Peter and the Wolf

1947 coloring book cover

Peter and the Wolf (Russian: Петя и волк, Petya i volk), Op. 67, is a composition written by Sergei Prokofiev in 1936 in the USSR. It is a children's story (with both music and text by Prokofiev), spoken by a narrator accompanied by the orchestra.

History

In 1936, Sergei Prokofiev was commissioned by Natalya Sats and the Central Children's Theatre in Moscow to write a new musical symphony for children. The intent was to cultivate "musical tastes in children from the first years of school".[1] Intrigued by the invitation, Prokofiev completed Peter and the Wolf in just four days.[2] The debut on 2 May 1936 was, in the composer's words, inauspicious at best: "... [attendance] was poor and failed to attract much attention".[3]

The first concert performance of the work outside Russia was by the Dublin Orchestral Players under the direction of Brian Boydell on 9 June 1942 in Dublin, Ireland.[4]

Instrumentation

Peter and the Wolf is scored for the following orchestra:[5]

Each character in the story has a particular instrument and a musical theme:[6]

 \relative c'''' { \clef treble \time 4/4 \tempo "Allegro" 4=176 \slashedGrace a8\mf( g8-.)[ e-.] \slashedGrace a( gis-.)[ gis-.] gis-.[ gis-.] \slashedGrace a( gis-.)[ e-.] | d16->( ees des c b8) \times 2/3 {a16( b a } g8->) g-. c-. e-. | \slashedGrace a8( g8-.)[ e-.] \slashedGrace a( gis-.)[ gis-.] gis-.[ gis-.] \slashedGrace a( gis-.)[ e-.] | d16->( ees des c g'!8-.) \slashedGrace b,( a-.) g2-> }

 \relative c { \clef treble \time 4/4 \tempo "Moderato" \partial 4*1 d8-.\p g-. \bar "||" b4-. g8-. d-. cis4-. d8-. g-. | b-. d-. c4->~ c8 b g a | b( a) fis-. g-. a( g) e-. fis-. | g2-> }

 \relative c' { \clef treble \time 3/4 \tempo "L'istesso tempo"4=92 \key aes \major \slashedGrace fes8( ees2.\mf->) | \slashedGrace ees8( d[ des c des] \slashedGrace d g[ f)] | \slashedGrace fes( ees2.->) }

 \relative c { \clef bass \time 4/4 \tempo "Poco più andante" 4=92 \key b \minor \partial 16*1 b,16\f( \bar "||" fis'8)[ r16 fis] b,4->~ b8._"pesante" cis16 d8. e16 | fis8. d16 a'8 a a-> a-> \times 2/3 { a-> b-> bis-> } | cis4->~( \times 2/3 { cis8 d dis } ais) r }

 \relative c' { \clef treble \time 4/4 \tempo "Allegro moderato" 4=116 \partial 4*1 c4\mf( | des8)->[ r ees-. r e->] r c4( | des8->)[ r ees-. r e->] r c4 | des8-> e f aes c4-> b8 c | des-.[ r f-.] r e2-> }

 \relative c'' { \clef treble \time 4/4 \tempo "Andantino" 4=92 g4\p-- c8.( e16-.) g8-.[ a-.] g8.->( e16) | g8-.( a-.) b8.-> c16 g8( e) c-.( d-.) | ees4->\< ees8--( b'--) ees,4-- ees8--( b'--)\! | ees,4->\mf( bes) }

 \relative c { \clef bass \time 4/4 \tempo "Andante molto" 4=66 \key bes \major <d bes g>2->\mp <bes' g d>16( <a fis ees> <bes g d> <a fis ees> <bes g d>8) <bes g d> | <d bes g>-- <cis a ees>-- <d bes g>-- <bes g d>-- <c f, c>2-> |}

The duration of the work is approximately 25 minutes.[7]

Plot

Peter, a Young Pioneer,[8][9] lives at his grandfather's home in a forest clearing. One day, Peter goes out into the clearing, leaving the garden gate open, and the duck that lives in the yard takes the opportunity to go swimming in a pond nearby. The duck starts arguing with a little bird ("What kind of bird are you if you can't fly?" – "What kind of bird are you if you can't swim?"). Peter's pet cat stalks them quietly, and the bird—warned by Peter—flies to safety in a tall tree while the duck swims to safety in the middle of the pond.

