Stanislav Khristenko PROKOFIEV Romeo and Juliet

On October 4, 2019, Steinway & Sons releases a new album from concert pianist Stanislav Khristenko featuring music by Sergei Prokofiev. Two works by the Russian Soviet composer are included on the record (STNS 30114), beginning with Ten Pieces from Romeo and Juliet, Op. 75 (1937). The composition features selected music from Romeo and Juliet, a ballet by Prokofiev based on the Shakespeare play. Music from the ballet was excerpted by Prokofiev in three suites for orchestra and a solo piano work, which includes selections from Act One through Act Three. Prokofiev premiered Ten Pieces from Romeo and Juliet himself in 1937.

Ten Pieces for Piano, Op. 12 follows, featuring a diverse set of miniatures that each evoke a starkly different mood. Written during Prokofiev’s student years, hints of school assignments and future compositions can be seen in the varying works, as well as evidence of Neoclassical and other 18th-century tendencies. Notable pieces include the light opening movement, March, which showcases sharp rhythms and a melody that oscillates between F minor and F sharp minor. The proceeding Gavotte, Capriccio, and Allemande movements each offer early use of the Neoclassical style, while the Mazurka features a Medieval organum procedure with two harmonic parts, each moving in parallel fourths. Ten Pieces for Piano, Op. 12 foreshadows the styles and patterns that Prokofiev would employ in his later compositions.