Sergey Prokofiev was a 20th-century Russian (and Soviet) composer, born on April 23 (April 11, Old Style), 1891, in Sontsovka, Ukraine, which was then part of the Russian Empire. He passed away on March 5, 1953, in Moscow, Russia, U.S.S.R.
Prokofiev was a prolific composer who wrote in a wide range of musical genres, including symphonies, concerti, film music, operas, ballets, and program pieces.
His early life in rural Ukraine, with its peasant songs, left a lasting impression on his music. Prokofiev’s mother, a good pianist, was his first mentor in music. The Russian composer Reinhold Glière was his first teacher in theory and composition, preparing him for entrance into the St. Petersburg Conservatory.
Prokofiev’s time at the conservatory from 1904 to 1914 was marked by rapid creative growth. His originality impressed his teachers, and upon graduation, he was awarded the Anton Rubinstein Prize in piano for a brilliant performance of his own first large-scale work—the Piano Concerto No. 1 in D-flat Major.
He is regarded as one of the major composers of the 20th century, with works such as the March from “The Love for Three Oranges,” the suite “Lieutenant Kijé,” the ballet “Romeo and Juliet,” and “Peter and the Wolf” being widely recognized. Prokofiev’s music is known for its innovation, dissonance, and virtuosity, and he remains a significant figure in classical music history.
This arrangement of Prokofiev's Scherzo Humoristique is a colourful and adventurous work, aimed at the advanced bass quartet, which offers musical and technical challenges in…
This arrangement of Prokofiev’s Scherzo Humoristique is a colourful and adventurous work, aimed at the advanced bass quartet, which offers musical and technical challenges in equal measure across the entire range of the double bass.
Composed for solo piano in 1912, when Prokofiev was a student at the St. Petersburg Conservatoire, Scherzo Humoristique is the ninth of Ten Pieces for Piano Op.12, subsequently arranged for bassoon quartet by the composer in 1915, which is the basis for this new edition for Double Bass Quartet by David Heyes.
Scherzo Humoristique has been described as having a ‘dark humour’ and with ‘glorious harmonies in a gentler middle section’. It is thought to be one of the first original works for bassoon quartet with ‘healthy doses of rebelliousness, and comically ugly sections as well’.
The original piano version is short and succinct, with a modern take on harmony and melody, typical of Prokofiev’s unique style, and a
beautifully chordal middle section contrasts music of a more rhythmically quirky and contrapuntal nature.
