| Abstract |
This is the first complete biography of Prokofiev to appear in English. An unabridged translation of the Russian edition of 1957, it contains almost three times as much material as the author's earlier biography of the composer (published in 1946). Scholarly, detailed, and authoritative, it is certain to be the main source of infromation on Prokofiev and his music for many years to come. Although this book is primarily a musical biography, with detailed analyses of all of Prokofiev's most important works and briefer descriptions of his minor ones, it contains a great deal of information about Prokofiev the man that is not available elsewhere. The author's personal conversations with the composer extended over a period of years, and he was able to make extensive use of Prokofiev's closest friends and colleagues also furnisehd a wealth of material from their own recollections, memoirs, and letters. Especially revealing are the sections devoted to the last ten years (1943-1953) of the composer's life, a period marked by profound changes in Soviet musical life in general, and in Prokofiev's musical aims and style in particular. The compositions of these years have been strongly criticized in the West, and this account now makes possible a reassessment of such controversial works as the Seventh Symphony and the Sinfonia Concertante. |
