Isle of the Dead, Op. 29
Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943)

THE STORY

On a visit to Paris in 1907, Sergei Rachmaninoff became transfixed by a black-and-white reproduction of Arnold Böcklin’s dream-like painting Island of the Dead, which depicts a cloaked figure rowing across dark waters, approaching a looming island with a coffin in tow. Rachmaninoff was not alone in his fascination with Böcklin’s funereal depiction—the novelist Vladimir Nabokov even suggested that a copy could be “found in every Berlin home.”

Opening with a vivid portrayal of the brooding waters surrounding the island, Rachmaninoff subtly overlays fragments of the “Dies Irae” (“Day of Wrath”) plainchant from the medieval Mass for the Dead. Rachmaninoff’s obsession with this chant pervades much of his catalogue, appearing in his First and Third Symphonies, the Symphonic Dances, his choral symphony The Bells, and the Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. Following this ominous opening, a contrasting section emerges replete with lush strings in a major key; as Rachmaninoff explained of this juxtaposition: “In the former is death–in the latter, life.” Rachmaninoff concludes the work as it began, further inviting the listener to—as Böcklin suggested of his painting—“dream [oneself] into a world of dark shadows.”

LISTEN FOR

• The unsteady rhythm of the opening and closing episodes, both in an uneven 5/8 meter, contributing a sense of unease and aiding the image of a rowboat undulating on the waves toward the rocky shores of the island
• The “Dies Irae” chant fragments, increasingly discernible as the work progresses and particularly evident in the section that follows the “life” middle section
• The chorale of brass in the transition between the “death” and “life” sections—Rachmaninoff conjures the massive rocky cliffs that would tower above the island’s visitors

INSTRUMENTATION

Piccolo, three flutes, two oboes, English horn, two clarinets, bass clarinet, two bassoons, contrabassoon, six horns, three trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion, harp, strings