Prokofiev Scythian Suite, Op. 20

In the summer of 1914, Prokofiev, the then-emerging enfant terrible of Russian music, traveled to London to meet with the ballet impresario Sergei Diaghilev. Diaghilev commissioned the young composer to write a ballet with a prehistoric or fairy-tale scenario - hoping, perhaps, for the same kind of success he had recently enjoyed with the like-themed ballets of Stravinsky.
The composer settled on a theme centered on a prehistoric tribe of barbarians, the Scythians, known to drink blood and engage in other similarly gruesome practices. The immediate musical result was Ala and Lolli (1914-1915), which Prokofiev first presented to Diaghilev in the form of a nearly complete piano score. Diaghilev, however, rejected the work as too close in spirit to Stravinsky's Rite of Spring, fearing comparisons to the still-new succès du scandale. To placate Prokofiev, Diaghilev commissioned from the dejected composer a new ballet, Chout (1915). Before fulfulling that commission, though, Prokofiev turned his attention back to his orphaned ballet, distilling its most effective numbers into the Scythian Suite.
The suite is cast in four movements whose titles readily evoke the ballet's prehistoric themes: "The Adoration of Veles and Ala," "The Enemy God and Dance of the Spirits of Darkness," "Night," and "The Glorious Departure of Lolly and the Sun's Procession." What is most immediately striking about the score is Prokofiev's brilliant orchestration. The music is the product of a 23 year old, yet it clearly demonstrates the unmistakable confidence, control, and imagination of a seasoned master. The vivid colors and instrumental effects are such that the work, despite its relative unfamiliarity, survives as one of the most brilliant orchestral essays of its era.
The first movement begins savagely, the discordant main theme calling to mind a titanic struggle between monstrous forces. The mood turns quiet but restless, and the sound darkens; here the writing for reeds and harp here is especially brilliant and atmospheric. The second movement is fast and brutal, the rhythms pounding and insistent, the themes menacing and ominous; this is the most unambiguously Russian music of the suite. The first half of "Night" is appropriately dark, the second half explosive and unsettling. "The Glorious Departure" begins with a rush of energy, then slows to a colorful march, followed by a menacing yet comical theme. The suite concludes with a brilliant depiction of the rising sun (18:25).
The Scythian Suite premiered under the composer's baton in St. Petersburg on January 29, 1916.
0:00 - The Adoration of Veles and Ala
5:38 - The Enemy God and the Dance of the Spirits of Darkness
8:49 - Night
15:02 - The Glorious Departure of Lolly and the Procession of the Sun
(The exact names of the movements may vary, as they are translations)
Performed by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra,
Claudio Abbado, conductor

[@amoggvenkat710]

This should be more way popular then it is now.

[@nicosimioni7363]

Oh, it will be... more than you can imagine. S&M2 will make it happen.

[@GonFerrer90]

@@nicosimioni7363 It did. At least I'm here the day after !

[@musisavante6036]

Hey, Check out my Symphonic Poem, inspired by Prokofiev, hope you like it kzbin.info/www/bejne/fKXKgKOcis6lipY

[@razgrizfromacecombat5theun220]

You called for aid, and the TNO fandom answered!

[@jimbuxton2187]

@@nicosimioni7363 ... it's harder than Hell to play plus it has 2 harps..... and eat too loud...

[@wmccpa1545]

P A S S I O N A R I Y Y

[@NationalRise574]

Passion And Power! Eurasia rises!

[@Alex_836]

Pov:State of Eurasia declares war against Germany 1973(Tno reference)

[@theplutonimus]

@@Alex_836 TNO ? Oh my gah ? OFN RULESS 🦅🦅🦅🦅🦅🦅🦅🦅 RAHHHHHHHH GOD BLESS AMERICA, DOWN WITH BORMANN OR WHOEVER ELSE IS IN GERMANY RAHHH 🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️ 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 🦅🦅🦅🦅🦅🦅

[@big_guy_of_leiden5688]

5:38 *binding the continents*

[@nathanpangilinan4397]

Passion and Power

[@landonito4616]

Bro Eurasia Moment

[@MotorGoblin]

I like it. This Prokofiev dude is pretty badass.

