4th Symphony (Prokofiev)

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The Symphony . No. 4, in C major by Sergei Prokofiev exists in two versions:

Both versions are based on the motif and thematic of the half-hour short ballet The Prodigal Son , composed between 1928 and 1929 and premiered in Paris on May 21, 1929 . Due to the immediate, albeit not permanent, success of the stage work, the composer decided to process discarded sketches for a symphonic work. The first version of the fourth was critically favorably received, but did not satisfy Prokofiev because he got the impression that he had not made enough of the material used. In fact, the duration of opus 47 is a good ten minutes less than that of the ballet, whereas opus 112 (now the most-performed version) lasts a few minutes longer.

The revisions of 1947 also meant that the first movement of Opus 112 was the longest ever written by Prokofiev.

Opus 112 is possibly Prokofiev's most artful contribution to the genre of neoclassicism . The long transition from the recapitulation to the coda in the sonata-shaped first movement, along with the transitions from the 3rd to the 4th movement in Symphony No. 5 by Ludwig van Beethoven and Symphony No. 4 by Robert Schumann, is one of the most tense passages of its kind in the Music.

In the (relatively sparse) discography, the work is usually merged with the Third Symphony . In fact, both works have the same basic key of C and a similar genesis from a previous stage work, although the third works with more problematic material because it was not performed beforehand.

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