Composer · 20th Century
Sergei Prokofiev
1891–1953 · Russian
Sergei Prokofiev was born in 1891 in Sontsivka, then part of the Russian Empire (now Ukraine), and was admitted to the St. Petersburg Conservatory in 1904, several years younger than most of his classmates. By his teens he was already a fearsome pianist and an enfant terrible of Russian modernism, scandalising audiences with the percussive dissonance of his early works.
In 1918, Prokofiev left Russia with official Soviet permission and spent nearly two decades in the West, first in the United States, then mostly in Paris, composing operas, ballets, symphonies, and concertos that earned him a place among the leading modernists of his generation. After several years of shuttling between Paris and Moscow, he settled permanently in the Soviet Union in 1936. The remaining years of his life were marked by official denunciation in 1948, deteriorating health, and personal tragedy. He died on 5 March 1953, the same day as Stalin. Soviet newspapers, consumed by the dictator’s death, barely noted his passing.
Works
- “Romeo and Juliet,“ op. 64: Excerpts 1
- Alexander Nevsky, Op. 78 (cantata) 1
- Chout (The Tale of the Buffoon), Suite, Op. 21bis 1
- Four Portraits and Dénouement from ‘The Gambler’, Op. 49 1
- Piano Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 16 1
- Piano Concerto No. 3 in C major, Op. 26 2
- Romeo and Juliet, Suite from the Ballet, Op. 64 (selection) 1
- Summer Night, Suite from ‘Betrothal in a Monastery’, Op. 123 1
- Symphony No. 1 in D major, Op. 25, ‘Classical’ 2
- Symphony No. 4 in C major, Op. 112 (1947 version) 1
- Symphony No. 5 in B-flat major, Op. 100 3
- The Love for Three Oranges, Suite, Op. 33bis 1
Performed at
Upcoming
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Noseda’s Prokofiev and Shostakovich, with Kavakos Prokofiev · Shostakovich
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New Year’s Eve Concert with Kirill Petrenko and Alexander Malofeev Nicolai · Shostakovich · Prokofiev · Strauss · Strauss II
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A Classical Joke, a Birthday Present, and Fate Prokofiev · Shostakovich · Tchaikovsky
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An Argument at the Piano and a Child’s Heaven Prokofiev · Mahler
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Lahav Shani and Martha Argerich: Debussy, Prokofiev and Pictures at an Exhibition Debussy · Prokofiev · Mussorgsky
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Paavo Järvi and Christian Tetzlaff: Pärt, Shostakovich and Prokofiev’s Fifth Pärt · Shostakovich · Prokofiev
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Rattle and Tamestit: Debussy, Filidei’s Viola Concerto and Prokofiev’s Fifth Debussy · Filidei · Prokofiev
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Elim Chan and Seong-Jin Cho: Gubaidulina, Prokofiev and Lutosławski Gubaidulina · Prokofiev · Lutosławski
Past guides
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Ólafsson’s ‘Emperor’ and Prokofiev’s Triumph Beethoven · Prokofiev
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Star-Crossed, Sea-Swept, and a Jazz-Touched Concerto Ravel · Debussy · Prokofiev
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From Puppets to Star-Crossed Lovers: A Lithuanian Debut Weinberg · Williams · Prokofiev
Sources 1
- Sergei Prokofiev, Wikipedia