[@BainPlays]

MotorGoblin check out his symphony no.2

[@MotorGoblin]

Vexyis Thanks!

[@richrol58]

@@MotorGoblin Romeo and Juliet Suites...(nowhere near as "raucous," but tremendous music)

[@augustbackman3921]

sinfonia concertante is my favorite, go check it out

[@MessiAndA3]

@@richrol58 ice war something comes to mind.

[@JoCox4048]

If they ever decide to make another sequel for Fantasia, this could be the perfect follow up to the Rite of Spring segment from the first film. I feel this segment would show animals from the Ice Ages like mammoths, woolly rhinos, giant deer, cave bears, hyenas, scimitar cats (because the sabertooth cats that we're familiar with, Smilodon , come from the Americas, not Eurasia, where the segment takes place), wolves, and at the end, early humans.

[@nathanpangilinan4397]

5:38 A Window into Eurasia

[@wwatesse]

Binding the Continents

[@torihimemiyasimp9213]

(5:38) "He was a man born into the world to shake the nations, the scourge of all lands, who in some way terrified all mankind by the dreadful rumors noised abroad concerning him." - Jordanes > 'Binding the continents'

[@m.rizalarvandy4510]

I thought that refers to Hermann von Göring, yes, Der Kaiser von Mittelafrikanischerreich. A spot for a weirdo philosopher like Lev Gumilyov is in 6:15

[@RadioFreeVitez]

thx

[@Erde_midget770]

Can't unhear the thunderbolt of god

[@augustuswu7109]

"We are the Scythian people, and we turn the world upside down - like an old barrel!" - Pavel Gorgulov

[@user-ow3lu4bt7t]

@@augustuswu7109 8:03 this part?

[@TyronTention]

"Night" is so pretty and full of nice textures. The harps really makes it.

[@natekite7532]

7:06 Hi Stravinsky!

[@VasilBelezhkov]

7:21 Hi Mussorgsky!

[@dugong_678]

17:24 - 17:48 is absolutely stunning

[@slateflash]

YES!!!! Thank you so much. Heard his live once. The sound... was... FLIPPING INCREDIBLE

[@prokprok12]

You're welcome! Unfortunately I have not yet had the opportunity to hear this live, but I'm sure it's magnificent.

[@dextermorgan5962]

the sheet music is insane just like his second symphony

[@sarahgalassini5188]

So i've never listened to this suite all the way through, although I like prokofiev, and I gotta say, it's awesome

[@alperenaydogan6712]

It's Eurasin' time

[@manuellipstein1354]

Thank you soo much for uploading!! This is definitely one of my favourite pieces.

[@sharonsmithers4464]

I love this it is a fantastic piece of work.

[@2906nico]

This is such an awesome piece. I especially like the wisp of a march in the last movement.

[@elainebmack]

I heard this piece performed by the CSO and Abbado. Incredible! I later bought the CD, and it is one of my treasures.

[@TheSutov]

This is CSO and Abbado

[@gerasgeorg5974]

Masterpiece!

[@ercoleborgiano]

5:38 United Eurasia theme

[@Medtnaculuss]

Your videos are fantastic.

[@LuizBHMG]

Uma das introduções mais incríveis. Que partitura densa, fantástica!

[@mike3325able]

So much story, its fascinating

[@LandersWorkshop]

Brilliant! At the 3 minute part it reminds me of Jaws a bit.

[@coasterdragon155]

this is epic af i love it

[@ashleythorpe7933]

5:40 Something familiar/unsettling in the bass..... You know what I mean

[@theman2624]

Eurasia reference?????

[@davidmayhew8083]

Huh?

[@throckmorton3705]

well, woody allen used it in battle scenes from love and death and of course ELP used part ii, the evil god … for one of their bits.