Peter's grandfather scolds Peter for being outside in the meadow alone ("Suppose a wolf came out of the forest?"), and, when Peter defies him, saying: "Boys like me are not afraid of wolves", his grandfather takes him back into the house and locks the gate. Soon afterwards "a big, grey wolf" does indeed come out of the forest. The cat quickly climbs into a tree, but the duck, who has jumped out of the pond, is chased, overtaken, and swallowed by the wolf.

Peter fetches a rope and climbs over the garden wall into the tree. He asks the bird to fly around the wolf's head to distract it, while he lowers a noose and catches the wolf by its tail. The wolf struggles to get free, but Peter ties the rope to the tree and the noose only gets tighter.

Some hunters, who have been tracking the wolf, come out of the forest ready to shoot, but Peter gets them to help him take the wolf to a zoo in a victory parade (the piece was first performed for an audience of Young Pioneers during May Day celebrations) that includes himself, the bird, the hunters leading the wolf, the cat, and grumpy grumbling Grandfather ("What if Peter hadn't caught the wolf? What then?")

In the story's ending, the listener is told: "If you listen very carefully, you'll hear the duck quacking inside the wolf's belly, because the wolf in his hurry had swallowed her alive."

Symbolism

American music reviewer Gary R. Lemco has viewed Peter and the Wolf as an allegory for the political situation of the Soviet Union in the 1930s. According to this theory, the characters represent either the various bickering Soviet republics, or the nations of Europe. For example, Peter, bearing the same name as Russian national hero Peter the Great, represents Russia. In both versions of the theory, the Wolf represents the virulently anti-Communist Nazi Germany.[10]

Recordings

According to an article by Jeremy Nicholas of the classical music magazine Gramophone in 2015, the best overall recording of Peter and the Wolf is by the New Philharmonia Orchestra, narrated by Richard Baker and conducted by Raymond Leppard in 1954. Gramophone's best DVD version is the 2006 film by Suzie Templeton; its music is performed, without narrator, by the Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by Mark Stephenson.[11]

