🇷🇺Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev ： Things in Themselves Op.45

Prokofiev’s “Things in Themselves,” Op. 45 No. 1, is a miniature that creates tension through sharp rhythms and dissonant sonorities rather than relying on the stability of a clear tonal center. Short motives appear fragmentarily and change shape, while sudden contrasts of dynamics and register drive the music forward. A key point of interest is the contrast between percussive attacks and the linear sonorities that emerge for a moment. In performance, it is important not to let the notes become overly heavy or blurred, and to observe the placement of accents and rests precisely. Rather than treating the music mechanically, bring out the direction of each phrase and the changing tension from one passage to the next; this highlights the work’s dry sharpness and unsettled momentum.