Spring

The SPRING cantata based on the poem by Nikolai Nekrasov (1821 - 1878) "Green Noise" (1862) was composed in the spring of 1902. Perhaps the creation of this joyful work is also connected with the composer's experiences around his wedding at that time with Natalia Satina. The premiere on 11 March in Moscow under the baton of Alexander Ziloti, as well as the performance in January 1905 in St. Petersburg featuring Chaliapin himself, was enthusiastically received by audiences and critics, and Rachmaninoff was awarded the Glinka Prize by the Honorary Council for the Encouragement of Russian Composers and Performers. The one-movement cantata unfolds in three parts. The opening, which begins in pure orchestral fashion, seems to illustrate the gradual awakening of spring; in the contrasting monologue that follows, the deceived husband's inner feelings of wanting revenge are in tune with the storm in nature, but the coming spring brings joy, forgiveness and enlightenment.