Prokofiev: Suites from The Gambler & The Tale of the Stone Flower

Featuring

Dima Slobodeniouk
Lahti Symphony Orchestra
Sergei Prokofiev

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Historical Context

All music Prokofiev composed between 1948 and his death in 1953 was written under the shadow of the notorious 1948 Resolution, which condemned many Soviet composers and demanded adherence to an approved style.

Composition History

Prokofiev chose the ballet The Tale of the Stone Flower as a safer way to regain favor with Soviet authorities after his opera The Story of a Real Man was deemed ideologically and artistically flawed.

Recording & Production

This recording splices together two compilations from The Stone Flower: the Wedding Suite, Op. 126, and the Gypsy Fantasy, Op. 127, both of which were performed in Moscow in late 1951.

Performer Biography

Dima Slobodeniouk, the conductor, combines the cultural and musical heritage of his birth country, Russia, with that of his adopted homeland, Finland.

Composer's Artistic Vision

When composing his opera The Gambler, Prokofiev aimed to create a concentrated psychological drama with vocal and orchestral textures reflecting the frantic stage action, rather than traditional lyricism.

Compositional Technique

The concert work Four Portraits from The Gambler is not a conventional suite; Prokofiev created it by taking a vocal score, tearing out pages for each main character, and then recomposing and re-assembling the music.

Composition History

Prokofiev's opera The Gambler, based on Dostoyevsky's novel, faced numerous setbacks, with planned performances in 1917 and the late 1920s falling through due to revolutionary chaos and other issues.