Date Narrator Orchestra Conductor Label Notes
2015 Alice Cooper Bundesjugendorchester Alexander Shelley
2012 Bramwell Tovey Vancouver Symphony Orchestra Bramwell Tovey Video on YouTube
2011 Phillip Schofield Orchestre national du Capitole de Toulouse Michel Plasson EMI
2008 Jacqueline du Pré[12] English Chamber Orchestra Daniel Barenboim Deutsche Grammophon
2006 Colm Feore Windsor Symphony Orchestra John Morris Russell Windsor Symphony Society This recording has never been released commercially, but is only available via the WSO's website at http://www.windsorsymphony.com/concerts/wsogifts.html or at the WSO's gift shop.
2005 Willie Rushton London Philharmonic Orchestra Siân Edwards Classics for Pleasure
2003 Mikhail Gorbachev, Bill Clinton, Sophia Loren Russian National Orchestra Kent Nagano Pentatone
2003 Antonio Banderas, Sophia Loren Russian National Orchestra Kent Nagano Pentatone In Spanish
2001 Sharon Stone Orchestra of St. Luke's James Levine Deutsche Grammophon as part of A Classic Tale: Music for Our Children (289 471 171–72, 2001)
2000 Lenny Henry Nouvel Ensemble Instrumental Du Conservatoire National Supérieur De Paris Jacques Pési EMI
2000 David Attenborough BBC Philharmonic Yan Pascal Tortelier BBC Music for BBC Music Magazine; a free CD came with the June 2000 issue
1997 Anthony Dowell Ross MacGibbon, director (video) Film of a ballet performance, starring David Johnson, Layla Harrison, Karan Lingham[13]
1997 Dame Edna Everage Melbourne Symphony Orchestra John Lanchbery Naxos Records
1996 Sir John Gielgud Royal Philharmonic Orchestra Andrea Licata Intersound Recordings
1996 Ben Kingsley London Symphony Orchestra Sir Charles Mackerras Cala Records
1994 Melissa Joan Hart Boston Symphony Orchestra Seiji Ozawa Sony Classical Hart was in her "Clarissa" persona from the Nickelodeon television series Clarissa Explains It All
1994 Patrick Stewart Orchestra of the Opéra National de Lyon Kent Nagano Erato
1994 Sting Chamber Orchestra of Europe Claudio Abbado Deutsche Grammophon This was used as the soundtrack to the television special Peter and the Wolf: A Prokofiev Fantasy
1991 Oleg and Gabriel Prokofiev New London Orchestra Ronald Corp Hyperion Records The narrators were the son and grandson of the composer
1989 Sir John Gielgud Orchestra of the Academy of London Richard Stamp Virgin Classics Sir John's royalties for this recording were donated to The League of Friends of Charity Heritage, a facility for children handicapped physically
1989 Christopher Lee English String Orchestra Sir Yehudi Menuhin Nimbus Records
1989 Peter Ustinov Philharmonia Orchestra Philip Ellis Cirrus Classics CBS CD 105
1989 Jonathan Winters Philharmonia Orchestra Efrem Kurtz Angel Records Winters also narrated the Saint-Saëns/Ogden Nash The Carnival of the Animals
1987 Paul Hogan Orchestre de Paris Igor Markevitch EMI It retained the traditional plot but transferred the locale to the Australian Outback. This recording was withdrawn soon after its release because of unflattering portrayals of Australia's aboriginal people and is now considered "out of print".
1987 Lina Prokofiev (Sergei Prokofiev's widow) Royal Scottish National Orchestra Neeme Järvi Chandos Records
1986 Itzhak Perlman Israel Philharmonic Orchestra Zubin Mehta EMI
1984 William F. Buckley, Jr. Orchestra of Radio/TV Luxembourg Leopold Hager Proarte Digital Records
1984 Dudley Moore / Terry Wogan Boston Pops Orchestra John Williams Philips The American release (412 559–2) was narrated by Dudley Moore, while the UK release (412 556–2) featured Terry Wogan as narrator
1980 Tom Seaver Cincinnati Pops Orchestra Erich Kunzel MMG
1979 Carol Channing Cincinnati Pops Orchestra Erich Kunzel Caedmon Records TC-1623
1977 Cyril Ritchard Philadelphia Orchestra Eugene Ormandy Columbia Records ML 5183
1978 David Bowie Philadelphia Orchestra Eugene Ormandy RCA Red Seal Bowie's recording reached number 136 on the US Pop Albums chart.
1975 Hermione Gingold Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra Karl Böhm Deutsche Grammophon
1974 Will Geer English Chamber Orchestra Johannes Somary Vanguard Records VSO-30033
1973 Mia Farrow London Symphony Orchestra André Previn EMI ASD 2935
1972 Rob Reiner studio orchestra Jerry Yester United Artists Records UAS-5646 Contemporary version by Carl Gottlieb and Rob Reiner; never released on CD
1972 George Raft London Festival Orchestra Stanley Black Phase 4 Stereo SPC-21084 In this version, the story is reformulated as a gangster tale in the style of the Hollywood films that Raft had once acted in.
1971 Richard Baker New Philharmonia Orchestra Raymond Leppard EMI
1970 Sir Ralph Richardson London Symphony Orchestra Sir Malcolm Sargent Decca Records Volume 5 of The World of the Great Classics series. This version is praised in various editions of The Stereo Record Guide as the finest recording and narration of the work ever made.
1966 Richard Attenborough Philharmonia of Hamburg Hans-Jurgen Walter Columbia Records
1965 Sean Connery Royal Philharmonic Orchestra Antal Doráti Phase 4 Stereo
1965 Lorne Greene London Symphony Orchestra Sir Malcolm Sargent RCA Victor
1960s Garry Moore Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra of London Artur Rodziński Whitehall WHS20040.[14] The reverse side of this 12-inch LP record also features The Carnival of the Animals by Saint-Saëns with Garry Moore (narrator), Josef and Grete Dichler (duopianists), and the Vienna State Opera Orchestra conducted by Hermann Scherchen.
1960 Leonard Bernstein New York Philharmonic Leonard Bernstein Columbia Records The popularity of the group's televised Young People's Concerts made this an auspicious release
1960 Captain Kangaroo Stadium Symphony Orchestra of New York Leopold Stokowski Everest Records SDBR-3043
1960 Beatrice Lillie London Symphony Orchestra Skitch Henderson Decca Records
1959 José Ferrer Vienna State Opera Orchestra Sir Eugene Goossens Kapp Records Narrated in Spanish and English
1959 Michael Flanders Philharmonia Orchestra Efrem Kurtz EMI Records
1957 Boris Karloff Vienna State Opera Orchestra Mario Rossi Vanguard Records
1956 Peter Ustinov Philharmonia Orchestra Herbert von Karajan Angel Records
1955 Arthur Godfrey Andre Kostelanetz's Orchestra Andre Kostelanetz Columbia Records mono recording; has never been issued on CD
1953 Victor Jory unknown Vicky Kosen Peter Pan Records mono recording; has never been issued on CD
1953 Alec Guinness Boston Pops Orchestra Arthur Fiedler RCA Victor
1950 Eleanor Roosevelt Boston Symphony Orchestra Serge Koussevitzky RCA Victor mono recording
1949 Frank Phillips London Philharmonic Orchestra Nikolai Malko Decca LX 3003[15] Frank Phillips was a well-known BBC Radio newsreader
1946 Sterling Holloway Disney originally made for the 1946 film Make Mine Music
1941 Basil Rathbone All-American Orchestra Leopold Stokowski Columbia Masterworks Restored from original Masterworks set M-477 by Bob Varney[16]
1939 Richard Hale Boston Symphony Orchestra Serge Koussevitzky RCA Victor

