I`m learning rhapsody in blue by gerswhin, its going pretty good its not too hard for me. I`m going to get Rachmaninoff`s Piano Concerto no. 2 soon though, and i will start working on it once i get it. I was wondering how hard is concerto no. 2? Or how hard is it compared to the Rhapsody in Blue? I have always loved this song and one of my lifetime goals is to play this song someday with a symphony! Any other tips or practice techniques for either of these songs would be greatly appreciated!!!

We must have the same taste in music. I am learning both of these as well. Specifically the 16 minute piano solo Gershwin and the Rach 2. I have only been playing for a little over a year but I am making great progress. So to me they are pretty difficult. I can`t read music so I have to decipher the music. So it takes me much longer than most but the playing part comes fairly quickly with daily 15 minute practice. I find it hard to stretch out on the intro to the Rach#2(1st movement). Incidently, the only song I can play from start to finish is Maple Leaf Rag (not even Chopsticks). I can play parts of Rhapsody in Blue, Rach #2, Rach`s Prelude in C#m, Debussy`s Golliwog`s Cakewalk, Joplins Entertainer, Easy Winners, Satie`s well known stuff, Pop stuff like Linus and Lucy and Joel`s Rootbeer Rag. That`s it for me. I really need to learn to read music so that I can expand my horizons and learn a song in less than 6 months. ha ha

So in conclusion, I`m not the best person to ask technical questions about those pieces, but we definitely share the same passion to play them.