This first full account of Rachmaninoff\'s career as a composer, conductor and pianist reveals unexpected links between the public side of this great artist and those parts of his life carefully concealed from the public, especially the circumstances surrounding the composition of each of his works.. The drama of his development as a composer, and the conflicts between this and his activity as a concert pianist is told in a direct  and well documented narrative. The endless war between his audiences and his critics is outlined, along with its impact on the composer himself.