Prokofiev: Romeo and Juliet - Suite No. 2, Op. 64b

In the words of Gramophone magazine, ‘Muti is a formidable interpreter of Prokofiev,’ and here he conducts the suites from the Russian composer’s Romeo and Juliet, probably the greatest full-length ballet of the 20th century, and the oratorio Ivan the Terrible, drawn from the score written for Sergei Eisenstein’s epic film of 1944. Gramophone continued: ‘Such is the fervour of the performance that one is simply carried along by the 'visual' excitement of it all.’

A stunning release featuring some of the finest works composed by Prokofiev which fully demonstrates his love for ballet, orchestral, film and opera composition. All brought together by two outstanding conductors – Dimitri Mitropulos and Ernest Ansermet.

Recorded between 1954 -1961

In his ballets the great Soviet composer Sergei Prokofiev continues the long and famous tradition of Russian ballet music, which culminated in the immortal ballets of Tchaikovsky (Nutcracker, Swan Lake). Prokofiev’s genius for characterisation produced such classical “hits” as the Montagues & Capulets (often used in films, commercial and even sporting events!), and the Love Scene of Romeo and Juliet. Also the Cinderella-Waltz from the Cinderella Suite became an evergreen. The ballet Stone Flower is the last Soviet ballet Prokofiev wrote, and although it is little known, it contains music of great beauty and power on an equal level as the famous ballets. Splendid performances by the Novosibirsk Symphony Orchestra, conducted by maestro Arnold Katz. Prokofiev’s great ballet scores for Romeo and Juliet and Cinderella have become firm favourites in both the concert hall and the repertory of ballet companies worldwide – ‘The Montagues and Capulets’ from Romeo and Juliet, for example, features regularly at major sporting events, something Prokofiev probably never envisaged! The earliest of the ballets featured here is Romeo and Juliet, commissioned in the mid-1930s, soon after Prokofiev returned to the USSR from self-imposed exile. Drawn from the main events of the ballet, the music of Suite No.2 ranges from the grand, formal music of the ball and sounds of a popular holiday to the tragedy and despair of the story’s end, illuminating Prokofiev’s commitment to communicating the depths and intricacies of Shakespeare’s play.

Cinderella followed Romeo and Juliet in the 1940s, with a score of rich and sophisticated music that rewards audiences of adults and children alike.The Suite No.1 features some of the ballet’s best-loved music, including ‘Cinderella’s Waltz’ and the brilliant Mazurka. The Stone Flower was the last of Prokofiev’s Soviet ballets, dating from 1948, and is based on a folk tale from the Urals. Although it will perhaps be the least familiar of the works on this disc, its score contains music of great beauty, with soaring tunes that are as memorable as anything in the two ballet scores that preceded it.