Who is Sergei Rachmaninoff' from The Great Pianists and what is their importance?

Sergei Rachmaninoff' is the name of a great pianist who's austere Russian appearance produced organized, impeccably delivered serious sonorities with musical elegance and exquisitely finished phrases. His aristocratic style ennobled any music he played to aim at its culminating moment called "the point," which was intrinsic to the piece itself. He left his colleagues full of respect and envy at the accuracy and deft skill with which he skimmed through complicated passages. Rachmaninoff sat quietly at the piano playing printed notes without eccentricity or sentimentality, avoiding exaggeration.