A docudrama about one of the most prominent and independent composers of the 20th century.
In ‘the Wayward Prokofiev’, we’ll dedicate an hour to the life and music of the Russian composer Sergei Prokofiev from the 20th century every two weeks. He was undoubtedly one of the most significant composers of the 20th century. Today, we’ll feature his tormented work and fifth opera ‘Maddalena’ from 1911. It was never performed when he was alive, but thanks to his widow and a little bit of help, it was performed in 1981 for the first time. By means of an encore, we’ll listen to Stravinski’s ‘Petreosjka’, well, the beginning anyway. It’s another one of those pieces from 1911 that has needed multiples versions to be accepted finally.
In this episode:
- S. Prokofiev. Maddalena Op. 13 (1911). USSR Ministery of Culture Symphony Orchestra.
Moscow State Academic chamber ensemble conducted by Gennady Rozhdestvensky featuring E. Ivanova (Maddalena) soprano, A. Martinov (Genaro) tenor, S. Yakobenko (Stenio) baritone, N. Koptanova (Gemma) soprano, V. Rumyantsev (Romeo) tenor
- I. Stravinski. Petroesjka (1911 version) Liverpool Philharmonic conducted by Vasily Petrenko featuring Ian Buckle (piano).
