Essential Prokofiev
Sergei Prokofiev was born in 1891 in the twilight years of Imperial Russia and died in 1953 on the same day as Joseph Stalin. His early years as a firebrand virtuoso pianist and enfant terrible were followed by periods living in Europe and the United States before returning to Russia in the 1930s. His music reflects the turbulent first half of the 20th century, and, later, some of the demands of life in Stalin's Russia. But several factors remain constant in an output that covers the broadest array of genres and instrumental configurations: a remarkable gift for memorable melodies, a command of arresting rhythms and knack for brilliant orchestration.