Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943) composed this first (Op. 33) of two sets of piano études in 1911 at his Ivanovka estate in Tambov, Russia. The title Études-Tableaux translates as "study pictures." But while the works were inspired by some visual stimuli, Rachmaninoff did not disclose what those were, preferring to "let [the listener] paint for themselves what it most suggests.
Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943) composed this first (Op. 33) of two sets of piano études in 1911 at his Ivanovka estate in Tambov, Russia. The title Études-Tableaux translates as "study pictures." But while the works were inspired by some visual stimuli, Rachmaninoff did not disclose what those were, preferring to "let [the listener] paint for themselves what it most suggests.