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Sergei Prokofiev Sean Thorpe
Music 1010
A Tale of a Real Man
Born 1891 in Sontsovka, Ukraine
Russian composer known for concertos, operas, symphonies, film music, ballet scores, and his famous work for children, Peter and the Wolf
A Tale of a Real Man
As a child, his inspiration for music came from his mother as he would listen to her play compositions from Beethoven and Chopin.
He wrote his first opera at the age of 8 after seeing the Sleeping Beauty. Titled “The Giant”
He called his early compositions “Puppies”
As a child he would avoid the black keys because he was afraid of them. He even play “white” music as an adult, avoid the black keys
A Tale of a Real Man
His music was just as unpopular as he was, him being a very blunt and somewhat rude person
Critics were so harsh on his music that one once wrote a review on a piece that was never performed
His music was described as “violent” and “barbaric”
“A Tale of a Real Man” was banned by Stalin for political reasons
His first concerto was nicknamed “hit on the head” because the first four notes sound so powerful
A Tale of a Real Man
When people walked out on his music, he would blame them not his music
He never gave up!
When it was first composed, much of his music was so controversial that conductors of his symphonies sometimes received death threats
Today he is one of the most frequently performed modern composers
Peter and the Wolf, one of his most famous pieces, introduces children to classical music around the world today
A Tale of a Real Man
Married twice, once to a Lina Llubera, a Spanish singer with whom he had two sons. Then to Myra Mendelson, a Russian writer
He always dressed nicely, wearing a coat and tie to breakfast
He would walk for miles to get cigarettes
He was an advent pet owner with a wolf like dog named Mendoza, and a cat who slept on his arm chair
A Tale of a Real Man
Chess was his favorite thing next to music
He also loved to read biographies
He would also write in his diary every day even in the bathroom. He would keep his reviews and note in his diary
Compositional History
Piano Concerto No. 1 in D-flat Major Op. 10
Piano Concerto No. 1 in D-flat Major Op. 10
Has three listening sections
Allegro Brioso
Andante Assai
Allegro Scherzando
Piano Concerto No. 1 in D-flat Major Op. 10
Started writing it in 1911 and finished in 1912
It is the shortest of all five of his concertos running only 15 minutes
First performed in Moscow
Won the Anton Rubinstein Prize
Compositional History
Peter and The wolf
Peter and The wolf
Peter and the Wolf is a musical fairy tale for children
It tells the story of a young boy who captures a wolf
Written in 1936 by invitation for a children's symphony
Was unpopular at first
Peter and The wolf
In this fairy tale, each character is represented by a different instrument
The grandfather by the bassoon
Peter by the violins and the string section
The bird by the flute
The duck by the oboe
The cat by the clarinet
The wolf by the French horns
The hunter by the kettledrums and the big bass drums
Peter and The wolf
Peter and the wolf has been and will be, introducing children to classical music for a very long time
Listening Journal
Eine Kleine Nachtmusik 4th Movement
This string orchestra piece gives the perfect background noise while waiting to be seated for a play. With the music in a major it gives the music a fun feel to it. With the tempo being allegro it makes the music and people keep going while still keeping the peace with the mezzo piano dynamic. This piece is simple and it in the regular phrases with eight measures.
I personally enjoy this composition. It is a nice calming piece that can be played for entertainment or merely as background noise. This piece reminds me of naptime, which could be why I enjoy it so thoroughly, who doesn’t love naps?
Listening Journal
Toccata and Fugue
This concerto is strong with a forte dynamic. The organ makes the perfect instrumentation in this piece, starting out pretty moderate in tempo and then quickly speeding up to an allegro speed. With it being played in a D Minor, it gives the theme a more eerie and spooks feel to it.
My personal opinion on the piece is very simply put, awesome! This is always one of the all time favorites especially around Halloween time. Bach’s Toccata and Fugue brings back many memories of homemade spook alleys, and frightful nights. I believe that this piece is one of my favorites because of the memories that come with it.
Listening Journal
5th Symphony: First Movement
With combining the fast paced allegro with the second piece of a largo paced piece, Beethoven’s 5th symphony is in an ABA style. The full orchestra instrumentation gives it a polyphonic texture with multiple strings of music being played together to make beautiful music.
In all honesty, every time I hear this song I think of trouble. With movie references that use this song to emphasize the antagonist, it has gotten that connotation in my mind. I still enjoy this piece of classical music, but it is not my favorite.
Listening Journal
Rite of Spring: Sacrificial Dance
In this ballet style composition, it is clear the tempo is allegro. The short phased melody made it very staccato and cut. It was a mixed dynamic between moderato and forte but leaning more toward forte.
I was not the biggest fan of this piece because of the staccato expression. I found it annoying and it gave me a headache. In the end, it did what it was supposed to, which was to express how a sacrificial ceremony would feel like through music which they did splendidly.
Listening Journal
Lincoln Portrait
The form of this composition was defiantly a tone poem, describing the kind of man that President Lincoln was. It had a largo tempo giving it a feeling of comfort. Dynamically it was a mix between moderato and piano, contributing to the stillness of the piece. This piece was mostly brass with some drums included. It was a Homophonic piece making it very simple.
In my opinion, this piece was boring. Although Abe Lincoln was an amazing man, this piece did little to keep my attention. The calming music in the background made me want to fall asleep while listening to the description of the president and his accomplishments. All around it was a boring piece.
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