Peter and the Wolf

The NHSO has been presenting concerts for young people for 80 years beginning in 1931. This year’s concerts will feature Prokofiev's time honored orchestral classic Peter and the Wolf.  

Peter and the Wolf is a time honored Orchestral Masterpiece that has been bringing children and their families into the world of orchestral music since it was first commissioned by master Russian composer Sergei Prokofiev more then 70 years ago, in 1936. The story tells of Peter, a brave and resourceful little boy, who ventures out to a nearby meadow without his grandfather’s permission. He is accompanied by a bird (played by the flute), a cat (played by the clarinet) and a duck (played by the oboe) on his journey. As the story continues, Peter encounters other characters played by their musical counterparts: his Grandfather (Bassoon), the Wolf (French Horns), Hunters (with gunshots from the Timpani). Peter’s cheerful theme is played by the entire string section. A narrator tells the story as children’s imaginations race with the images of this vivid and engaging tale.
 

Students who attend this years Young People’s Concert will, as always, experience an unforgettable, LIVE, orchestral performance by the New Haven Symphony Orchestra, directed by their world renowned conductor, William Boughton. In addition, students will learn how music can be used to tell as story. They will be engaged creatively as their imaginations combine the sounds of the symphony and words of the narrator into an experience which will be all their own. During the concert performance and in the curriculum guide, which will be provided to schools attending the concert, students will meet and interact with the instruments of the Orchestra and the professional musicians who play them. The curriculum guide provided to each school will also address the musical concepts that are prescribed in the Connecticut Educational Standards for Music along with cross curricular connections to the Educational Standards of related content areas.
 

Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf has stood the test of time in music education for over 70 years. We at the New Haven Symphony are proud to present this orchestral classic to the children of Connecticut in this year’s Young People’s Concerts.