Dear music lovers,
Friday afternoon I had the pleasure of telling another music story. I'm sure you all know the story of Peter and the Wolf, but did you know that the story itself (not only the music) was written by the composer Sergei Prokofiev? He wrote it for school children, in order to introduce them to music and the instruments of the orchestra.
Peter and the Wolf is a great musical story because each character is represented by an instrument and it's own theme, making it very easy to follow. Actually, Prokofiev also wrote the part of the narrator who speaks over the music. I read this as we listened to the music.
Briefly, the story is that Peter leaves the safety of his garden and visits with a little bird, a duck and a cat. His grandfather brings him back home warning him about the wolf, but of course, Peter doesn't listen and sneaks back out. The wolf shows up and catches the poor duck. Then, Peter catches the wolf and some hunters help him take him to the zoo. In the end, you hear the duck quacking from inside the wolf's belly because he swallowed him alive!
There are lots of cute interactions that can be heard in the music. Here is the cast of characters:
Peter - a happy theme by the string section
Grandfather - played by the bassoon - we think he sounds strict
Bird - played by the flute and sounds just like a bird chirping!
Duck - played by the oboe and sometimes you can really hear him quacking!
Cat - played by the clarinet - listen for the part when he climbs up the tree
Wolf - played by the horns - ominous music for the villain
Hunters - cymbals and drums - before Peter stops them you can hear them shooting at the wolf very clearly in the drums
As with many other stories I've told, I saved this one for now because it is being performed shortly by the TSO. It is a Young People's concert on a Saturday afternoon (May 14) - perfect for kids. There will even be mimes at this performance! I encourage you to check it out. Information is available on the TSO website. You can also see a performance on YouTube. I hope you find time to listen again to his fantastic piece of music with your child.