Listen to Pavel Kolesnikov and the Calgary Philharmonic perform 'Rach 3'

The first time that Pavel Kolesnikov performed with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra was in their hometown for the finals of the 2012 Honens International Piano Competition. He dazzled the audience and the jury with the Tchaikovsky concerto and was awarded the top prize.

For his return visit to Calgary, Kolesnikov played Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 3. It was his first ever performance of the demanding concerto.

Kolesnikov told CBC Music that "for every pianist, learning 'Rach 3' is climbing Mount Everest."

He points to three aspects of the concerto that support its description as one of the most difficult in the repertoire:

"First, the density of the writing, which is outstanding even for Rachmaninoff. Because of that, the process of learning the notes becomes very time-consuming. Secondly, despite all the difficulties, the powerful stream of music has to remain unburdened.

"Third, of course, is the fact that it's a huge piece. The soloist should turn into a radiator, he or she should produce and project energy and emotion to the hall, which is an absolute supertask considering the length of the concerto.

"Rachmaninoff's achievement is establishing an emotional connection with the audience on a level unknown before, and this feature is the very thing that makes his music so incredibly demanding."

Now you can listen to this, and more entire performances, on CBC Music's Concerts on Demand. Press play above to hear the performance.

Catherine McClelland, producer
Bob Doble, recording engineer
Ute Schaffland, assistant recording engineer