AO, 2L3S~7

THE EARLY PIANO SONATAS OF PROKOFIEV

THESIS

Presented to the Graduate Council of the

North Texas State College in Partial

Fulfillment of the Requirements

For the Degree of

MASTER OF MUSIC

by

Ida Ledale Meeks, B. A.

Plainview, Texas

January, 1955

TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

ChapterI. MODERN RUSSIAN PIANO MUSIC . . . . . . .

II. A PRELIMINARY SURVEY OF PROKOFIEV'S EARLY

SONATAS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

III. THE STYLE OF ThE EARLY PIANO SONATAS OFPROKOFIEV. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

FormMelodic StyleRhythmHarmony and TonalityCompositional Techniques

IV. INFLUENCES ON PROKOFIEV'S STYLE. . . . .

APPENDIX. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .* . .

BIBLIOGRAPHY. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

iii

Pageiv

1

18

26

72

80

83

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Figure Page

1. Widest Range of Subject Found in EarlySonatas. . . . . . - - - - . * - * * - - - * 33

2. Narrowest Range of Subject Found in EarlySonatas. . . . - . - . - - - - - - - - - . 3+

3. Sonata No. 4, Op. 29, Second Movement,Meas. 1-7. . . .. *.*.. . . . .. 0 35

4. Sonata No. 2, Op. 14, Fourth Movement,Meas.~17 6-2O. . . . . . . . . . . . .- - . 36

5. Comparison of M'elodic Lines. . . . - - . . . 37

6. Sonata No. 2, Op. 14, Fourth Movement,Meas. 52-75 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

7. Sonata No. 4, Op. 29, First Movement,Yeas. 125-127. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

8. Sonata No. 4, Op. 29, Third Movement,Meas. 6-8. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

9. Recurrent motive - - - - - - - - - - --- - . - 43(a) Sonata No. 2, Op. 14, first movement,

meas. 32.(b) Sonata No. 2, OOp. 14, first movement,

meas. 86.(c) Sonata -. , Op. 29, first movement,

meas. 95.

10. Sonata No_ 2 Op. 14, Fourth Movement,Yeas. 2 6 -2g- - - - . . - . . . . . . . . . . 46

11. Sonata No._ 2, Op. 14, Third Movement, Meas. 23 48

12. Use of Two Signatures Simultaneously,Sonata No. 1, Op. 1, Meas. 37. . . . . . . . 49

13. Sonata o 3., Op. 28, Meas. 25-26. . . . . . . 49

14. (a) Sonata No. 1, Op. 1 meas. 26. . . . . . . 50(b) Sonata . 3, Op. 2 , Meas. 166. . . . . . 50

iv

Figure Page

15. Sonata No. 2, Op. 14, Third Movement,meas.~4-6. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

16. Sonata No. 2, Op. 14, Third Movement,Meas. 34-36. 0.0. * * . . . . . . . . . .# * 52

17. Sonata No. 2, Op. 14, Third Movement,Meas. 49-56. . . . 0 0 * . 0 . . . . . . . . 52

18. Sonata No. 2, Op. 14, Fourth Movement,Meas.145--146. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .*I55

19. Sonata No.a1 ,Op. 28, Meas. 22-23. . . . . . . 56

20. Sonata No. 4, Op. 29, Third Movement,Meas. 26-27. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

21. Sonata No. a, Op. 28, Meas. 227-229. . . . . . 5822. Sonata No. 2, Op. 14, Third Movement,

Meas. 23-24. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

23. Sonata No. a, Op. 28, Meas. 112-113. . . . . . 6024. Sonata No. 2 Op. 14, First Movement,

Meas.~633-6 . . . . .1. .0. . *.0. . a. .P 61

25. Sonata No. 2, Op. 14, First Movement,Meas.T142-147 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .62

26. Sonata No. 3, Op. 28, Meas. 146-148. . . . . . 63

27. Sonata l 3, Op. 28, Meas. 231-233. . . . . . 64

28. Sonata No. 4, Op. 29, Second Movement,Meas. 1-4. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

29. Sonata No. 4, Op. 29, Second Movement,Yeas. 13-14. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

30. Sonata No. 4, Op. 29, Second Movement,Yeas. 25-26. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

31. Sonata No. 4, Op. 29, Second Movement,Meas. 73-74., ... * ...0 ... 71

V

CHAPTER I

MODERN RUSSIAN PIANO MUSIC

Russian music is perhaps today the greatest untouched

area in the entire field of musicology. Many reasons could

be given for this lack of exploration and knowledge.

During the entire twentieth century, and more especially in

the last fifteen years, Russian music has not aroused the

interest or curiosity that one finds in European and

American music. The Soviet itself has helped in keeping

its musical heritage in the dark because of that nation's

aloofness and withdrawal from the rest of the European

continent and culture.

In order to understand any particular composer it is

necessary to understand his national and cultural back-

ground. It is also necessary to know what events and

personalities help shape his musical personality. For this

reason a chapter on modern Russian music and in particular

modern Russian piano music has been included in this

document.

Russian music of the present day is inter-related with

Russian music of the past. To find the roots of the

twentieth century school of Russian composition, one must

1

2

search back to the middle of the nineteenth century. About

this time there were founded the two foremost musical

schools in modern Russia. At a time when musical tradition

was new for a Russia still supporting an amateurish musical

world the two Rubinstein brothers, Anton (1829-1894) and

7ricolai (1835-1881), founded conservatories in Moscow and

St. Petersburg. The Moscow Conservatory founded by NikOlai

Rubinstein became the conservative and traditional school

while the St. Petersburg Conservatory founded by Anton

Rubinstein assumed the leadership in the promotion of new

musical ideas. There was much antagonism and rivalry be-

tween the two schools. Moscow itself became the city of

musical conservatism and remained so until the second

decade of the twentieth century. The very fact that

Moscow was not as convenient as St. Petersburg to the

western part of Europe served to keep it more traditional

in its artistic activities. St. Petersburg, on the other

hand, was the city of the younger, more adventurous circle

of Russians who kept in touch with western Europe polit-

ically and culturally.

St. Petersburg was the home of the celebrated "Russian

Five," Borodin, Rimsky-Korsakoff, Balakireff, Cui and

Moussorgsky. With the break within this mighty five,

Alexander Glazunoff (1865-1936) and Rimsky-Korsakoff became

the leaders of the St. Petersburg school. Both taught at

3

the Conservatory for many years and exercised a tremendous

influence upon the younger generation of musical writers.

However, their pupils were more timid than the masters had

been and did not have the initiative to follow their own

bent as had the teachers. Because of this, a whole new

group of composers created nothing but imitations of

Glazunoff and Rimsky-Korsakoff. If the works of this whole

mass of minor composers met the approval of Byelyayeff's

publishing firm they were printed. "The most talented ones

creative art consisted of repeating cleverly and with

technical perfection musical truths discovered by Rimsky-

Korsakoff and Glazunoff. "1 Among the more gifted of these

composers were Nikolai Tcherepnin (1873-1945), Maximilian

Steinberg (1883-1946), Yulia Weisberg (1879-1942).

The Moscow Conservatory promoted Tchaikovsky and the

composers that followed in his musical path. There was no

liking for Borodin, Rimsky-Korsakoff, and especially

Moussorgsky. Recognition in Moscow of the Russian National

School, which grew from the activities of the "Five," did

not come until the twentieth century. Sergei Taneyeff

(1856-1915), who taught composition at the Moscow Conserva-

tory was an isolationist in extreme. The teacher of

Rachmaninoff and Scriabin, he left no impression on new

1Ieonid Sabaneyeff, Modern Russian Composers, p. 223.

14

music in Russia except a mere technical influence on these

two composers. Taneyeff consciously cultivated the modal

polyphony of the old masters.

The two most brilliant of a whole group of musicians

who graduated from the Conservatory in Moscow were Sergei

Rachmaninoff (1872-1943) and Alexandre Scriabin (1872-1915).

That Scriabin was a brilliant innovator is not to be denied.

Yet he possessed a certain timidity along with his inno-

vations. His composition embraced only harmony in its

newness without exploring the possibilities of melody and

rhythm. He lacked the boldness to promote or revolutionize

Russian music into a newer field. In spite of his many

imitators at the time, his music soon became less enthusi-

astically embraced as listeners felt they had heard all he

had to offer. Just as Scriabin had been antagonistic to

the music of the preceding era, there were those who became

antagonistic to his methods of composition. There were

those esthetes who believed in music for music's sake who

embraced Scriabin and others who were against the powerful

"Five." Many had not yet begun to understand Scriabin

when those who did understand his music began to want

something new.

Sergei Rachmaninoff did not quite belong to the

twentieth century. Graduated from Moscow Conservatory at

the same time as Scriabin, he followed in the footsteps of

Tchaikovsky instead of breaking with the traditions of the

past. He became a representative of the older music.

