The Piano Sonata No. 9 in C major, Op. 103 by

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 ...

is his final completed piano sonata. It is dedicated to pianist

Sviatoslav Richter Sviatoslav Teofilovich Richter, group= ( – August 1, 1997) was a Soviet classical pianist. He is frequently regarded as one of the greatest pianists of all time, Great Pianists of the 20th Century and has been praised for the "depth of his int ...

Background

Prokofiev completed the sonata on September 27, 1947 in the

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

suburb of , although thematic sketches exist from the mid-1940s. Upon introducing the score to its dedicatee, the composer said that he did not think the music was intended to create an effect, and that it was "not the sort of work to raise the roof of the Grand Hall f_the_Moscow_Conservatory.html" ;"title="Moscow_Conservatory.html" ;"title="f the Moscow Conservatory">f the Moscow Conservatory">Moscow_Conservatory.html" ;"title="f the Moscow Conservatory">f the Moscow Conservatory" Prokofiev had anticipated premiering the work in early 1948, but was prevented from doing so by the Zhdanovschina and the resulting censure he endured. The sonata would not be debuted until April 21, 1951 at a concert in Moscow organized by the Union of Soviet Composers in commemoration of Prokofiev's birthday. The composer himself was too ill to attend, but listened to the performance over the phone.

Music

The sonata is divided into four movements: #

Allegretto In musical terminology, tempo (Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (often ...

(C major) # Allegro strepitoso (G major) # Andante tranquillo — Allegro sostenuto — Tempo I (A-flat major) # Allegro con brio, ma non troppo presto — Andantino — Allegretto — Tempo I — Poco meno mosso (C major) Each movement references the next in their respective codas, with the finale recalling the opening movement, thereby creating a cyclical structure.

Reception

"This sonata is very different from the three preceding ones," Prokofiev's wife,

Mira Mendelson Mariya-Cecilia Abramovna Mendelson-Prokofieva ( rus, Мари́я-Цеци́лия Абра́мовна Мендельсо́н-Проко́фьева), typically referred to as Mira Mendelson ( rus, Ми́ра Алекса́ндровна Мен ...

, wrote in her diary. "It is calm and deep. When I told him that my first impression was of it being both Russian and

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classical ...

-like, he answered that he himself found both of these qualities present in it." Richter would later confess that he was initially disappointed by the sonata's simplicity, but that he eventually came to "love it very much." Writing seven years after Prokofiev's death, the French critic

Claude Samuel Claude Samuel (23 June 1931 – 14 June 2020) was a French music critic and radio personality. Biography Born in Paris, after medical studies and graduating as a dental surgeon, Samuel chose to devote himself to classical music journalism. He ...

praised the music as a "perfect achievement" and the "end of a quest for a 'new simplicity,'" although he also acknowledged that the "new tone" in this late work could be "attributed to the change in character of an ill and aging man, who has exchanged his youthful energy for a more contemplative attitude to life." Boris Berman echoed that sentiment, speculating that "Prokofiev’s eterioratinghealth may also have contributed to the relative lack of sheer motoric energy so typical of his music."

Simon Morrison Simon Morrison is a scholar and writer specializing in 20th-century music, particularly Russian, Soviet, and French music, with special interests in dance, cinema, aesthetics, and historically informed performance based on primary sources. He has ...

described the sonata as a "modest masterpiece."

References

External links

Sergey Prokofiev Piano Sonata No.9 on Instant Encore.Prokofiev's Sonata No. 9 on Classical Connect.
*
Video - Prokofiev Piano Sonata No 9 - Complete (25:03).
*

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 ...

Piano Sonata No 9 in C major, Opus 103 (1947).
Video - Prokofiev Piano Sonata No 9 mvt 1 (08:35).

Video - Prokofiev Piano Sonata No 9 mvt 2 (03:42).

Video - Prokofiev Piano Sonata No 9 mvt 3 (08:08).

Video - Prokofiev Piano Sonata No 9 mvt 4 (06:58).
{{Authority control Compositions by Sergei Prokofiev Piano sonatas by Sergei Prokofiev 20th-century classical music 1947 compositions Compositions in C major Music with dedications Piano compositions in the 20th century