Sergei Prokofiev 1891:1953

Cantata for the 2Oth Anniversary
of the October Revolution, Op. 74

Obscure as this cantata may be, it should never be dismissed as insignificant. Disturbing, it certainly is: its text alone, drawn from the writings of Marx, Lenin and Stalin, is, to say the least, controversial. In ten contrasting movements it relates the story of the Bolshevik Revolution and the birth of the Soviet Union, from the battle for the Winter Palace in 1917, through the suffering of 1918 and Lenin's funeral in 1924, to the building of factories and collective farms in the early Thirties and the final consolidation of Stalin's control over the country with his new constitution of 1936.

1. Introduction: 'A spectre is haunting Europe, the spectre of Communism'
2. Philosophers
3. Interlude
4. Marching in Close Ranks
5. Interlude
6. Revolution
7. Victory
8. The Pledge
9. Symphony
10. The Constitution

The music is frequently unconventional and certainly way out of line with the Communist Party's populist remit of Socialist Realism. Not surprisingly, it was banned by the Soviet authorities during the composer's lifetime and only received its (partial) premiere in 1966. Its extravagant sound palette combines a full orchestra with typically Russian choral writing, folk instruments and the sounds of marching, gunfire and sirens, all to spectacular pictorial effect. Leaving political acceptability aside, the Cantata is a thrilling piece of music, written when Prokofiev was at the height of his powers. It certainly bears favourable comparison with other masterpieces like Romeo and Juliet, Peter and the Wolf and Alexander Nevsky, written around the same time. As such, it certainly repays a hearing but unfortunately rarely gets one, as the sheer scale (and cost) of the resources required prohibits frequent performance. Mark Elder, the Hallé Orchestra and Choir, Halifax Choral Society and the BBC are therefore to be congratulated for having the courage to present it to such a wide audience.