While following Tchaikovsky, he became much greater in one

sense. He conquered the world in the sphere of pianism.

He was a performer of undisputed rank. His apparent

likeness to Tchaikovsky became a distinct disadvantage.

The critics tore him to shreds because of his conservatism.

He became involved in a controversy between the conserva-

tives and innovators without actually trying or wanting to

become a part of it. Rachmaninoff produced numerous works

for the piano, including what is perhaps today the most

universally favorite piano concerto, his Concerto No. 2.

The important link between Rimsky-Korsakoff and the

new Russian composers was Anatole Liadov (1855-1914).

Liadov, a pupil of Rimksy-Korsakoff, succeeded him in the

position of teacher of composition at the St. Petersburg,

or, as it was newly named, the Leningrad Conservatory.

Gniessin (b. 1883), Prokofiev (1891-1951) and Miascovski

(b. 1881) were all trained by Liadov. His teaching of

composition according to the old European concept caused

his pupils to rebel and make efforts to find their own

musical being.

In a world of aroused national and racial conscious-

ness and with their own nation awakening to a strong

national consciousness, the Russian musicians became

6

extremely aware of their musical heritage. Rimsky-

Korsakoff had been possessed of a strong nationalistic

tendency. Other composers began to break away from the

imitation of somewhat outdated European styles (for they

were outdated by the time they were recognized in Russia)

into their own style of composition. However, the inno-

vations in Russian music were not as striking as those

which were taking place in western Europe. Saminsky2

stated, in 1932:

In contemporary music there emerges even atechnical aspect of racial division. That form ofchromaticism which leads first to tonal ambiguityand finally to atonality, reveals itself more andmore as being a tendency congenial to the Teutonicmind. Latins and Slavs alike, while availing them-selves of extended resources, seem to cling obstinatelyto the diatonic and modal basis of their music as ameans of definition and clarity.

That this argument is no longer sound can be proven if

one examines carefully those works of Russian composers,

such as Prokofiev, Shostakovitch and Kabalevsky, also

Stravinsky, written in the last twenty years. Their works,

while closely connected with Russian heritage, except for

Stravinsky's, reveal the innovations and characteristics

to be found in any European music of the same period.

The Russian creators born in or shortly before the

twentieth century can be placed into three groups. The

2Lazare Saminsky, Music ofOur Da, p. 185.

7

first comprises those personalities of unusual gift and

genius of which Prokofiev would be a member. The second is

made up of theoreticians and idealogists of the new Russian

current in culture who contribute to the revolution by deed

and word. Vissaryon Shebalin (b. 1902), the director of

Moscow Conservatory, is the leader of this group. The

third,and by far the largest group, is comprised of those

young Russians of uncommon gift and merit who create no

sensation in Russia but make up the bulk of the composers.

Valeri Zhelobinsky (b. 1912), Lyubov Streikher (b. 1888)

and Alexander Spendiarov (b. 1871) are but a few among this

group.

Piano music has not been written in any great quantity

since the 1917 Revolution in Russia. Perhaps the most

outstanding reason for this is that the Central Committee

frowns upon music which is written for individuals or small

numbers of people. Piano music simply cannot be enjoyed or

actively participated in by the great masses of the people.

Consequently there has been very little piano music that

would compare with piano music outside Russia. In spite of

this restriction by the government, several Russian com-

posers have written admirable piano compositions, many of

them being the finest musical works produced by the com-

poser and in the nation.

8

Among the younger composers is Alexei Stantchinski

(1910-1932). This composer, who died at the age of twenty-

two has been called an extraordinary genius, ". . . blessed

with greater nervous force and impetus than Stravinsky,

and with even more freshness and whim than Prokofiev."3

He was the son of a mad peasant-musician and studied in the

Moscow Conservatory under Taneyev. He left a great number

of works, all for piano, which showed much promise.

Julian Krein (b. 1913) has written in all media --

opera, symphonies, piano concertos, quartets, and sonatas

and suites for various instruments. He has composed end-

less piano works. Koussevitsky and Stokowski have both

favored and presented his works. He is a member of a

musical dynasty, his father and uncle being musicians of

some repute in Moscow.

Several of the younger composers in Russia today are

pupils of Viascovski. Among these is Alexandre Mossolov,

an excellent pianist and writer of five sonatas and several

tone pictures. Of his best works the second piano sonata

is considered the most striking with its first movement

built on polytonal segments.

Alexandre Veprik (b. 1899) has written two piano

sonatas filled with driving vitality and racial color.

3 Ibid., p. 203.

9

His Dance, Op. 13, for piano is thought to be one of the

best modern Russian compositions for piano. It is full of

his elemental temperament and harmonic imagination.

Vissarion Shebalin and Liev Polovinkin (1894-1949) are

among other composers who have been active since the 1917

Revolution. Polovinkin has something of Poulenc's quality

in his composition while some of his pieces resemble the

later Prokofiev works. Viera Vinogradova (dates unknown)

is a pianist-composer who is almost entirely unknown. She

has composed a piano concerto and a Ballade for piano and

chamber orchestra. She is one of the few younger Russian

composers who have graduated from the Leningrad Conserva-

tory.

Along with Shostakovitch and Prokofiev, Aram Khacha-

turian is perhaps one of the greatest modern Russian

musicians. This is phenomenal when it is known that he had

no musical training at all until he was nineteen years of

age. Khachaturian began his study in Moscow at the

Musical Technicum School. Until 1926 he studied compo-

sition under Gnessin himself. Some of his early works

which were published show the influence of Ravel. In 1929

he entered the Moscow Conservatory. While studying there

he wrote about forty small pieces. The Toccata in B-flat

minor was written between 1934 and 1937. In 1937 his First

10

Piano Concerto appeared and was hailed as an event in

Soviet music.

Of all branches of musical composition, music forthe piano forte had attracted Soviet composers least.This was mainly due to the attitude of the Associationof Contemporary Music which considered music for thepiano 'a form of bourgeois drawing-room music-making,'with the result that in the U.S.S.R. very few pianoconcertos had been composed. Only four had attainedanything like large publicity: Turknenia (BorisShekhter, b. 1900); Second Piano Concerto by Kabalev-sky (b. 1904); Piano concerto by Tikhon Ehrennikov;and a Concerto by Prof. Makarov-Rakitin of the MoscowState Conservatory. Khachaturian brought out hisConcerto at the time when Soviet music was in dangerof ignoring completely the pianistic traditions ofFranz Liszt. Khachaturian reinstated them at onestroke; his Pianoforte Concerto is a v rtuoso rivalrybetween the soloist and the orchestra.

His compositions derive from Armenian folksongs and in

parts imitate national Armenian instruments. The Piano

Concerto is a distinct innovation when compared with the

concertos of Rachmaninoff, Scriabin and Stravinsky.

Not as well Mown as Ihachaturian but a musician of

some repute is Tikhon Khrennikov (b. 1913). After three

years of study at the Gnessin School he entered the second

year at Moscow Conservatory. In 1933, at the end of one

year of study at the Conservatoryhe composed his Concerto

for Pianoforte and Orchestra. It received immediate

attention and much favorable comment from Soviet music

critics. This was followed by Five Pieces, a cycle for

4Rena Moisenko, Realist Music: Twenty-Five SovietComposers, p. 103.

piano, and a second Cycle of small works for the piano. In

his early works he shows somewhat of a leaning toward the

style of Shostakovitch. He, as well as the Central Com-

mittee, "does not agree that it is praiseworthy to turn the

pianoforte into a percussion instrument and thump its

keyboard with a fist."5 Many of his contemporaries have

been denounced by Russian music critics for this practice.

A winner of the Order of Lenin in 1943 and considered

the "teacher of all teachers" in the U.S.S.R. is Nikolai

Miaskovsky. He was born in 1881 and spent his youth

alternating between rather strict military training and

musical study. In 1899 while still a student at the

Academy of Military Engineers he studied privately with

Reinhold Glier. Upon his transfer to St. Petersburg he

continued his studies with Kryzhanovsky, a pupil of

Rimsky-Korsakov. During this time he took the preparatory

course for the Conservatory of Music. His first piano

compositions,including two sonatas, were written at this

time. The sonatas were revised by the composer in 1944 and

included in his Op. 64. In 1906 he joined the Conservatory

in the class of Liadov. During this first year of liberty

from military life he spent his entire time composing.

Quantities of short pieces for piano and four piano sonatas

were written in this year.

5Ibid., p. 114.

12

Of the four sonatas the First, in D minor, is com-pletely lacking in originality. Bits of Borodin,Tchaikovsky, and Scriabin are strewn all over thework, and the engaging personality of the laterMiaskovsky is conspicuous by its absence. The SecondPianoforte Sonata (Op. 13 in F sharp minor, composedin 1912), in one movement, is certainly the best com-position among all tikolai Miakovsky's music for thepiano, from the point of view of its philosophicconception and depth of feeling. Kreitner comparesit favourably with Liszt's H-moll Sonata, and evenwith Beethoven's Opus 106.6

The Third and Fourth Sonatas were attacked by Russian

critics for being overburdened with harmonic refinements

and formalistic western European style. The third movement

of the Fourth Sonata, an intermezzo, is considered an

exception and the equal of the finest items of Soviet

pianistic literature. In 1938 Twelve Minor Pieces for

Pianoforte were published. All were revised before pub-

lication and were titled Three Books of Children's Pieces.

Although he has written only a small quantity of piano

pieces, Dmitri Shostakovitch deserves mention if for no

other reason than that his first fame was as a pianist-

virtuoso. In 1927 he was elected to represent the

Leningrad musicians at the First International Chopin

Festival held in Warsaw where his pianistic ability gained

him an honorary diploma. Perhaps his greatest composition

is the Piano Quintet which was awarded the Stalin Premium

in 1941. While it does not establish a new pianistic

6 Ibid. , pp . 154+-155.

13

style, Soviet piano music is better for having his use of

the piano in the ensemble.

A composer of rising popularity in the United States

is the Russian, Dmitri Kabalevsky. He was born in 1904 in

St. Petersburg. A graduate of the Moscow Conservatory where

he studied composition with Miaskovsky and piano with

Goldenweiser, he is a composer, teacher and eminent public

figure in the field of Russian music.

His piano works include two concertos, three sonatas,

and numerous smaller works. His Twenty-Four Preludes

deserve special mention. Much of his time and effort has

been devoted to compositions for students and children.

Little is known about his Sonata No. 1. The Sonata No. 2

was written after a long period away from the sonata form.

The Sonata 7o. 3 was introduced in the United States in

1949 by Vladimir Horowitz and achieved wide recognition

ard popularity.

In the center of twentieth century Russian musical

creativity we find Sergei Prokofiev. Scriabin was still

the shining light of Russian music when Prokofiev came

upon the scene. In the same manner that Scriabin had

revolted against his predecessors, Prokofiev reacted

against Scriabin. His music contains no mysticism, no

diffuseness, no complication and refinement of harmony. He

is definitely retrospective in the sense that he returns to

14

the old, having much in common with the epoch of Scarlatti.

Prokofiev's position had the double advantage of support

from those who had not seen through Scriabin's music and

those who had and were tired of Scriabin.

Prokofiev declared war upon the romantic pianostyle and resuscitated the cruder style of theclassical era. The lingering broken arpeggiosintroduced by Chopin and Liszt disappear fromProkofiev's music and are replaced by the techniqueof Beethoven and Hummel. The very manner in whichhe treats the piano is classical; from the romanticharp instrument the piano once again becomes thecembalo or the clavichord of the good old times.And simultaneously there is resurrected in him the'ecstasy of virtuosity,' of naive, tonal equili-bristics. Prokofiev brings back to life the fleetnessof passages, long leaps of the hands in the pianotechnique.7

Prokofiev has won much acclaim both in his homeland

and in the rest of the world. He has produced a greater

quantity of music for the piano than any other modern

Russian composer. Some of his greatest works have been

those piano compositions. Prokofiev successfully proved

what was not thought possible in the age of impressionism

-- that new freedom in composition was possible within the

framework of old forms. He is a Russian classicist of

exceptional ability.

Sergei Prokofiev has the advantage of freshness. Heis neither gnawed by the expressionist self-analysisof today, nor overburdened with accumulated sciencelike Miascovski. Prokofiev is satisfied with the

Sabaneyeff, g. cit., pp. 90, 96.

15

direct wisdom of his creative instinct. he latteris proudly manifest in his earlier works.0

The political aspect of Russian cultural progress

cannot be overlooked in any survey of twentieth century

Russian music. The actual extent of political influence

upon Soviet music is unknown. It is known that there is

governmental direction and sanction of composition and

other musical activities so long as governmental standards

are met. Once a composer fails to comply with the state

regulations he is quickly denounced and severely punished

if he does not take steps to redeem himself. These govern-

ment regulations are set up by the Central Committee of the

Soviet Union Communist Party. This committee oversees the

production of all musical activities and reprimands the

guilty if they do not follow what seems to the Central

Committee to be the right method of producing music. It

was this committee that bitterly denounced Shostakovich,

Prokofiev, Myaskovsky, Ehachaturian, Popov, Kabalevsky

and others at the conference of Soviet Musicians in Feb-

ruary, 1948. The composers were condemned for writing

music of low Western standards without benefitting the

Soviet people. Their music was objectionable because it

was written for a few musical connoisseurs rather than the

masses.

6Saminsky, o.. cit., p. 195.

16

Such an attitude by the government of any nation

cannot help but influence the musical output both in

quantity and quality. During the last twenty years the

quantity of music produced in the Soviet has been colossal

but the quality, except for music by the very composers so

denounced by the government, has been of exceptionally poor

quality, as compared with the musical output of the

remainder of the world.

The revolutionary ideology of Russia has tried to

compromise all the former Russian music in the eyes of the

masses as being music of the masters, written for the

intelligentsia and the bourgeoisie. It has demanded new

songs set to revolutionary texts for the working people,

the army and the peasants. It seems ironic that the com-

posers of the new music had to be selected from the former

bourg eo i s specialists. The most advanced and gifted

composers at first refused to give their artistic work for

the needs of the Revolution. The vast majority of these

artists were apolitical, completely disinterested in the

revolution.

Some composers have been occupied with revolutionary

affairs because they would have been failures in any other

style. Among these are Eugen Tikotzy (b. 1893). Others

have sprung up from the laboring class and have consciously

17

tried to write for the laborers. Konstantin Listov

(b. 1900) is such a composer.

Two quite opposite viewpoints exist as to the present

state of musical affairs in Russia. Out of the revolution

has come the

. . . dream so striking in Russia, if less so inEurope--the dream of a monumental national art inwhich the enlightened musician and the plain son ofhis people might join hands. The trend towardsmonumentality is exceedingly strong in presentRussian music. It is partly the cause of thecollapse of Scriabin's school; it is likewise thecause of the beginning of a return to old forms,the cause of conservatism in Russian music, and thecause of the surrender of a position formerlyirreconcilable with the Revolution. This surrendermay really bring many musicians into actual creativework in accordance with the revolutionary idea.9

Saminsky, however, has a different viewpoint.

Russia's insularity even more underlined now bypolitical and spiritual isolation, plus typicalSlavic racial inertia, is likely to keep Russia's newmusic in old channels for a long time yet. So far,her social cataclysm has not been able to produce amarked repercussion in her music.10

109Sabaneyeff, M. cit., p. 269.

'0Saminsky, oD. c.i., p. 226.

CHAPTER II

A PRELIMINARY SULIEY OF PROKOFIEV' S EARLY SONATAS

Sergei Prokofiev composed a total of nine piano sona-

tas, eight of which are published. Sonata No. 1 (F minor)

was written in 1909, Sonata No .2, Op. 14 (D minor) in

1912, Sonata No , Op. 28 (A minor) and Sonata No. 4,

Op. 29 (C minor) in 1917. Sonata No. . Op. 38 (C major)appeared in 1923. He did not again write a sonata for

piano until 1939 when the Sonata .No. 6, Op. 82 (A major)

was started. It was completed in 1940. Sonata No. 2,

Op. 83, written in 1942, is the only one of Prokofiev's

sonatas without a definite key designation. In 1939

Prokofiev had also started SNonataNo. 8, Op. 84 (B-flat

major) which was not completed until 1944. The ninth

sonata, written shortly before his death, has never been

published.

The four piano sonatas written by Prokofiev between

1907 and 1917 make up the group of his early sonatas.

These are divided sharply from his later piano sonatas

both in the time of composition and in the style of com-

position. It was not until five years after he left Russia

in 1918 that Prokofiev composed another large work for

19

piano. This fifth piano sonata, composed in Paris in 1923,

is neither like the early sonatas nor like his last great

three sonatas.

The first four sonatas as a group have certain dis-

tinguishing characteristics by which they are recognized as

Prokofiev's upon first hearing as easily as one recognizes

the music of Liszt, Debussy or Chopin. Although these four

Prokofiev sonatas are much alike in their composition and

style, all have features which seem different from the

others of the group and all are interesting from the

stylistic viewpoint.

The germinal ideas of the first four sonatas may be

found in Prokofiev's notebooks dating prior even to his

conservatory days. The early sonatas are not, however, to

be considered totally immature works simply because they

were written by the composer during his student days at the

St. Petersburg Conservatory. While studying with Liadov

and Rimsky-Korsakov from 1906 to 1908 he composed a total

of six piano sonatas. Of these six, those numbered one,

four and six have been lost. The second of this series was

used in part for the Sonata No. 1, Op. 1, while the third

of the youthful series formed the basis of the Sonata No.

Op. 28. Ideas from the fifth student sonata were used in

part in Sonata No. 4, Op. 29. At this time also, he com-

posed the Scherzo of the future Sonata No. 2 and some other

20

piano miniatures. The early versions of Sonata No. (1907)

and Sonata No. (1908), along with other piano works com-

posed during these two years may be considered in

Prokofiev's composition what the Fantasiesucke was for

Schumann or the Preludes were for Chopin, Scriabin and

Shostakovich.

The foundation of Prokofiev's first four sonatas are

found in those six student sonatas. From them the com-

poser gradually evolved his own style of composition and

developed his technique in the first four piano sonatas to

be published. Of these first four sonatas the Sonata No. 1

(F minor), written in 1907 and revised in 1909, shows the

immature and unsure Prokofiev. Having not yet found his

own artistic individuality, Prokofiev writes in imitation

of Rachmaninoff, Medtner and even Schumann. To the person

not having examined this Sonata No. , the sonata sounds

very much like a composition of Rachmaninoff's. The sub-

ordinate theme, though, is reminiscent of one of the themes

in Schumann's Sonata in F-shap minor. When Prokofiev

revised the sonata in 1909 he deleted the adagio and finale,

leaving only the allegro as the complete one-movement

sonata.

The Sonata No. 2 (D minor) while bearing an earlier

date than the third and fourth sonatas was actually written

later than these two sonatas. The Scherzo was one of the

21

pieces which Prokofiev had been required to bring to

Liadov's lessons. Other than this movement, the second

sonata was written entirely in 1912. This sonata is the

only one of the early group which is in four movements.

After its first performance in January of 1914, this sonata,

full of contrasting moods and ideas, became the center of

criticisms by the Moscow music critics who were highly

vindicative in their comments upon most of Prokofiev's

composition.

In 1917 the Sonata No.a 3 (A minor) appeared. It was

designated as being based on old sketches. The first work

in this sonata had actually been done by Prokofiev in

1907. The basis for it had been taken from the third of

the early sonatas written during his first years at the

St. Petersburg Conservatory. In its final form it is

perhaps the greatest of the first four sonatas. It is

considered along with the Violin Concerto, Op. 19, to be

perhaps the best work written by Prokofiev prior to his

stay abroad. It is in one movement combining a compact

unity with a swiftly moving developmental technique. The

entire sonata is a contrast between dynamic, energetic

passages and lyrical themes. The third and fourth sonatas

were first performed in April, 1918, in two recitals in

Leningrad. While the Sonata No. 2 had received much

criticism from the Moscow music critics, the Sonata No. 3

22

was immediately acclaimed as being the work of a genius.

This sonata was the first of Prokofiev's sonatas to be well

received by the press and public alike.

During the autumn of 1917 Prokofiev went to Kislovodsk

where he completed the Classical Symhony and Seven They

Are Seven, a cantata, his last great works before his

departure from Russia for fifteen years. At this same

time he composed his Sonata No. 4, Op. 29 (C minor). It

was, like the third sonata, made up of fragments taken from

his old notebooks of student days. The allegro and part of

the finale were taken from his fifth student sonata. The

Andante was taken from his youthful Symphony in E minor

which had been composed in 1908. This symphony was kept by

Prokofiev in his archives and never catalogued with his

works. The Sonata No. 4 is in three movements and in

general is more moody and introspective in character than

the previous three sonatas.

In each of the first four sonatas can be found the

five lines along which Prokofiev himself says his talent

developed. In his autobiography written in 1941 he states

these to be: the classical, the innovationary, the

dynamic force of music, the lyrical and the grotesque.1

1 Moisenko, Realist Music: Twenty-Five SovietComposers, p. 173, quoted from the autobiography ofProkofiev which appeared in the monthly magazine,"Sovietskaya Musika,t"1941.

23

Prokofiev is a classicist in several ways. His com-

position turns from the indefinite and free forms of

impressionism back to the forms of the classic period.

After the extreme complexity of Scriabin's music, Proko-

fiev's composition seems simple and clean-cut. He

deliberately turns back to the most common and basic

rhythms. His use of almost constant rhythmic motion is

another indication of his return to the seventeenth and

eighteenth centuries for the patterns of his work. The

way in which he uses the piano is quite different from the

impressionistic style. The two or three voice construction

with parallel movement in octaves at times, is simple.

Prokofiev uses a technique of skips and hand-crossing that

seems almost like the technique of Domenico Scarlatti.

His scale run technique is closely akin to the style of

Haydn and the early Beethoven works.

At the same time he is a classicist, Prokofiev is an

innovator. He uses classic forms but gives to them a

peculiar twist that makes them seem entirely Prokofiev's

own style. At the most unexpected time he deliberately

inserts something quite startling. The development section

of the allegro in Sonata No. 2 is repeated almost in its

entirety in the finale. This feature of unexpectedness in

his style is, however, more often found in his harmonic and

melodic treatment than in his use of form and rhythm.

24

Between 1914 and 1918 that part of Prokofiev's style

which he calls the dynamic force of his music came into

being. It is found in his Classic Sxymphony; the opera,

The Gambler; the cantata, Seven, They are Seven, for tenor,

mixed choir and orchestra; and in his third and fourth

sonatas. Prokofiev's creative personality emerges at this

time, according to Rena Moisenko, in a domineering, con-

tinuous motion, energy and virility, colossal will-power,

dynamic rhythm, sharpness of harmonic language, brightness

of coloring, constructive clarity and a great deal of

irony.2 Examination of the Sonata No.. reveals clearly

what the composer meant by his dynamic force of the music.

This sonata is relentless in its rhythmic forward motion

with the feeling of quite never pausing long enough to

catch a breath. The themes are short and rapidly developed

with little transition material from one theme to another.

The entire musical idea moves forward steadily, building up

to climax after climax with only brief three or four

measure phrases in which the pace is slackened.

Prokofiev's lyricism is a combination of the romanti-

cism typified by Schumann and the Russian national

traditions of Moussorgsky. There are lyrical passages in

all of his early sonatas. Sometimes these come only as a

brief interruption of a dynamic force of music. The

21..Ibid., P. 175.

subordinate theme of Sonata No. 3 and the slow movements of

the second and fourth sonatas are excellent examples of his

lyrical style. Most of Prokofiev's contemporaries failed

to recognize the significance of his lyricism. It was

overlooked as being another evidence of that mockery which

so predominates his music. One Russian author gives this

view: "Tender lyricism is foreign to Prokofiev's nature

and when he attempts any allusion to it I discern the

hideous grin of malice."3

Prokofiev preferred that his humor not be labeled

grotesque but be considered a musical joke. Whatever it

is called, his humor is one of the most easily recognized

characteristics of his music. It is found in all of his

works whether as a form of tongue in cheek observation or

actual mockery. Sometimes it is sheer boisterousness as in

the scherzo of the Sonata No. 2. At other times it comes as

a negation of a lyrical passage such as is found in the

first part of Sonata No.2.

3 Nestyev, Serg Prokofiev, p. 71, quoted fromA. Koptyayev in Berzsheviye Vedomosti, July 23, 1915.

CHAPTER III

THE STYLE OF THE EARLY PIANO

SONATAS OF PROKOFIEV

In any discussion of style, whether a single work or

group of works, or a single composer or group of composers,

it is desirable to indicate the extent of the stylistic

study. It is also desirable to enumerate the features

considered to form the basis of the particular style being

analyzed. The four early piano sonatas of Sergei Prokofiev

will be discussed in this chapter as to their form, melodic

content, rhythmic characteristics, harmonic characteristics,

tonality and compositional techniques which seem to be

characteristic of Prokofiev.

Form

The form of all the first four sonatas of Prokofiev

is classical. This does not necessarily mean that they

are written in the exact form used by Haydn and Nozart.

It does not mean that the second subject of each sonata is

in the dominant key to the first subject, or even that the

first movements themselves are in strict sonata-allegro

form. Prokofiev took the framework of the classical form

and proved what composers in his day did not believe was

26

27

possible. He composed music that was very new and modern

within the forms thought by many of his contemporaries to

be obsolete. However, Prokofiev uses the classical forms

in his own very individual manner giving them a distinctive-

ness that is entirely Prokofiev's.

Prokofiev is seemingly not satisfied with following

the expected or conventional path in form for very long.

At the most unexpected times he inserts a sudden diversion

from the conventional form that gives the entire movement,

or, in some instances, the entire sonata, a new feeling.

Each one of the sonatas has interesting features in its

formal architecture.

Of the four sonatas, two are complete in one move-

ment. Sonata N1o. 1 and Sonata No. 3 are in this form.

Sonata No. 2 has four movements while Sonata No. 4 has

three movements. Both one-movement sonatas essentially

follow the sonata-allegro pattern in their construction.

Sonata No. 2 is made up of a sonata-allegro, a scherzo,

a two-part song and a sonata-allegro scheme. The three

movements of Sonata No. 4 are sonata-allegro, two-part

song and sonata-allegro.

Within these seemingly conventional schemes Prokofiev

has done many unusual things. In the Sonata No. 1 he

truncates the length of the first subject, a twenty-one

measure theme, to a six measure motive in the re-

capitulation. The remainder of the recapitulation

28

is repeated with only minor changes in harmony and tonal-

ity. After an extended coda which is built on thematic

material from the development section, there is presented

the motive which formed the four-measure introduction to

the movement.

The form of Sonata No. 2 is somewhat more complex than

the first sonata. The first movement is in sonata-allegro

form but it is interesting to see how Prokofiev modifies

it. After the initial statement of the first subject

which is twenty bars in length, it is repeated in a

modified twelve bar section. A long transition section

which almost appears to be another theme leads to the

second subject which is in the dominant minor key, E minor.

After the cadence of the second subject there are seventeen

bars of a motive derived from the previously mentioned

transition section, forming the closing section of the

exposition. The treatment of this motive would support the

idea that the transition might be considered an independent

theme. The recapitulation is regular except for the

shortening of the first subject. This technique of

shortening or completely deleting the first subject in the

recapitulation is one used by Prokofiev in all the early

sonatas. At the close of the second subject he repeats

the transition section which had led to the development

section and comes to a full cadence. There follows a

29

nineteen-bar coda repeating the first subject of the

movement with slight changes in the last four bars.

The second movement of Sonata No. 2 is a scherzo with

trio in conventional form. The third movement, a slow

movement, is in two-part song form which is repeated with

a quickening of the rhythmic motion of the accompaniment

to the theme.

In the fourth movement the form is again sonata-

allegro. There is no exception to the conventional

pattern of the form until the end of the second subject.

There the transition section which led from the first to

the second subject is repeated followed by a twenty-bar

restatement of the motives from the second subject. It is

the development section, however, that gives the most

unexpected deviation in the entire sonata. The first

twelve bars of the development section from the first

movement are repeated to begin the development section of

the fourth movement. The codas that Prokofiev composed

could never be said to be characterized by fifty bars of

the tonic chord as is said about some classical sonatas.

In the coda to the fourth movement of the Sonata No. 2

Prokofiev uses motives from each of the subjects in the

exposition along with motives from the development

section. Three distinct motives are presented in thirty-

four measures.

30

Sonata No. 3 is unusual not only in being entirely

in one movement but in the construction of that movement.

It is basically in sonata-allegro form. The first subject

is repeated in diminution after its initial statement.

This compositional procedure of Prokofiev's will be dis-

cussed more completely in the section of this chapter

devoted to his compositional techniques. After an ex-

tended transition section which is built on the accompani-

ment of the first subject, the second subject is stated.

The second subject is built entirely on a two-bar motive

which is combined contrapuntally with itself. The

development section is in the form of a free fantasia

related only slightly to the rest of the sonata. At the

close of the development Prokofiev omits the first subject

in the recapitulation and leads immediately into the

transition section and the second subject. The second

subject is presented in modified form. Prokofiev balances

the diminution of the first subject in the exposition with

the augmentation of the second subject in the recapitu-

lation. The coda is built upon the theme which closed the

exposition. This closing section theme is not related to

either of the other subjects and is more lyrical than

transitional in character.

Sonata No. 1+ in three movements is not quite so

unorthodox in its form as its predecessor. The first

31

movement, in sonata-allegro form, is relatively short.

Each of the two subjects is developed from a single

motive in the short, terse form which becomes more

characteristic of Prokofiev's style as his technique

becomes more mature and stable. There is an absence in

this movement of the long transition passages found in

the first three sonatas. Prokofiev has shortened the

transition sections to only three or four bars, eliminating

much of his former extended modulation in favor of short,

extreme modulations.

The second movement, an andante, is perhaps the most

complex movement of all the four early sonatas. A six-

bar theme is developed contraountally with itself and a

countersubject in eight different variations. This forms

the first section of the two-part song form in which the

movement is written. A shorter contrasting section makes

up the second part of the movement. This slow movement is

much longer and more extensively developed than the slow

movement of Sonata "o. 2.

The third movement of this sonata is also in sonata-

allegro form but has the Prokofiev characteristic use of

the unusual. The first and second subjects are connected

by a transition section constructed from motival figures

in the first subject. In the last movement of Sonata

No. 4, as in the preceding sonata, it is the development

section that gives the most unexpected turn to the

32

composition. The development section is in two-part song

form creating a scheme of a form within a form in the last

movement. The development is not connected motive-wise in

any way to the remainder of the movement. Both of the

themes used in it provide the lyrical relief in a movement

which is relentless in its rhythmic momentum. Both the

harmony and melody aro much simpler than the surrounding

parts of the movement. The recapitulation is only slightly

different from the exposition and is followed by a short

coda built of fragments of the first subject.

The first, third and fourth sonatas provide a clear

image of the unity and completeness of thematic develop-

ment that are more strongly seen in Prokofiev's early

works than in his later compositions. The second sonata,

with its much smaller episodes less closely related, is

prophetic of the Prokofiev style of the last three sonatas

written twenty years after his early group of four.

Melodic Style

While it is hazardous to state definitely that the

melodic content of the early sonatas of Prokofiev is the

most important, it can safely be said that the melodic

content is the most characteristic of all the elements of

his style. In all of these sonatas the harmonic and

rhythmic aspects support and emphasize the melodic element

but never overshadow it.

33

The length and range of Prokofiev's melodies vary

widely. In length, his melodies vary from two-measure

motives (as in the second subject of the third sonata) to

twenty-mea sure lyrical themes (as the first subject of the

first sonata). The length of the subjects also varies

widely. He constructs these subjects through motival

development or ise of his long, lyrical themes. The first

subject, first movement, of Sonata T._o. 4 is thirty-five

measures in length while the second subject, third move-

ment, of Sonata No. 2 is only eight measures in length.

The range of Prokofiev's melodic lines is quite wide.

Most of the principal and subordinate subjects have ranges

that extend over more than two octaves. The idest range

of any single subject is found in the first subject,

second movement, of Sonata _o. 2.

Fig. .-- WJidest range of subject found in earlysonatas.

34

The narrowest range of any of the principal or subordinate

subjects is also found in the second sonata. This is the

first theme in the development section, first movement.

Fig. 2 shows the range of this theme.

Fig. 2.--Narrowest range of subject found in earlysonatas.

There is a direct relation between the range of

Prokofiev's melodic lines and the type of melodic line he

writes. In general, Prokofiev writes two types of melodic

lines. The first is the long, lyrical line which is

usually ofca narrower pitch range than the less lyrical

melody. In the early sonatas at times Prokofiev uses

octave transposition of his melodic lines to extend the

range to a greater width, often more than three and one-

half octaves. Of the themes in his first four sonatas,

the theme from which is built the second movement of

Sonata No. 4 is perhaps the most beautiful and illustrates

well the lyric type of theme.

35

A W

~' A m A

IA

Fig. 3.--Sonata No . , Or. 29, second movement,meas. 1-7.

The second principI type of rielodic line that

Prokofiev develops is the subject built of short,-energetic

figures repeated extensively. Because these figures must

be shifted from one position to another quickly to maintain

interest, these m elodic lines re wider in range than the

lyrical passages. The first subject, last movement, of

l

36

sonata T0._ 2 is a good example of this type of melodic

construction.

4-

Fig. 4 .-- Sonata No 2, Op. 14, fourth movement,s. 1-20.

It is interesting also to note that with each

successive sonata the melodic lines of the rriicipal

subjects become shorter in length and less lyrical.

Angularity, which is one of the distinguishing charac-

teristics of Prokofiev's melodies, becomes more prominent.

A comparison of the first subject, Sonata Nom _, with the

first subject, first movement, of Sonata io. 4, shows this

difference in melodic construction.

-- ads*WONT

gco

37

V7I I' - I

-1*

m -

v U,1

-~

-t

E~ yw1*w

~i-.

t1'

~F- ~

-r~ "--

~

11 1

Fig. 5.--Comparison of melodic lines

(a) SonataNo. 1, Op. 1, meas. 5-10(b) Sonata 1, . N Op.29, first movement, meas. 1-4

A ,

I

w

; o

-Am

1%

dpAlk

I

1% 1,

A

t)e4oo,m

L4

tolol 'A

38

It is often difficult to ascertain whether the main

direction of a melodic line is ascending or descending.

This factor is of importance in the style of any particular

composer because the main direction of the melodic line

will in part determine the feeling of tension in the

particular work or works. An ascending melodic line tends

to give a feeling of mounting tension and excitement while

a descending melodic line tends to reverse this process

and give a feeling of more calm and relaxation. Of the

seventeen principal and subordinate themes in the first

four sonatas, seven have melodic contours that are primarily

descending while four of the melodic lines are well balanced

between ascending and descending motion. This fact is

interesting because Prokofiev's music is usually thought

to be extremely tense and nervous. If the theory of the

relation between the direction of the melodic line and the

tension produced is true, it is necessary to look further

than the melodic lines for the source of the tension and

energy that prevails in Prokofiev's music. It is inter-

esting, however, to note that the principal themes are

ascending in direction seven times while descending in

direction only once. This instance is found in a slow

movement which has a highly lyrical theme. Three of the

subordinate themes are primarily descending in motion

while three are primarily ascending in motion. The

39

remainder of the themes are too well balanced between the

two motions to make a distinction.

Melodic progression, whether diatonic or chromatic,

is another factor in the recognition of one composer's

style from that of another composer. In twentieth century

music it is often difficult to distinguish clearly what is

chromatic and what is diatonic in any particular movement

or, more especially, in one particular section of a move-

ment. Prokofiev is no exception to this statement.

Because of the almost constantly shifting tonality and

harmony found in his music, even the early sonatas, close

examination is necessary to determine whether the melodies

are primarily diatonic or chromatic.

Prokofiev builds the melodic lines of these four

early sonatas diatonically in most instances. Although

there is much chromaticism used, especially in transition

sections and in development sections, the principal

themes are for the most part diatonic. Such chromaticism

as exists is usually centered around the principal triad

of the harmony upon which it is built. Some exceptions

are found in chromatic scale passages. An example of this

centering of chromaticism around the harmony is found in

the melodic theme and the accompanying harmonic figure of

the second subject, last movement, of Sonata No. 2.

Fig. 6.--2onate N. , Op. 14, fourth movementmeans . 52-55.

It would be expected that Prokofiev's melodic lines

would be much more disjunct (movement by leap) than con-

junct (step-vrise movement). Upon the first hearing of the

early sonatas this conclusion would be formed. Investi-

gation proves the validity of this statement. Of the

seventeen principal and. subordinate themes in the first

sonatas, eleven are composed of. melodic lines that are

primarily built from disjunct motion. The six themes which

are composed of primarily conjunct motion are the most

lyrical of Prokofiev's melodies in the early sonatas and

are found most often in the slow movements or slow sections

within movements.

Tho main devices are found to make ip the themes of

dis junct motion. One of these is angularity, or multiple

change of direction. Figure 7 illustrates angular melody

of Prokofiev's,

40

'I

Fig 7-SonaPta No. 4, Op. 29, first movP ien t ,meas. 125-127.

The second device found in disjunct melodic themes

in the early Prokofiev sonatas is chord delineation. The

following example shows chord delineation used in the

first subject, third movement, of the Sonata No. 4.

N

Fig. 8.--Sonata Jo. 4, Op. 29, third movement,meas. 6-8.

Another feature in the melodic style of any composer

is th presence or absence of characteristic melodic

repetitions or sequences. If a melodic pattern is used

hit

d v j T

a, Q

WF

71F

--"I Uum-

7TW.,,J --t.,

SZE1, 0 OLOOP ift -1-60%olp-

IPC-

41

,.OoodA g xftftft d.

5OF

42

by the composer repeatedly in his compositions then it is

possible to assume that the particular motive or pattern

is characteristic of the melodic style of the composer.

In the early sonatas of Prokofiev very few of the same

melodic motives are repeated from sonata to sonata. In

any one sonata Prokofiev is fond of using one particular

motive throughout a section or even movement. This is

similar to a leit-motiv device but it is used by Prokofiev

in a way different from that of classic and romantic usage

of the motival idea. Prokofiev uses the same melodic

figure without alteration for an entire section of a sub-

ject, merely shifting the pitch of the figure. For the

next section or subject he chooses a different motive and

uses it in the same way.

In the first four sonatas there is only one prominent

motive which recurs from one sonata to another. Sonata

Jo. 2 and Sonata No. 4 make use of the figure illustrated

below with some variations. This figure is used*

extensively in both sonatas.

CL-.

p' 4 t

w

l

I

43

~4-. 4

Fig. 9.--Recurrent motive(a) SonataNo. 2, Op. 14, first movennent,

meas. 32.(b) SonataNo.2., Op. 14, first movement,

meas.~~V6.-(c) Sonata No. 4, Op. 29, first movement,

mens.97.-

There is little use of melodic ornamentation (trills,

grace notes and other embellishments) in the early

Prokof iev sonatas. In sonata No. 3 there is a short,

three-note figure preceding the bass notes in the opening

bars. In the development section of this same sonata

Prokofiev used a two-octave arpeggio preceding the melodic

tones. The first movement of Sonata No. 4 is highlyornamented melodically. Te second motive of the first

subject shows how Prokoflev uses grace notes before each

44

of the melody notes. These grace notes are all at an

interval of a third or sixth below or above the principal

tone. In the second subject of the same movement Prokofiev

uses a series of grace notes before the principal melodic

note. This series is made up of an octave arpeggio with

one or two added tones. In the second movement, second

subject, is the only extensive use of the trill in the

four early sonatas of Prokofiev. A very short trill is

found in Sonata No. 2.

Prokofiev's melodic construction is another evidence

of his clasicism. His melodies are built primarily on the

essential major and minor triads or else the simplest

scale movement. The melodies in the four early sonatas

are well defined, without being overshadowed by harmonic

or rhythmic schemes. The construction of his melodic lines

is simple. The method in which Prokofiev uses and com-

bines his melodic lines is the thing which gives to them

that peculiar Prokofiev character. He makes extensive useof distortion and shifting of the melodic lines. Many of

his melodies have that leaping, angular scheme which is

associated so often with Prokofiev's music. Others of his

melodic lines are long,.lyrical themes of almost a vocal

character.

45

Rhythm

The rhythmic structure of Prokofiev's early sonatas

is not the most prominent element in these sonatas. The

rhythmic construction is neither very complex nor very

diverse. Prokofiev sets a rhythmic figuration at the

beginning of a section or subject of the sonata and

maintains that figuration throughout the entire section.

When a new section is begun another rhythmic pattern

usually appears anM continues through the new section.

New rhythmic patterns do not appear within a section.

The effect of this recurrence of rhythmic figuration is

almost monotonous.

The most striking feature about the rhythmic style of

the early Prokofiev sonatas is the almost continuous rhyth-

mic motion. This motion gives a definite impetus and

energy to the entire composition of each of the first four

sonatas. Few measures can be found in these sonatas which

do not have a constant background of eighth, triplet

eighth or sixteenth notes. This device gives the feeling

of rapid motion in passages where actually the melodic

rhythm is comparatively slow. The following example from

the fourth movement, Sonata No. 2, illustrates this use:

Fig. 10.--gonataNo. 2, Or. 14, fourth movement,meas. 26-28.

At times when Prokofiev does relax this constant

rhythmic motion, it is to emphasize the rhythm by a series

of block chords, one chord per beat. This tends to bring

the feeling of motion to an abrupt change.

The element of tempo is not of tremendous importance

in the first four sonatas. Prokofiev has given no

metronomic markings, using just the conventional Italian

tempo indications. Tempo changes are quite explicitly

marked in the score rather than being left to the per-

former's discretion. The one-movement sonatas, the first

and third, are marked in an allegro tempo. The movements

of Sonata No. 2 are marked allegro, allegro marcato,

andante and vivace. Sonata No.4 + in three movements is

marked allegro, andante assai and allegro con brio.

The meter of the four sonatas consists primarily of

conventional patterns. Prokofiev has a definite prefer-

ence for compound meter. Sonata No. 1 and Sonata No.

47

are written with a compound meter signature. The first

movement of Sonata o. 2 uses a triplet rhythm although

the signature is simple. The fourth movement of this

sonata is written in compound meter. In Sonata No. 4 the

second movement contains two sections of compound meter.

Prokofiev quite freely changes the meter without

indicating this by a change of signature. These changes

are irregular in pattern. Often it is just an insertion

of one or two bars in length. Usually the change in meter

accompanies a change in subject or sections of a movement.

These changes of meter are used as a device for obtaining

contrast between subjects and are not frequent.

Unlike many of his contemporaries, Prokofiev does not

write unusual meter signatures extensively. In the first

four sonatas there is only one instance of the use of an

unconventional meter signature. The third movement of

Sonata Yo. 2, a two-part song form, has the second section

written in a meter. Prokofiev has grouped the background

of eighth notes into a group of two plus two plus three by

the way he has scored them.

Fig. 1l.--Sonata Jo. 2, Op. 14, third movement,means. 23.

Prokofiev's use of polymeter is very slight. In

Sonata Fo. 1. he writes two signatures simultaneously.

