Prokofiev, Sonata No. 7, Part 3, “Precipitato”

This is an amateur performance of one of the more difficult pieces I’ve ever attempted. Prokofiev let his true feelings about Stalin spill into his three “War Sonatas,” nos. 6-8, written in 1942. The war sonatas are tumultuous, chromatic, and dissonant. The finale to no. 7, the “Precipitato,” is a relentless tocatta in septuple time. It has been described as a “an explosive burst of rock’n’roll with a chromatic edge” (Piano Sonata No. 7 (Prokofiev) – Wikipedia). It is great fun to play.