Alexander Nevsky (Prokofiev) - Alexander Nevsky (film Music)

Alexander Nevsky (film Music)

The score was Prokofiev's third for a film, following Lieutenant Kijé (1934) and Pique Dame (1936). It was composed of 23 sections, and Prokofiev was heavily involved not just with the composition, but with the recording as well. He experimented with different microphone distances in order to achieve the desired sound. Horns meant to represent the Teutonic Knights, for instance, were played close enough to the microphones to produce a crackling, distorted sound. The brass and choral groups were recorded in different studios and the separate pieces were later mixed.

Prokofiev employed different sections of the orchestra, as well as different compositional styles, to evoke the necessary imagery. For instance, the Teutonic Knights (seen as the adversary) are represented by heavy brass instruments, playing discordant notes in a martial style. The sympathetic Russian forces are represented predominantly by folk-like instruments such as woodwind and strings, often playing quasi-folksong style music.

In 1993, the first commercial recording of the original film score was made for a new edition of the film, in which Prokofiev's score was entirely re-recorded by the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus conducted by Yuri Temirkanov. While the new version of the film was released in 1995, the score was recorded on March 16 and 17, 1993 in Philharmonic Hall, St. Petersburg and released on the RCA Victor Red Seal label. The first recording of the complete score, reconstructed from the original manuscripts, was recorded by in 2003 Frank Strobel conducting the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin and released on Capriccio Records.