Alexander Nevsky (Prokofiev)
The subject of the film is the 13th century incursion of the knights of the Livonian Order into the territory of the Novgorod Republic, their capture of the city of Pskov, the summoning of Prince Alexander Nevsky to the defense of Rus', and his subsequent victory over the crusaders in 1242.
It is one of the few examples (Lieutenant Kijé is another) of film music that has found a permanent place in the standard repertoire, and has also remained one of the most renowned cantatas of the 20th century.
The sympathetic Russian forces are represented predominantly by folk-like instruments such as woodwind and strings,[3] often playing quasi-folksong style music.
Strobel conducted the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Ernst Senff Chor, with mezzo-soprano Marina Domashenko as soloist.
The original Russian titles are provided by Kevin Bartig in Composing for the Red Screen, where they are not numbered, but are grouped by thematic content.
The fourth and fifth columns give the German titles and their sequence as provided by Musikverlage Hans Sikorski [1], the publisher of the restored original film score.
The group appears to be composed of players of svireli (flutes), zhaleyki (hornpipes), rozhki (horns), bubnï (tambourines), and other folk or skomorokh instruments.
The great popularity of Eisenstein's film, which was released on 1 December 1938, may have prompted Prokofiev to create a concert version of the music in the winter of 1938–39.
[7] (22 March 1942) «После того, как фильм появился на экране, у меня возникло желание использовать музыку для симфонического произведения с хором.
Несмотря на мое старание подходить к музыке во время этой второй моей работы с чисто симфонической точки зрения, в ней остался известный элемент живописности, идущий от фильма и Эйзенштейна.» Although some 15 minutes of music from the film score are omitted, the cuts mainly consist of repetitions, fragments and soundscape.
The 'Horn Call of the Crusaders' is no longer played as a free standing brass number, but is now combined with other themes as part of the orchestral texture.
'Rus' under the Mongol Yoke' now concludes with a repeat of the opening passage, possibly taken from 'Alexander Nevsky's Camp', giving the movement an ABA form.
gains a new introduction consisting of loud woodwind and brass chords, clanging bells, xylophone glissandi, and plucked strings.
In 'The Battle on the Ice', there is now, after the 'Charge of the Crusaders', an added section depicting the commencement of fighting between the Livonian knights and the Russian defenders, with some additional Latin text ("Vincant arma crucifera!
Two more repetitions of "In our native Rus'" are added to 'Alexander's Entry into Pskov', one combined with the end of 'The Skomorokhi', and one following it, leading to the final stanza based on 'Song about Alexander Nevsky'.
[citation needed] The American concert premiere took place on 23 March 1945, when Eugene Ormandy led the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Westminster Choir, with soloist Rosalind Nadell (contralto).
[10] Dr. Kerr believes Prokofiev may have felt a temptation to put the words of his rival into the mouths of the one-dimensional Teutonic villains of Eisenstein's film.
[11] This explanation has been accepted by the BBC: "Even their words are gibberish, with Prokofiev rather mischievously creating them by chopping up Latin texts from Stravinsky’s Symphony of Psalms and then randomly stringing them together".
[dubious – discuss] Composition history In 1987, orchestrator William Brohn created a version of Alexander Nevsky that could replace the widely derided original soundtrack in showings of the film accompanied by a live symphony orchestra.
If we could work out the technical issues, we could achieve a completely authentic re-creation of the film score which would allow audiences to hear what Prokofiev heard when he saw the magnificent images created by Eisenstein.
I engaged the brilliant orchestrator (and my good friend) Bill Brohn to use the cantata to re-create the film score, both of us committed to the authenticity of the project from the beginning.
So here, more than 50 years after the conception of Alexander Nevsky, we can witness the extraordinary visual imagination of Prokofiev captured in a soundtrack recording of what is probably the greatest film score ever written, in the authentic and unmistakable musical hand of its author.