Adaptations of the work

Walt Disney, 1946

Disney's 1946 animated short.

Walt Disney produced an animated version of the work in 1946, with Sterling Holloway providing the voice of the narrator. It was released theatrically as a segment of Make Mine Music, then reissued the next year, accompanying a reissue of Fantasia (as a short subject before the film), then separately on home video in the 1990s.[17] This version makes several changes to the original story. For example:

In 1957, for one of his television programs, Disney recalled how Prokofiev himself visited the Disney studio, eventually inspiring the making of this animated version. Disney used pianist Ingolf Dahl, who resembled Prokofiev, to re-create how the composer sat at a piano and played the themes from the score.[18][19]

An audio recording of this version, with expanded narration by Sterling Holloway, was released on Disneyland Records (DQ-1242).

Russia, 1958

The Russian animation studio Soyuzmultfilm produced a version of the work in 1958. It is puppet stop motion animation, directed by Anatoly Karanovich and narrated by I. Medvedyeva. This version makes the following changes to the story:

This version has not been published much outside of the ex-USSR, but can be seen on YouTube.[20]

Walt Disney, 1999

Another Disney adaptation, a live-action/animated film released direct-to-video titled Belle's Tales of Friendship (August 1999), is featured and narrated by Belle instead of Sterling Holloway. This version of Peter and the Wolf was featured in Disney's House of Mouse, and characters from it appeared in Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988).

British–Polish co-production, 2006

In 2006, Suzie Templeton and Hugh Welchman directed and produced respectively, a stop-motion animated adaptation, Peter and the Wolf. It is unusual in its lack of any dialogue or narration, the story being told only in images and sound and interrupted by sustained periods of silence. The soundtrack is performed by the Philharmonia Orchestra, and the film received its premiere with a live accompaniment in the Royal Albert Hall.[21] The film won the Annecy Cristal and the Audience Award at the 2007 Annecy International Animated Film Festival,[22] and won the 2008 Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film.[23] This version makes some changes to the original Prokofiev story; for example:

Others

Performance by Ballet Rambert at a factory in England, 1943
2007 Toronto, Canada production
Gethin Jones narrating Peter and the Wolf at the Hay Festival, 2008

Up to 1959

1960s

1970s

1980s

1990s

2000s

2010s

In copyright law

In 2012, the US Supreme Court's decision in Golan v. Holder restored copyright protection in the United States to numerous foreign works that had entered the public domain. Peter and the Wolf was frequently cited by the parties and amici, as well as by the Court's opinion and by the press, as an example of a well-known work that would be removed from the public domain by the decision.[53]

