Lugansky - Prokofiev Piano Sonata No. 4 in C minor

Sergei Prokofiev (1891-1953) Piano Sonata No. 4 in C minor, Op. 29 (1908-1917) Nikolai Lugansky, 2014 [0:00] I. Allegro molto sostenuto [6:16] II. Andante assai [13:37] III. Allegro con brio, ma non leggiero “The sonata starts in a mood of deep, sorrowful reflection, permeating throughout the main theme. The music is absent of external effects - atypical for the young Prokofiev. The andante is a rework from the youthful symphony in E minor. The finale - “like a dazzling ray of sun, like a mighty gust of wind” (Martynov) - bursts out of the restrained, lyrical, imaginative world of the previous movements. Life-affirming mood dominates, permeated with the pathos of creation and a premonition of the “birth of a new world.“ In music - written in the sunny key of C major - this is expressed in sweeping thematics and dazzling pianistic passages, which Prokofiev held back until the finale.“ - Mariinsky program notes, 2010 2014 Festival de La Grange