[@MetFreak42]

The San Francisco Symphony Orchestra just covered this at Metallica's S&M2, and it was fantastic, so figured I should give the original a listen. Not disappointed!

[@carpenter.recordings]

Metallifreak 42 Same! This was awesome!

[@richrol58]

What the hell is S&M2??

[@carpenter.recordings]

@@richrol58 S&M2 stands for Symphony & Metallica 2. S&M2 were 2 Metallica concerts with the San Francisco Symphony orchestra played in September this year. The orchestra played a bit of this piece at some part of the show.

[@trenchrat5359]

@@richrol58 Metallica concert with San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, the 2nd time

[@karlil.1112]

“Covered it” LOL XD

[@fredericfreddyfreddo850]

Splendide

[@ClassicalMusicMan]

0:35 *Volodymyr Shayan Moment and Slavo-Aryanism*

[@Flurkz_]

Магазин рядом с моей школой называется Скиф…

[@Artovna]

Спроси там насчёт конфет "Гумилёвок"

[@marcomenchinelli6768]

5:38 Masterpiece

[@hussamalkaissi4453]

5:40 John William's Jaws two-note motif!

[@kogtrecords5838]

Thats taken from Dvorak 9th symphony 4th movement

[@advaitmahesh6402]

Two note motif from Jaws is very common, and present in many other pieces other than these two

[@matthewsonnenberg303]

John Williams stole a great deal from both Prokofiev and Stravinsky.

[@SiegWitch]

You are the millions, we are multitude And multitude and multitude. Come, fight! Yes, we are Scythians, Yes, Asians, a squint-eyed, greedy brood. -Alexander Blok, 1918

[@ScizorShorts7]

GLORY TO EURASIA

[@Zaleskee]

SUBLIME!!!!

[@mrgoob76]

who else came here from the video classical music for metal heads

[@josebelindo1641]

ELP did this

[@thatguyoverthere531]

Also from S&M2

[@trenchrat5359]

I came from S&M2

[@Aadhitiya_Murali]

me

[@bramlackman-mincoff6616]

Quit reading my mind!

[@superpershingfuntime7325]

I played this song in my marching band

[@SuperDerezzed]

Which school did you go?

[@richrol58]

@@SuperDerezzed Scythia U.?

[@devlinallistair5147]

18:26-19:07. Who composes something like that? It just sounds otherworldly.

[@LandersWorkshop]

It was an otherworldly era in some ways up to WW1.

[@richrol58]

It's supposed to be the sun rising...(to the end of the piece)

[@sivadepilif]

5:39 ELP brought me here!

[@richrol58]

Did they do this in concert?

[@KhunThomat]

Great score, but at 480p a bit blurry... could you also upload it in HD?

[@natekite7532]

You can download this for free off IMSLP if you want it.

[@sneddypie]

Nate Kite i dont think prokofiev's music is in the public domain.

[@rcomo520]

This is way to blurry to follow along. I love this piece and have seen the score.

[@sfmdude568]

@@sneddypie This one is. At least in the US.

[@sneddypie]

@@sfmdude568 but prokofiev has died less than 70 years ago

[@Napoleonlegros]

No pubs!

[@patrickstults3132]

I generally don't care for Prokofieff, but this... IS GREAT.

[@EntelSidious_gamzeylmz]

this is pretty typical prok though🤔

[@annavoloshina5643]

Не знаю что не понравилось Глазунову в восходе солнца. Мне все нравится)

[@vya974]

после стакана водки Глазунову ничего не нравилось.

[@iamliion6913]

mars vibe

[@nickarteaga175]

Rite of Spring 2 Electric Boogaloo

[@themosterstoster7587]

That celesta part in night 😫😫😩😩

[@georgeward4617]

How do you start to write such music ???

[@fcim7098]

If I hadn't seen that it was Prokofiev I would have been sure it was Stravinskij.

