"The Isle of the Dead" Opus 29 - Sergei Rachmaninoff

Don't be put off by the name of this piece - it is gorgeous!  I heard this performed at the Houston Symphony Orchestra last week, and it was this piece that inspired me to finally create this blog.  This was one of few Rachmaninoff works that was "more than just music," as Maestro Graf put it on Friday - it was inspired by a version of Arnold Bocklin's painting, shown in the YouTube videos below.  One of my favorite elements of the piece is the 5-beat rhythm - suggesting the movement of the oars in the water - that begins and ends the piece.

Part 1 (as divided by the YouTube poster):   It starts quiet - turn your volume up :)

Part 2: