Music can be used to tell stories, sometimes they are not clear and it's more of a feeling, but sometimes, like this one, they're telling a story just like a book would. This is the story of Peter and the Wolf. Peter and the Wolf is a musical story written by the Russian composer Sergei Prokofiev in 1936. He wrote the music as an introduction for his younger listeners to the orchestra with each character being represented by an instrument (or instrument family).
Brief summary of the story... The story is about a boy named Peter who lives with his grandfather. Grandfather does not want Peter going out of their garden because there are wolves around. One day Peter goes out the garden gate and sees a duck swimming in a nearby pond. The duck is arguing with a little bird. Peter sees a cat approaching and warns the little bird who flies up into a tree. Just then, Peter's grandfather comes outside and scolds Peter for going out of the garden. They go back into the garden and Grandfather locks the gate. Soon a wolf does appear from the woods. The cat climbs a tree to escape the wolf, but the duck is swallowed by the hungry wolf. Peter gets a rope and climbs over the garden wall into a tree. The bird distracts the wolf by flying over his head while Peter lowers a noose and catches the wolf by his tail. Hunters then come out of the woods and fire at the wolf but Peter stops them. They all bring the wolf to the zoo and at the end, the duck can be heard quacking in the wolf's stomach. When you are finished listening to the story, use this sheet (click here to download) to help you organize your thoughts. Can you tell which character is represented by which instrument? Why do you think those instruments were chosen? Do you think it suits them? Tell me why, or why not!
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