Sergei Prokofiev Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''., group=n (27 April .S. 15 April1891 – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, p ...

's Violin Sonata No. 1 in F minor, Op 80, written between 1938 and 1946 (completed two years after Violin Sonata No. 2), is one of the darkest and most brooding of the composer's works. Prokofiev was awarded the 1947

Stalin prize Stalin Prize may refer to: * The State Stalin Prize in science and engineering and in arts, awarded 1941 to 1954, later known as the USSR State Prize The USSR State Prize (russian: links=no, Государственная премия СССР, ...

for this composition.

Structure

The work is about 30 minutes long and is in four movements of roughly equal length: #

Andante Andante may refer to: Arts * Andante (tempo), a moderately slow musical tempo * Andante (manga), ''Andante'' (manga), a shōjo manga by Miho Obana * Andante (song), "Andante" (song), a song by Hitomi Yaida * "Andante, Andante", a 1980 song by A ...

assai (F minor) #

Allegro Allegro may refer to: Common meanings * Allegro (music), a tempo marking indicate to play fast, quickly and bright * Allegro (ballet), brisk and lively movement Artistic works * L'Allegro (1645), a poem by John Milton * ''Allegro'' (Satie), an ...

brusco (C major) #

(F major) # Allegrissimo -

assai,

come prima "Come prima" (English: "As Before") is an Italian song, with lyrics by Mario Panzeri and music by Vincenzo Di Paola and Sandro Taccani. First made popular by Tony Dallara in Italy in 1957, a version by the Marino Marini Quartet was a hit in the ...

(F major → F minor) Prokofiev had described the slithering violin scales at the end of the 1st and 4th movements as 'wind passing through a graveyard'. The work was premiered by

David Oistrakh David Fyodorovich Oistrakh (; – 24 October 1974), was a Soviet classical violinist, violist and conductor. Oistrakh collaborated with major orchestras and musicians from many parts of the world and was the dedicatee of numerous violin w ...

and

Lev Oborin Lev Nikolayevich Oborin (russian: Лев Николаевич Оборин, ''Lev Nikolaevič Oborin''; Moscow, Moscow, 5 January 1974) was a Soviet and Russian pianist, composer and pedagogue. He was the winner of the first International Chopin ...

on October 23, 1946, under the personal coaching of the composer. During rehearsals, Oborin played a certain passage, marked ''forte'', too gently for Prokofiev's liking, who insisted it should be more aggressive. Oborin replied that he was afraid of drowning out the violin, but Prokofiev said "It should sound in such a way that people should jump in their seat, and people will say 'Is he out of his mind?'". The first and third movements of the sonata were played at Prokofiev's funeral by Oistrakh and

Samuil Feinberg Samuil Yevgenyevich Feinberg (russian: Самуи́л Евге́ньевич Фе́йнберг, also Samuel; 26 May 1890, Odessa – 22 October 1962, Moscow) was a Russian and Soviet composer and pianist. Biography Born in Odessa, Feinberg ...

.Simon Morrison, ''The People's Artist'', Oxford, 2009

Notes

External links

Recording of Violin Sonata No. 1
Sergei Ostrovsky (violin) (

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archive).
Video - Prokofiev Violin Sonata No 1 - Complete (28:10).Video - Prokofiev Violin Sonata No.1 in F minor
- Live recording from

Wigmore Hall Wigmore Hall is a concert hall located at 36 Wigmore Street, London. Originally called Bechstein Hall, it specialises in performances of chamber music, early music, vocal music and song recitals. It is widely regarded as one of the world's leadin ...

/ Lana Trotovsek (violin), Maria Canyigueral (piano) Chamber music by Sergei Prokofiev Prokofiev 01 1946 compositions Compositions in F minor {{sonata-stub