Protopopov: Piano Sonata no. 1 op. 1 (Spee)

Sergei Vladimirovich Protopopov ( 2 April 1893, Moscow – 14 December 1954, Moscow) was a Russian avant-garde composer and music theorist. He was associated, as many composers of the Russian avant-garde, with the Association for Contemporary Music. Due to the ideological incompatibility of avant-garde with the contemporary regime supporting socialist realism, his works were mostly unknown following 1931. Both in his compositions and in his teaching, Protopopov was a strong supporter of Yavorsky's theories of modal rhythm and tritone. He also maintained a close relationship with him. Protopopov's compositions include three piano sonatas and some vocal works with piano. The piano sonatas were strongly influenced by late Scriabin. Using simultaneously sounding semitones, he created a specific harmony. Technically, they are very demanding for the interpreter, as well as for the instrument—they employ full standard range of piano, sometimes going even beyond that. The piano sonatas are often notated in three staves, and for simplicity accidentals take effect only at the given note.

The Sonata for piano, Op. 1, written in 1922, is a relatively traditional work in a good old-fashioned three-movement structure. In this piece, one can detect a clear influence of late-romantic Russian composers – especially Alexander Scriabin. Even though Protopopov was experimenting with post-tonal harmony and used octatonic scales and tritone relations for all thematic material and texturing, the piece is still quite pleasant to the ear. The essence of his personal style is already there, but this piece is not as wild as his later works

Timestamps:

0:00 Portrait & Cover
0:00 I.
4:15 II.
7:41 III.

Composed by Sergei Vladimirovich Protopopov in 1920-1922
Dedication: Boleslav Yavorsky
Piano: Mattias Spee

Score available in IMSLP