Peter and the Wolf - Peter and the Wolf (English) Петя и Волк／Petya i Volk Russian

This is an orchestral piece with narrator (opus 67) composed by Prokofiev in 1936, which the composer calls "Symphonic Tale". It is an educational work aimed at familiarizing young people with orchestral music, and the libretto was written by the composer himself. The narrator recites a fairy tale about the brave boy Peter's wit and his efforts to capture a wolf alive, and each character, including supporting characters, is given their own instrument and theme, such as the little bird on the flute, the duck on the oboe, and the cat on the clarinet. Although it is an educational work, the effective orchestration and skillful thematic structure were highly praised from the time of its premiere, and it has since become widely popular around the world. It premiered at the Children's Theater in Moscow in 1936. Its Japanese premiere was in 1948 (Showa 23) with the Toho (now Tokyo) Symphony Orchestra conducted by Konoe Hidemaro.

[Yukio Miyake]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

プロコフィエフが1936年に作曲した朗読付き管弦楽曲（作品67）で、作者は「交響的物語」とよんでいる。青少年をオーケストラ音楽に親しませることを目的とした啓蒙(けいもう)的作品で、台本は作曲者自身による。勇敢な少年ピーターが機知を働かせて狼を生け捕りにするまでを描いたおとぎ話は語り手の朗読で語られ、小鳥はフルート、アヒルはオーボエ、猫はクラリネットなど、脇役(わきやく)を含めた各登場人物には、それぞれ固有の楽器と主題が与えられている。啓蒙的作品とはいえ、効果的な管弦楽法と主題構成の巧みさは初演当時から高く評価され、その後世界中で広く親しまれるに至った。36年モスクワの児童劇場で初演。日本初演は48年（昭和23）近衛秀麿(このえひでまろ)指揮の東宝（現東京）交響楽団であった。

［三宅幸夫］

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