[@hammerfall321]

Yeah, thes crazy violins and high strings reminds of stravinskij, and the flute xDD

[@BrentLeVasseur]

Hey bro, good music choices, but if you are going to post the scores do it in a high enough resolution so we can actually read the score. 480p video doesn’t cut it for an orchestral score.

[@GonFerrer90]

Here after S&M² ? 5:38

[@feyindecay912]

Perfect music for exploring apocrypha in skyrim ^^

[@sbareg]

Oh you're so right 😃!! It's been years I haven't played to Skyrim... That's it, you win, I'll get into it tomorrow 😁👍

[@theman2624]

fits better for binding continents

[@gerdlindlar1980]

overwhelming

[@richrol58]

5:38--Circle the wagons--the injuns is comin'!!

[@nathanpangilinan4397]

*Eurasians

[@nathanhol42001]

I totally hear Stravinsky, particularly Le Chant du Rossignol

[@vacuumlover1]

Le Sacre Du Printemps 👀👀👀👀

[@catherinehamer5653]

Please please someone restore this as a choreographed ballet.....it is a terrifying score but no-one has ever composed or unleashed anything more wild and pagan than Prokofiev's Scythian suite. Not even Stravinsky. Has any ballet company attempted this score?

[@cicook7]

I,agree it has soo much movement

[@gordon9232]

I dont think anyone has, i thought Prokofiev wrote the ballet, it got cancelled, then he scrapped his best pieces from it to make the scythian suite.

[@Xenlavian]

Outta my way, Atlanticist cringelords. This is EURASIAN SUPERETHNOS territory

[@itdepends604]

Your eurasian supercringe will make way for OCEANIC SUPERTHANOS.

[@LandersWorkshop]

LOL.

[@tarikeld11]

0:20 sounds like Star Wars

[@MrJedroi258]

5:38 gdy twoja stara jest marlibem w tomsku

[@sneffels_]

Thanks! Too bad the video quality is only 480p, it's hard to read notes in a full-score page.

[@sneddypie]

dude the third movement tho

[@ezerinkadir396]

Metallica brought me here. Anyone?

[@trenchrat5359]

Same S&M2 brought me here

[@trenchrat5359]

@@ricardolopesmacetti4142 kzbin.info/www/bejne/nIbUnYZufdyNd5I It was part of the S&M2 concert

[@MengjiangTO]

@Ender Lord lol

[@DKrueger1994]

@@ricardolopesmacetti4142 The San Francisco Symphony Orchestra played this in part of the S&M2 album

[@aragorn767]

Hulkoff.

[@Wiktor_Smolak]

5:38 TNO REFRENCE?!?!?!/1/1

[@Banbabna]

Hello tabby

[@benjamingardner3314]

Escaflowne brought me here.

[@Weatheredcutcopperstairs]

This sounds like taboritsky except he got a Tumor from compound V

[@Artovna]

9:26 Star wars?

[@dacoconutnut9503]

Stravinsky? Is that you?

[@johanntimsimon]

No. It's me - Prokofiev!

[@magarac99]

Manly music

[@magarac99]

Closed fist

[@sonicpetal]

1080p would be a minimum

[@jace_Henderson]

Same general type of style as HTTYD.

[@1984-XIXc.]

Star Wars.

[@electricelf-music]

Was just thinking that it would fit right into the films

[@anferramuca]

@@electricelf-music John Williams, Jerry Goldsmith, Zimmer and many other composers, have always taken as inspiration, reference and even plagiarism of Russian composers, they themselves have declared that they are fans of Shostakovich and Prokofiev among others

[@donaldmcwilliams487]

Here because of Metallica to be honest!!!

[@TheSutov]

I lo e much of Prokofjev, but this music is really firesome and arbitrary at timed, pushy, too octatonish, competing with Igor, a work of a young slightly selfish pianist. Compare Bartok and Stravinsky:

[@douwemusic]

Definitely not one of Prokofiev's best

[@chairmannom9507]

If this is his worst, then that's still a very high bar

[@patricklaffin2172]

Really!? I think it’s amazing! So intense