  |
|
January 17, 2005
JELANI EDDINGTON PERFORMS WORLD THEATRE ORGAN PREMIERE OF PETER AND THE WOLF
FULLERTON, CALIFORNIA. On January 16, 2005, Jelani Eddington joined forces with celebrity narrator George Woods to give the
world's first ever performance for theatre pipe organ of Sergei Prokofiev's musical fairy tale for children, Peter And The Wolf.
Prokofiev's tale recounts the story of a young, brave Peter and his friends (a bird, cat, and duck) who do battle with
and capture a big, gray, menacing wolf. Prokofiev composed this work in April 1936 (reportedly in a single week) for a children's theatre
in Moscow. Originally scored for orchestra and narrator, each character in the tale (Peter, the cat, the duck, the bird, Peter's Grandfather,
the hunters, and the wolf) is represented by a different instrument in the orchestra.
Because the theatre organ faitfully replicates the sounds found in an orchestra, the transcription of
Peter And The Wolf on the theatre organ was a natural and successful transition. Nevertheless, the work had never before
been performed on the theatre organ.
However, on January 16, 2005, Jelani performed the work at the 4/36 Wurlitzer
at the Louis A. Plummer Auditorium in Fullerton, California as part of Wurlitzer Weekend No. 9. The performance was extremely
well received, and plans are in progress to release the performance on a compact disc later this year.
Stay tuned for further details of the recording.
The story of Peter And The Wolf reads as follows:
Early one morning Peter opened the gate and went out into the big green meadow. On a branch of a big tree sat a
little bird, Peter’s friend. “All is quiet,” chirped the bird merrily. Just then a duck came waddling ‘round. She was
glad that Peter had not closed the gate, and decided to take a nice swim in the deep pond in the meadow. Seeing the duck,
the little bird flew down upon the grass, settled next to her and shrugged his shoulders: “What kind of bird are you,
if you can’t fly?” said the bird. To this the duck replied: “what kind of bird are you if you can’t swim?”, and dived
into the pond.
They argued and argued, the duck swimming in the pond, the little bird hopping along the shore. Suddenly,
something caught Peter’s attention. He noticed a cat crawling through the grass. The cat thought: “The bird is busy
arguing. I’ll just grab him.” Stealthily she crept towards him on her velvet paws. “Look out!” shouted Peter, and the
bird immediately flew up into the tree . . . while the duck quacked angrily at the cat. . . from the safety of the middle
of the pond.
The cat walked ‘round the tree and thought: “Is it worth climbing up so high? By the time I get there the bird will
have flown away.” Grandfather came out. He was angry because Peter had gone into the meadow. “It is a dangerous place. If
a wolf should come out of the forest, then what would you do?” Peter paid no attention to his grandfather’s worlds. Boys
like him are not afraid of wolves. But grandfather took Peter by the hand, locked the gate and led him home.
No sooner had Peter gone, than a big gray wolf came out of the forest. Like lightning, the cat climbed up the tree.
The duck quacked, and in her excitement foolishly jumped out of the pond. But no matter how hard the duck tried to run . . .
she couldn’t escape the wolf. He was getting nearer . . . and nearer . . . and nearer . . . catching up with her. And then,
he got her, and with one gulp, swallowed her.
And now, this is how things stood: the cat was sitting on one branch, the bird on another . . . not too close to the
cat. And the wolf walked ‘round and ‘round the tree looking at them with greedy eyes. Peter, in the meantime, without the
slightest fear, stood behind the closed gate watching all that was going on. He ran home, got a strong rope and climbed up
the stone wall. One of the branches of the tree, ‘round which the wolf was walking, stretched out over the wall.
Grabbing hold of the branch, Peter lightly climbed over onto the tree. Peter said to the bird: “Fly down and circle
round the wolf’s head; only take care that he doesn’t catch you.” The bird almost touched the wolf’s head with his wings,
while the wolf snapped angrily at him. How the bird did worry the wolf and how he wanted to catch him! But the bird was
cleverer, and the wolf simply couldn’t do anything about it.
Meanwhile, Peter made a lasso and, carefully letting it down, caught the wolf by the tail and pulled with all his
might. Feeling himself caught, the wolf began to jump wildly trying to get loose. But Peter tied the other end of the rope
to the tree, and the wolf’s jumping only made the rope ‘round his tail tighter.
Just then, out of the woods came the hunters, following the wolf’s trail, and shooting as they went. But Peter
sitting in the tree said “Don’t Shoot Don’t Shoot”. Birdie and I have caught the wolf. Now help us to take him to the zoo.
And now, imagine the triumphant procession: Peter at the head . . .After him, the hunters leading the wolf. . . .And
winding up the procession, grandfather and the cat. Grandfather tossed his head discontentedly: “Well, and if Peter hadn’t
caught the wolf, what then?”
Above them flew birdie chirping merrily. And if one would listen very carefully, he could hear the duck quacking
inside the wolf: because the wolf in his hurry had swallowed her alive.
|
|
