Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 3 and Stravinsky The Rite of Spring

For pianists, Rachmaninoff’s Third Piano Concerto stands as the ultimate challenge. Its herculean technical demands, titanic scale, and emotional richness scared off such seasoned virtuosi as Joseph Lhévinne, Arthur Rubinstein, and Sviatoslav Richter. 

With his third ballet, Le Sacre du printemps, Stravinsky secured his place as the foremost composer of his day. He took two years to prepare his daring score, following a vision the composer had in 1911 of a young girl in pagan Russia, dancing herself to a ritual death surrounded by village elders.