The Symphonic Dances, Op. 45, is Sergei Rachmaninoff's last composition, an orchestral suite in three movements. The work was inspired by the nostalgia the composer felt for the Russia he had known before his forced emigration to America in 1917. The ghostly second dance symbolises the years from the turn of the century up to the Russian Revolution. Many of Rachmaninoff's earlier masterpieces were created at Ivanovka, his family's country estate near Tambov. The rural images in this video figuratively represent the tranquil atmosphere of Ivanovka, the loss of which haunted Rachmaninoff for the rest of his life. The latter scenes are of Saint Petersburg, where Sergei studied music at the Conservatory, before moving on to Moscow. The statue at the end of the video is Adonis, the god of the dying and resurrection of nature, sculpted by S. Pimenov, 1822. It is located at the Central Park of Culture and Leisure in Saint Petersburg, Russia.
Keywords: Rachmaninoff, Symphonic Dances, Saint Petersburg, Russia, Autumn, Winter, Snow
