Since I'm feeling enthusiastic and even though I've recommended this piece of music before, still, if you like Rachmaninoff's music (and especially his more serious vein - the Corelli variations, his first piano sonata, the Symphonic Dances, the tone poem The Isle of the Dead too) -
you may want to give a listen to the music of composer Nikolai Medtner and especially his sonata for piano in E minor, headed with lines from a poem (by Tyutchev) - and given the nickname - "The Night Wind" (Medtner's work was written around 1911, and a score is available
here that's public domain in Canada and the US though not in the EU.)
Was listening to a performance of this, recorded by Adam Fellegi back in 1989 for Marco Polo (while exercising actually, Wednesday...- listening to a good half-hour-_straight_ of almost unbroken piano music that only gets more exciting towards the end is a great way to ignore the fact that one's getting more sore and more tired, though it's only a half-hour... anyway, "serious Rachmaninoff fans" may have heard of the composer anyway since they were best friends more or less, but along with Medtner's songs and violin sonatas this might be the one work, just about, that I'd really recommend- despite the length. Definitely more than worth it.
(There's a 1996 recording by Marc-André Hamelin that's part of his set of all 14 solo sonatas, and is better :) Not sure if it's available separately. Unfortunately I only see a few recordings in all listed http://www.medtner.org.uk/op25_2.html here, but I have a BBC broadcast one by John Ogdon too, good but apparently with some cuts...
Budget label Naxos has released a recording of his late third violin sonata (nicknamed "Epica") - have two recordings of it in my collection but haven't heard this one yet. (I have three of his cheerful - contagiously cheerful, I tend to say - second sonata, I think! :) ) Their price is typically less than 8 US dollars a disc and performances are generally good, so might be worth a go (same company as Marco Polo, just their budget wing. They also have his piano concertos and quintet- I have, again, other recordings of those and think the quintet's especially good music; it quotes a song the composer liked enough to quote in yet a second - or third :) - piece. Enjoy, I hope!)
