CD-Präsentation: Carlo Grante

At first glance, Sergei Prokofiev (Sontsovka, 23 April 1891–Moscow, 5 March 1953) could appear as Russian as Russian composers get, from the artists who provided his first cultural influences, to his mature return to a more nationalistic compositional style. Prokofiev’s early influences included not only the composers Tchaikovsky (Prokofiev had great admiration for his 6th Symphony), Rimsky-Korsakov, Glazunov, Taneyev, Glière, Scriabin, and Mussorgsky (for his opera Boris Godunov which Prokofiev considered “superb”), but also monumental figures from the worlds of drama and musical theatre such as Vsevolod Meyerhold and Sergei Diaghilev. 
Prokofiev was also influenced by Dostoyevsky's concept of "universal responsiveness" which posited that Russianness encompassed an ability to empathize with and absorb the artistic and cultural expressions of other nations. This broad perspective allowed Russian artists to draw from a rich tapestry of influences, creating a unique and vibrant artistic tradition. The significance of Russian literature for Russian composers cannot be overstated. The narratives, themes, characters, and philosophical ideas within Russian literature deeply resonated with composers, serving as fertile ground for inspiration.
Rimsky-Korsakov's theory of tonal kinship (teoriya tonal′nogo rodstva), which focused on chord relationships within a central tonal area and movement between distant keys, and especially its application by Max Reger, was a big influence on the musical “meat” of Prokofiev’s work. He noted, “I was struck by the way Reger was able to move with ease between distant tonalities, just as if they were tonic and dominant.” This concept of distant modulation and rapid key change is evident in the first piece (Introduction) from Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet. 
In his nine piano sonatas, Prokofiev manages to bring to life within himself traces of modernism, French Neoclassicism, Busonian “new classicism,” and Russian Nationalism while maintaining his own distinct exclusivity. His harmonic language is as boundless as his piano language. The Postromantic experimentalism of Nos. 1, 2 and 3, the turbulence of Nos. 6, 7 and 8, and the “new simplicity” of sonatas Nos. 4, 5 and 9, show a character iridescence unique among 20th century composer-pianists.

- Carlo Grante