Tomorrow is the 136th anniversary of Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninov’s day of birth. Radio WRTI is celebrating with a 12-hour marathon of the Rusky ex-pat’s crystal-clear texture and elegant yet strong phrasing.

Rachmaninov is best known for his Prelude in C-sharp minor, which he composed at age 19. He lost his land during the Bolshevik revolution and subsequently fled Russia for the United States, though he was consoled by an estate he managed to buy in Switzerland. He died in 1943, and his wish to be buried at his Swiss estate could never be fulfilled because of the ravages of the Second World War.

Rachmaninov on Rachmaninov, Prelude in C-sharp Minor.

Rachmaninov on Chopin, Nocturne in E-flat.

Mr. Rachmaninov's Neighborhood

Liner notes, like the acknowledgements and preface sections of books, are rarely read but really one of the most important parts of a record. I finally got around to opening my Christmas present, Corey Wilke’s 2008 Drop It, and looked inside the cover. Today, I take inspiration from these words.

“There’s no need to be divorced from the current time and place in an effort to hearken back to bygone eras when there’s still such vital art to be made in the present…Don’t call an ambulance, there’s no need for resuscitation, because this music is alive and animated.”