Igor Strawinsky

Petrushka, K012

Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971) composed Petrushka, K012 (Original 1911 Version) between August 1910 and May 1911 as his second ballet for Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes, following the triumph of The Firebird. Conceived in collaboration with artist and librettist Alexandre Benois, the ballet portrays the tragic story of Petrushka, a puppet brought to life during a bustling Shrovetide Fair in nineteenth-century St. Petersburg, whose unrequited love for the Ballerina and fatal confrontation with the Moor culminate in one of ballet's most poignant endings. Stravinsky's score broke new musical ground through its dazzling orchestration, extensive use of Russian folk melodies, and the famous "Petrushka chord" (the simultaneous sounding of C major and F-sharp major triads) which became an enduring symbol of the puppet's conflicted personality. The original 1911 version, written for a very large orchestra, received its premiere on June 13, 1911, at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris by Diaghilev's Ballets Russes, choreographed by Michel Fokine, featuring Vaslav Nijinsky in the title role, Tamara Karsavina as the Ballerina, and conducted by Pierre Monteux. Although Stravinsky prepared a leaner revision in 1946-47 that is frequently performed for practical reasons, the original 1911 version is widely regarded as the definitive realization of the composer's vision and stands today as one of the supreme masterpieces of twentieth-century ballet and orchestral literature, admired for its extraordinary color, dramatic imagination, and revolutionary influence on modern music. Instrumentation: 2+2Picc(dFl3/Fl4).4(4th dEH).4(4th dBCl).4(4th dCBsn): 4.2+2(Crnt).3.1: Timp.Perc(7-8): Pno.Clst.Hp(2): Str (4.4.3.3.3 in set). Reprint edition.