Sergie Rachmaninoff :: Piano Concerto #3, First Movement (get the entire work on iTMS)

Rachmaninoff's third piano concerto is considered by many to be the hardest piece to perform in the world. As proof, it's what turned David Helfgott into a 'tard when he attempted it in Shine. Not to mention that any Rachmaninoff piano work is difficult to play in the first place - the man had hands that could reach a 13th on the piano (to put that into perspective, an octave (which is typically considered a normal, comfortable reach) is only an 8th), and he wrote his compositions seemingly assuming everyone else in the world was as well endowed. Fucking Russians.

It's technically challenging, for sure, but it's brilliant. Ever since I heard this piece performed by the ASO last season, I cannot stop listening to it ... a few times a week at least. It's simply gorgeous, which is a fact that I wasn't fully appreciative of until I witnessed it performed live. That's one thing about classical music that's hard to get across sometimes: live performances, compared to a recording, will move you in more ways than you'd expect. So much so that you can find yourself near the point of tears and wondering, "WTF am I haxxored?!?". Try attending a performance of Mozart's Requiem. You'll see. I DARE you.

And, welp ... that's the blurb. I figured the R's first classical music post needed some kind of blah[x3] to wrapper it up good. Do enjoy my first attempt at freshening your musical breath, will you? Rach you like a hurricane ...