Sergei Prokofjew

Sonata op. 119

Prokofiev’s late Cello Sonata is inextricably linked with the name Mstislav Rostropovich. The then twenty-year-old cellist delighted the composer to such an extent during a performance in Moscow in 1947 that he spontaneously promised him a work tailored to his capabilities. In June 1949, they jointly put the finishing touches on the technically very demanding duo sonata. It was played for the first time that same month before the State Committee for Art Affairs. For the printed version, a breakneck concluding passage was mitigated by an easier alternative – which probably contributed considerably to the dissemination of the sonata.

The present Henle Urtext edition offers this twentieth-century cello masterpiece for the first time on the basis of all the authentic sources. In his preface, Prokofiev specialist Simon Morrison sheds light on the creation and publication of the sonata in the context of Soviet cultural policy.