arensky’s harmony class. It soon became obvious that he was extraordinarily talented: in

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