Sergei Prokofieff and Overture sur des Thèmes Juifs

This chamber music piece by Prokofieff deserves much more wider recognition. It is scored for a string quartet, clarinet solo and piano; the usage of the clarinet is typical in a Klezmer tradition.

Typical in a Ashkenazi-Klezmer style the piece begins on a V-I alternating bass:

Figure: S. Prokofieff, Overture sur des Thèmes Juifs, beginning
28#28
The choice of C minor, a minor tonality as it was noted above for most of Gershwin's songs is worth noting. Unlike Western cultures, the minor tonality in most Middle-East cultures actually serves a ``happy'' role! The clarinet solo5.11 is also very typical ``klezmerish'' sounding, the augmented second intervals should be noted as well.
Figure: Main theme on clarinet, a typical Klezmer setting accentuated with the violins
29#29
The interplay of several descending augmented seconds in the piano part with the E30#30 and C24#24 clashes at the third bar, violins 1 and 2 with the viola added to the pedal tone C on the bass , sparingly and masterfully creates the desired rejoicings atmosphere in a Klezmer style.
Figure: A very middle-eastern sounding passage
31#31
Mehmet Okonsar 2011-03-14