References

  1. Friday, Gavin (December 2011). "Peter & The Wolf". About.com.Verify credibility
  2. "Programme Notes: "Prokofiev (1891–1953) – Peter and the Wolf"". MusicWeb-International. Retrieved 1 July 2011.
  3. Prokofiev, Sergei (2000); Prokofieva, Rose (translator) (1960). Shlifstein, S, ed. Autobiography, Articles, Reminiscences. The Minerva Group, Inc. p. 89. ISBN 0-89875-149-7.
  4. Barra Boydell: "Dublin Orchestral Players", in: The Encyclopaedia of Music in Ireland, ed. by Harry White & Barra Boydell (Dublin: UCD Press, 2013), p. 329.
  5. "Scores > Prokofiev, Sergei > Prokofiev, Sergei / Peter and the Wolf, Op. 67 – Score and Parts > ID: 2444". New York Philharmonic Orchestra Archives. Retrieved June 2, 2014.
  6. Estrella, Espie. "'Peter and the Wolf': Characters and Instruments". About.com. Retrieved June 2, 2014.
  7. "New York Philharmonic Orchestra, Leonard Bernstein, Prokofiev, Tchaikovsky – Peter And The Wolf / Nutcracker Suite". Discogs. Retrieved June 2, 2014.
  8. "Snaring a fresh audience using a cautionary tale" by Elissa Blake, The Sydney Morning Herald, 23 August 2013
  9. Morrison, Simon (2008). The People's Artist : Prokofiev's Soviet Years. Oxford University Press. p. 46. ISBN 9780199720514.
  10. Lemco, Gary (10 May 2013). "Classical Reissue Reviews – Prokofiev: Peter and the Wolf". Audiophile Audition. Archived from the original on 23 June 2015. Retrieved 23 June 2015.
  11. gramophone.co.uk Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf – which recording is best? 14th January 2015
  12. http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2009/Mar09/du_Pre_Peter_4800475.htm
  13. 1 2 Peter and the Wolf (TV 1997) at the Internet Movie Database
  14. Review by T.H., Gramophone, June 1961, p. 31
  15. Peter and the Wolf at Discogs (list of releases)
  16. "Peter and the Wolf, Op. 67. audio recording". Columbia Masterworks Records, Internet Archive. July 1941.
  17. "The Big Cartoon Database: Make Mine Music". Bcdb.com. 20 April 1946. Retrieved 1 July 2011.
  18. "1957 Disney TV introduction". Peter and the Wolf. 1957.
  19. Linick, Anthony (2008). The Lives of Ingolf Dahl. Author House. p. 294.
  20. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EQTUyKLSvJQ&list=PLq6GUEB5Cs6EZcJZbt9JtMxf0r7nrLWEs&index=36
  21. Breakthru Films
  22. Annecy 2008 Festival, 2007 Award Winning Films. Annecy.org. Retrieved on 1 July 2011.
  23. "Oscars 2008: Winners". 25 February 2008. Retrieved 25 February 2008.
  24. scribd
  25. Art Carney Meets Peter and the Wolf (TV 1958) at the Internet Movie Database
  26. "Obiturary: Kenny Davern, 71, Leading Jazz Clarinet Player". The New York Sun. Retrieved 1 July 2011.
  27. "The Geoff Boxell Home Page". Geoffboxell.tripod.com. Retrieved 1 July 2011.
  28. "Peter and the Commissar". Artist Direct. Archived from the original on 12 June 2008.
  29. Allmusic.com
  30. "Peter VS. the Wolf". Justin Locke Productions. Retrieved 1 July 2011.
  31. Banes, Sally (1987). Terpsichore in Sneakers: Post-Modern Dance Check |url= value (help). Wesleyan University Press. ISBN 978-0-8195-6160-2.
  32. "Wendy Carlos' official website". Wendycarlos.com. Retrieved 1 July 2011.
  33. "Tiny Toon Adventures episode guide". Mindspring.com. Retrieved 1 July 2011.
  34. Peter Schickele official website. Schickele.com (1 May 2011). Retrieved on 1 July 2011.
  35. Peter and the Wolf'' (1995) (TV) at the Internet Movie Database
  36. The Boston Phoenix Archived 28 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine.
  37. Public Radio Musicsource. Prms.org. Retrieved on 1 July 2011.
  38. Elmo's Musical Adventure at Muppet Wiki
  39. "Russian National Orchestra". Russianarts.org. 21 October 2003. Retrieved 1 July 2011.
  40. "RNO Russian National Orchestra". Russianarts.org. February 2004. Retrieved 24 March 2011.
  41. Westergaard, Sean. Review: Pincus and the Pig, a Klezmer Tale (after Prokofiev's Peter & the Wolf at AllMusic. Retrieved 14 June 2014.
  42. Adaptation for Theatre organ by Jelani Eddington
  43. Track list for Full Circle
  44. Neil Tobin, Necromancer. Necromancerevents.com. Retrieved on 1 July 2011.
  45. http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/projectmusic2
  46. Petr & The Wulf, tracklist (11 December 2010)
  47. Petr & The Wulf, Alternative Tentacles
  48. ITV Euro 2012 on YouTube
  49. http://www.outfest.org/tixSYS/2013/xslguide/eventnote.php?EventNumber=3811&notepg=
  50. Peter and the Wolf (2012) at the Internet Movie Database
  51. JoshPerschbacher.com
  52. http://connecticut.jazznearyou.com/event_detail.php?id=572142
  53. Ginsburg, Ruth. "Associate Justice" (PDF). Majority Opinion. Supreme Court of United States. Retrieved 22 January 2012.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Peter and the Wolf.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Thursday, May 05, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.