Guest Lecture/Recital: John Solari, "Harmonic Significance in Sergei Rachmaninoff's Piano Sonata no. 1 in D minor, op. 28"

Thursday, September 11, 2025
4:30 p.m.
Allendale Campus
Alumni, Community, Faculty, Staff, Students

Lecture Recital: Harmonic Significance in Sergei Rachmaninoff's Piano Sonata no. 1 in D minor, op. 28

In this lecture I provide some background information about the work, and a formal survey in order to provide the audience with some expectations for how the work will unfold; in addition, however, I also provide a lens for interpreting the harmonic structure of the work which I have derived from the writings of the author Flannery O'Connor, in which I examine the way Rachmaninoff's fixation on certain harmonic areas and harmonic interactions gather up significance over the course of the work, and drive the musical drama toward its tragic close. Through this interpretation I argue that while the work does not exemplify the Rachmaninoff we know-rich harmonies and long, beautiful melodies-it is not at all a failure as critics have since appraised it, and instead shows him attempting to create meaning and drama through specifically harmonic means.

The recital consists of this lecture followed by a performance of the work, and lasts approximately one hour.

Presenter bio:
John Solari is an Ann Arbor based pianist, currently pursuing a doctoral degree in piano performance at the University of Michigan studying under Professor Christopher Harding. He earned his masterýs and undergraduate degrees in the same field from Arizona State University while studying with Dr. Baruch Meir. An avid collaborator and soloist alike, John has appeared onstage nationally and internationally. As a guest artist, he has performed in the 2024 Scheherezade Chamber Music Festival, the 2023 Scarab Club Mozart project, the 2022 PRISMS Contemporary Music Festival, the 2020 Walled City Music Festival, and the 2019 American Liszt Society Festival. He has also attended many music festivals as a student performer, including the 2022 Accademia Chigiana Summer Academy, the 2021 PianoTexas Festival, and the 2018 White Nights Piano Festival, among others. John Solari has been privileged to perform with such established musicians as trombonist Jim Miller of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and regularly collaborates with student performers to create competition winning recordings and performances including the 2024 University of Michigan Concerto Competition, 2023 France Music Competition, and the 2023 International String Bass Competition. His solo awards include the first prize at the 2022 NSALAZ Competition, second prize in the 2021 MTNA Piano Competition, and silver prize in the 2021 Conero International Competition. He is comfortable both playing the music of the traditional Western Classical canon and working with living composers, and has been involved in numerous world premiere performances and recordings.

Location Information

Sherman van Solkema Recital Hall

Download parking map for the Allendale Campus

Contact Information

Department of Music, Theatre, and Dance
(616) 331-3484

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This event was added to the calendar by Bridgett Vanderhoof (vandebri@gvsu.edu) on Monday, August 4, 2025 and was last updated on Thursday, August 21, 2025 at 1:31 p.m.