14 12Since both of these, one 4 and the other 8, have a basic

beat of four, the use of two signatures seems to be

merely y a convenience in scoring. It excludes the necessity

of designating the groups of two against three background

beats. In Sonata No. *2, last movement, Prokofiev writes

6and 8 signatures simultaneously. In both instances in

the early sonatas where he uses two signatures at once,

the section is built on a two-against-three rhythmic

pattern. In many other passages in the first four

sonatas Prokofiev writes the same effect without writing

two meter signatures. At the beginning of Sonata No 3.4 12Prokofiev gives a 4 signature followed by a 8 signature

in parenthesis, indicating that the two signatures will

49

Fig. 12.--Use of two signatures simultaneously,Sonata 'No. 1, Op. 1, meas. 37.

be alternated frequently and freely. It is interesting

to note that in this same sonata at the end of the first

subject there is introduced one measure of 3 rhythm. This

measure is interesting for the rhythmic effect it gives

of changing the motion of the melody and breaking the

monotony of the triplet motion.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _a ll

071" 1- fA,

ok V I 3AL W J

fp -AIIA%'V. r 'l, V

4 1 0 '1 fbA, A LXWAL._L9,04:: v:l wl I L :j M, Ai-

13.--Sonata No. , op. 28, meas. 25-26

With Prokofiev's evident fondness for the number three

in his early compositions, it is logical that he would use

50

the same rhythmic patterns in many passages in the dif-

ferent sonatas. Other than the first ad third sonatas

which are written with a triplet background beat, the

first movement of the fourth sonata and a large part of

the first movement of the second sonata are written in

triple meter. The rhythmic figures that Prokofiev

builds from these meters are very similar in each of the

sonatas. A comparison of passages from the first and

third sonatas shows the use of a rhythmic figure that is

used extensively in both these sonatas and to some extent

in the other early sonatas. This pattern is made up of an

eighth rest followed by two eighth notes.

Fig. 14F.--(a) Sn No. , Op. I meas. 26(b) Sonata No. 3, Op. 2 , meas. 166

Prokofiev's use of background rhythmic motion is

unusual. He uses this background motion to build the

feeling of a section to a climax or to let it down after

a climax by reversing the process. Within a section he

writes an eighth note background, two per beat, followed

by triplet eighth notes per beat as he approaches the

melodic climax and finally sixtee!nt notes, four per beat

at the climax melodically and harmonically. The third

movement of Sonata No,. 2 illustrates this process. With

the first presentation of the main theme the background

division of beat is two (see Fig. 15). Subsequent

.......

Ar J I tIF 12r~1rrr-i - - 1 -

Fig S. .- onataNo..2,Op.. 14, third movement,meas. 4-6.

repetitions of the theme have four sixteenth notes per

beat in the counterpoint to the theme. The last

statement of the theme uses four sixteenth notes against

a pattern of six sixteenth notes to further agitate the

rhythmic motion.

JK~l.L.NE77

KTin V q-w- -f

me ~ M AsL4-6

Id IL I I If III.2 a.: rr. iIl 7 q-

Fig. 17.--Sonata No. 2, Op. 14, third movement,meas. 49-50.

"OWN.*-

-at 406-

.gap& a a- -V

-U-TJMJ

44 X

Aj j,

a now am 0 M

I

41

.....................

53

The rhythm of any particular melodic line is not

complex in its structure. Any complexity that appears in

the rhythmic construction is the result of the combination

of two different rhythms in two melodic lines or the

combination of different rhythmic patterns in the melodic

line and its accompanying counterpoint or harmony.

Usually each melodic line has its definite rhythmic pattern

that is followed throughout the subject or section which

is built from that melodic line. The total effect of

Prokofiev's rhythmic construction, both melodic rhythm and

otherwise, is that of rhythmic ostinato.

Harmony and Tonality

The harmonic and tonal aspects of the early sonatas

of Prokofiev while not as innovational as the harmonic

idioms of some other contemporary composers, still afford

much that is of stylistic interest. Prokofiev composed

these four first sonatas around the basic major-minor

tonalities. Eis harmony is characterized by simple chord

construction on the basic major and minor triads. Analysis

of these sonatas Thows that while the effect upon the

listener is one of unusual sounds, the actual construction

of the harmony is quite simple. As was the case with his

melodic construction, the manner in which Prokofiev com-

bines his harmonies is the factor that gives to them the

distinguishing Prokofiev character.

After the peculiar tonalities of impressionism and

the lack of tonality as such in some other twentieth cen-

tury styles, Prokofiev's music shows a definite trend

toward the classic in his choice of tonality. Prokofiev

composes in the most common major and minor keys. The

first four sonatas are all in minor keys. He has used

what are probably the most often used minor keys for these

first four sonatas. The first sonata is in F minor, the

second in D minor, the third in A minor and the fourth in

C minor. Prokofiev, however, uses the classic tonalities

in unusual combinations which tend to give to his sonatas

a feeling of new and original tonal schemes. Sudden

transitions to distantly related keys and combinations of

totally unrelated harmonies provide the unexpected tonal

feeling of the sonatas. The tonality of each of the

principal and subordinate subjects of the early sonatas is

given in the Appendix.

At times the key feeling is obscured by chromaticism

and harmonic dissonance. Even in these passages there is

a feeling of suspended tonality rather than complete

negation of the tonality. Prokofiev builds his chromatic

passages principally in transitions and the development

sections. The most complex of his chromatic schemes are

often nothing more than enharmonic spellings of some

simple scale or nonharmonic tones combined with the basic

55

chords. Prokofiev builds his chromaticism most often just

a half-step away from a basic chord tone always returning

to this chord tone to give a feeling of coming back to his

tonality. A passage from. the development section in the

last movement of Sonata No. 2 illustrates this usage of

chrora ticis.

Fig. 18.--Sonata No. 2, Op. 14, fourth movement,meas. 14+-l46.

Another use of chromaticism in the early sonatas is

found in the transition sections between subjects or

movements. Tbese modulations usually are quite chromatic

proceeding through unexpected and distantly related keys.

The development section of Sonata No. 3 beginning in the

tonality of the entire composition, A minor, modulates

through E major, A-flat major, G-flat major, E-flat minor,

E major, D-flat major, B-flat minor and C major before

returning to the A minor tonality. This modulation series

l

56

is typical of the chromatic modulation which Prokofiev

uses in the early sonatas.

Sonata No. 3 provides another feature which Prokofiev

uses in modulation quite extensively. He shifts tonality

suddenly an augmented fourth (diminished fifth) up or down.

In the first subject of this sonata Prokofiev makes an

abrupt change from the central A minor tonality to E-flat

minor tonality. This shift of tonality an augmented

fourth (diminished fifth), or, in some instances, an aug-

mented second, is quite characteristic of Prokofiev's

harmonic idiom.

Fig. 19.--Sonata Jq. 3, Op. 28, meas. 22-23.

Hany passages of the early sonatas are polytonal.

This polyton ality is not built from the use of two dif-

ferent key signatures simultaneously as is some contem-

porary music. Neither is a consistent scheme of poly-

tonality carried out throughout an entire sonata.

Prokofiev in his structure uses polytonality in much the

57

same manner he uses melodic and rhythmic motives. There

is a definite combination of tonalities upon which one

subject or section is built. With the beginning of a

different section, the harmonies change in their relation-

ship. They may merge into the same tonality or may shift

to entirely new tonalities.

The polytonality of these Provofiev sonatas appears

as a result of several different devices which the composer

uses. The most often used of these is the simple com-

bination of two melodic lines each in a different tonality.

The following example from Zonata No. , third movement,

iliustrates this device:

Fig. 20.--Sonata No. , Op. 29, third movement,meas. 26-27.

Another device is the s ifting of harmonies above a

pedal point. In the coda of Sonata No. 3 is found the most

notable example of this. Prokofiev uses an octave motive

58

repeated to form the pedal point with four different

harmonies above it.

PAD-

A-1A 0 - A- & 0

-IOL

z- zdo

F ig. 21.--Sonata No. Ops 28, mea.s. 227-2210,3

The most notable instance of polytonality found in

the first four sonatas is found in the third movement of

Sonata No. 2. Here Prokofiev has combined a pedal-point

with two different harmonic schemes above it. With the

exception of the first chord at the beginning of the

passage, the two upper harmonies are in different tonali-

ties. This combination yields a total of three different

harmonic schemes used in this section. Prokofiev not only

repeats the harmonic formation in different triad position but

moves it from the original position with the pedal-point on

F'

59

G-sharp to a position with the pedal-point on B. The

repetition of this pattern four times constitutes the

entire second section of this third movement.'

F. 22.--Sonata No_. 2, eOpr14 temnt,meas. 23-24.

In the style ol any particular composer the chord

progre ssion or relation between successive chords is an

important feature. Analysis of the early Prokofiev

sonatas reveals one pattern of chord progression that

is predominant in all movements of all the sonatas. This

progression is simple step-wise progression of the har-

monies. In some instances the progression moves step-wise

Al

Ak AN

A-At

t a

Tf

&"low1w,

S ft

60

from one chord to the next. In other passages an entire

melodic or harmonic motive is repeated several times

moving by step-wise motion up or down with each repe-

tition. This device of harmonic progression by step is

the most distinguishing feature of the entire hearmonic

style of Prokofiev.

