The ballet Romeo and Juliet, with music by Sergei Prokofiev, became one of the most popular ballets of the 20th century. Prokofiev’s music undoubtedly played a major role in the production’s success, reflecting everything from lively folk dances and a majestic knights’ ball to thrilling sword duels and the romantic story of the two central characters.
However, the work’s creation was far from easy. During the first listening sessions, most of the dancers rejected Prokofiev’s music, considering it impossible to perform in a theatrical setting. The composer then created two suites from the ballet, followed later by a third. They were performed in concert two to three years before the ballet’s first staging. These suites ultimately became the main publicity for the future production, captivating audiences with the composer’s instrumental inventiveness and sophisticated craftsmanship.
Musicologists describe Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet as a groundbreaking work and even a “symphony-ballet.” What remains indisputable is that Prokofiev’s ballet is so distinctive, original, and dramatically powerful that it stands as an independent work of art, cherished by generations of classical music lovers.
This is the work you will hear performed by the Novaya Rossiya State Symphony Orchestra on April 11 at the Grand Hall of the Moscow Conservatory.
The second half of the concert will feature Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 1, known as Winter Daydreams. It was the first Russian classical symphony; before its creation, the symphonic genre had not yet established itself in Russian music. Writing his First Symphony required enormous effort and caused Tchaikovsky considerable emotional distress, nearly leading to nervous exhaustion. Ultimately, only the third revision satisfied the composer, although audiences had warmly received earlier versions of Winter Daydreams, performed several years before the final version. In his symphony, Tchaikovsky expressed everything so dear to the Russian soul: the beauty of northern nature, endless landscapes, vivid scenes of folk celebrations, and a long journey filled with dreams, reflections, and thoughts.
Concert program:
Part I — Prokofiev. Romeo and Juliet
Part II — Tchaikovsky. Symphony No. 1
