Symphony-Concerto (Prokofiev)
Sergei Prokofiev's Symphony-Concerto in E minor, Op. 125 (sometimes referred to as Sinfonia Concertante) is a large-scale work for cello and orchestra. Prokofiev dedicated it to Mstislav Rostropovich, who premiered it on February 18, 1952 with Sviatoslav Richter conducting (the only instance of Richter conducting). After this first performance (under the title 'Cello Concerto No. 2'), it was revised and given its current title. It is itself a revised version of his earlier Cello Concerto, Op. 58, written in 1933–8.
On February 10, 1948 the Soviet Central Committee decided that Prokofiev should be considered a "suspect" musician. His work was disparaged as bourgeois and formalistic, and his first wife was convicted as a spy and taken to a forced-labor camp. These misfortunes and the possibility of being arrested without reason most likely affected Prokofiev's already deteriorating health.
The work, around 40 minutes long, is in three movements:
- Andante (11 minutes)
- Allegro (18 minutes)
- Andante con moto - Allegretto - Allegro marcato (11 minutes)
This work inspired Dmitri Shostakovich to write his Cello Concerto No. 1, also dedicated to Rostropovich.
[edit] History
The premiere of Prokofiev's Cello Concerto (Op. 58) was generally thought to have been very poorly interpreted by the cellist, though the blame fell on Prokofiev for writing a "soul-less" concerto. The concerto was seldom played afterwards, until Prokofiev heard Rostropovich play it at a 1947 concert at the Moscow Conservatory. The performance reawakened Prokofiev's interest in the cello, and he rewrote his concerto (with advice from Rostropovich) to create the Symphony-Concerto (Op. 125). Also dating from this period are his cello sonata of 1949, and an unfinished concertino for cello and orchestra, later completed by Kabalevsky.
[edit] See also
- Grammy Awards of 1993, re. a prize-winning performance of this work by the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra; Yo-Yo Ma, Cellist; Lorin Maazel, Conductor.
[edit] Recordings
Cello Concerto in E Minor, Op.58
| Cellist | Orchestra | Conductor | Record Company | Year of Recording | Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alexander Ivashkin | Russian State Symphony Orchestra | Valeri Polyansky | Chandos Records | 2003 | CD |
| János Starker | Philharmonia | Walter Süsskind | EMI Classics | 1995 (1957 LP) | CD |
| Christine Walevska | Orchestre National de Monte-Carlo | Eliahu Inbal | Philips | 1973 | LP |
| Roger Albin | Orchestre des Cento Soli | Rudolf Albert | Club Français du Disque | 1960 | LP |
Note that cellist/composer/conductor Roger Albin (1920-2001) was the first to record the complete, uncut original score.
Sinfonia Concertante, Op.125
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