In the development section of Sonata No. 3 there is

an excellent example of this shift in harmonies. Against

a trill-like figure in the treble clef, the bass clef

harmonies are moved upward a half-step at a time. The

chord structure remains the same for the entire passage.

A I

Fig. 23.- -Sonata No. 3, Op.28, meas. 112-113

61

A different use of the same harmonic progression

principle is found in Sonata No. 2. The harmonic pattern

moves step-wise in the second subject of the first move-

ment. The pattern here is a two-measure pattern with the

harmony of the second measure being a whole or balf step

above the root of the previous harmony. The harmonic

accompaniment in arpeggio figures -moves from E minor to

F major, from C major to D minor and from A minor to

B-flat major.

Fig . 2. --Sonat a No._ 2, Op . 114, f ir st movement ,meas. 63-68.

In the same movement of sonata 1_._ 2 Prokofiev uses

still another pattern of step-wise progression. Taking a

melodic pattern from the first subject he repeats it

62

against a bass ostinato figure with different harmonies

above. After moving the melodic figure using first F,

then E, then D as the beginning note, he repeats the

section starting the melodic sequence on G and moving the

entire harmony of the section upward one step. In this

manner be combines step-wise motion both upward and down-

ward in a seventeen measure section of the development.

*ld

Fig. 25.--Sonata No. 2, Op. 14, first movement,meas. 142-147.mopt

Prokofiev, while turning his

a whole, has made use of a device

impressionistic style of writing.

ism of chord movement. Prokofiev

back on impressionism as

quite common to the

That device is parallel-

uses it to quite a

.1r~/

IV

Ago

lz Jw:;4L- jEW- iz

"1 F-

63

different effect from impressionism, however. With

Prokofiev it is never a blurring of harmonies. It is

used to build up a rising feeling of climax. Perhaps the

outstanding use of parallelism in all the early sonatas

is found in the development section of Sonata o3.

Against a melodic motive repeated three times Prokofiev

uses a series of chords, extending over two octaves, with

AkA

LLL~~~t I I 1 1 t r

Fig. 26.--Sonata ;o. 3, Op. 28, means . 146-148

64

each repetition of the motive. After this climactic

procedure he breaks the musical progression sharply before

returning to the recapitulation of the sonata.

Prokofiev's cadential treatment is not unusual in

most of the sonatas. Almost as if to balance the unexpect-

edness of so much else in his composition, he becomes

rather conventional in his writing of cadences. There are

some exceptions to this rule. At the end of the first

subject of Sonata No. 2. he writes an extended cadence on

the dominant chord, then proceeds to shift his tonality

abruptly from the expected dominant tonality to subdominant

tonality for the second subject. There is also his

insertion of a completely foreign, unexpected harmony,

sometimes just one chord, into his cadence. In several

cadences in the four sonatas this chord is a D-flat major

chord and entirely remote from the key of the sonata. The

final cadence of Sonata No.3 is an illustration of this

4ff

Fig. 27, Sonata No* a Cp.28, meas. 231-233

65

technique. D-flat major is completely foreign to the

tonic key of A minor.

Compositional Techniques

Whatever the melodic, rhythmic and harmonic devices

used by a composer may be like, it is the treatment of

these elements that indicate whether he is a genius at

composition or merely a mediocre technician. Prokofiev is

recognized as being a composer of genius. It is inter-

esting to note some of the technical devices used in the

composition of the group of early piano sonatas by

Prokofiev not because these techniques are unique with

Prokofiev but because they show his maturity of style.

This maturity comes from a composer who was only a student

in the St. Petersburg Conservatory when these sonatas were

written. The four early sonatas were composed when

Prokofiev was between the ages of fifteen and twenty-five

years.

In the previous sections of this chapter there has

been a discussion of the methods in which Prokofiev used

melodic, rhythmic, harmonic and tonal elements in his

writing. In this section a discussion will be made of some

of the most interesting passages of the early sonatas.

The development sections of each of the sonatas afford the

most interesting examples of Prokofiev's compositional

technique. In each development section Prokofiev introduces

66

material that appears nowhere else in the movement. In

Sonata No. 2 this material is a long, lyrical passage

which provides the only relief from the energetic motion

of the rest of the movement. Only twelve bars in length,

this theme is a definite contrast to the short-motive sub-

jects of the exposition. The unusual feature about this

theme is not the initial statement of it but the restate-

ment of it in its entirety in the development section of

the last movement. In Sonata .Yo. 4 the development section

of the last movement is built in three-part song form from

entirely new motival and melodic ideas. The development

section of Sonata No. 3 introduces briefly a new lyrictheme but returns quickly to developing motival ideas of

the principal subjects. The development section of

Sonata No. 1 is more closely connected with the conven-

tional development concepts and presents some new motival

material along with material derived from the principal

subjects.

With each successive one of the early sonatas Proko-

fiev uses more of the leit-motiv technique in the con-

struction of his subjects and sections. The entire first

movement of Sonata Po. 4 is unified by the use of tworhythmic motives. The first motive is made up of four

sixteenth notes followed by a quarter note (or sometimes

an eighth note). This motive takes the melodic form of a

67

trill, a one-octave arpeggio or an octave leap with a turn

either at the top or bottom of the octave. The second

motive, constructed of two eighth notes followed by a

quarter note, usually combinls the intervals of a dimin-

ished fifth leap downward and a perfect fourth lep upward.

This motive is sometimes used with just the intervals of

a major or minor second.

Although most of Prokofiev's compositional con-

struction is very simple, be is capable of writing

extremely complex passages. The most interesting and

complex structurallv of any part of the early sonatas is

the second movement of Sonata N\Ulo. 4. This slow movement

is much longer than the slow movement of Sonata No. 2

frn-i mrn

1ig. 28 .--Sonata No. 4, Op. 29, second movement,meas. -4.s

68

Prokofiev takes an ordinary two-part song form and

transforms it with his owjn peculiar touches. The movement

begins quite simply with the statement of a three-measure

lyric theme wit chorodal accompaniment. He then states

the same theme a diminished fifth higher with a counter-

subject and retaining the chordal accompaniment. After

a short transitional passage he presents it in its first

variation.

1. Io

Tq

Fig. 29.--Sonata No. 4, Op. 29, second movement,mess. 13-14 .

The entire process of development of this theme is

the addition of one new element to it each time it is

presented, gradually building the form from simple to

complex. Keeping the essential structure of the first

69

variation on the theme, be doubles the theme in octaves.

After the statement in octaves he adds octave grace notes

to the notes of the theme which are still doubled in

octaves.

The second principal variation of th . theme starts

with the twenty-fifth measure. This jives the theme and

colntersubject tro octaves apart at the beginning. He

brings the two melodies closer together and exchanges them

between clefs. The theme which had been given in the bass

a9 A--A,

-on .....AlAr -A.

Ir

Ir 04

70. 1

Fig. 30.--Sonata o Op 29, second movement,neas. 2 -26.

L-W in7w

II'll,

(11

70

clef is moved to the treble clef with the countersubject

moving to the bass clef.

A brief transition section leads to the second section

of the two-part form which is quite simply constructed. In

the transition section Prokofiev has used his favorite

harmonic device of modulating by shifting harmonies step-

wise. The rhythmic pattern of the second section is a

triple background where the first section had been built

upon a duple background. At the end of the second

section, Prokofiev repeats his second variation of the

main theme and the transition which led from the first to

the second part of the song-form.

After establishing a chordal and broken chord

accompaniment, the main theme of the first section is

combined with the main theme of the second section in the

climax of the movement. Prokofiev has built up through

the movement a growing feeling of complexity by different

combinations of his two themes with themselves, with

countersubjects and finally together.

71

Fig. 3W.--Sonat 1o. 4, Op. 2?, second movement,meas. 73-7+.

NTo one feature of The early piano sonatas of Prokofiev

stands above another. The total combination of his use of

melody, rh-ythm, harmony, totality and the manner in xhich

he treats these elements gives to them that style which is

so individualistic in Prokofiev. Prok ofiev fs not famous

because of his melodies, however lyric or sarcastic, nor

his startling harnonic con cepts nor his relentless rhythmic

drive, but he is known for his compositions which brought

something~ new into the stream of twentieth century piano

music. Prokofiev might not be considered the most excel-

lent nor the most representative composer of the twentieth

century, bt he is a composer of undisputed genius.

CHAPTER IV

INFLUENCES ON PROKOFIEV'S STYLE

The question of who and what have influenced the style

of any composer is always a provoking one. It is recog-

nized that no composer writes music that has come entirely

from within himself. Conditions of his musical environ-

ment, his social environment and his physical surroundings

all have a tremendous effect upon his musical output. The

effect of the musical training he receives, even the music

to which he first is introduced, appears in his compositio