4. Diabolical Suggestion

This piece truly requires attention to many details. First, and very fundamentally, eliminate any misreading of the score. I have heard many performances, and misreadings are surprisingly common. Some even misread the treble and bass clefs. Please check the score repeatedly to eliminate any reading errors.

Next, it is crucial to understand Prokofiev's style. Without knowledge of Neoclassicism and Prokofiev's music, this piece is unplayable.

Often, performers apply rubato abruptly for the first 19 measures. Rubato is forbidden in this kind of music. Maintain the tempo strictly. The tempo marking is prestissimo. The tempo is fast from the beginning, not just from measure 27. Related to tempo, the tempo remains consistent from the beginning to the end of this piece. Do not waste time in unnecessary places. The glissando in measures 108-109 should also be in tempo, resulting in an extremely fast glissando. Maintaining a single tempo throughout the piece is so crucial that it is no exaggeration to say it is the lifeblood of this work. Never break the tempo, no matter what section you are in.

Another common problem is the lack of clarity in the music. You must understand which notes constitute the melodic line in each section, or which notes need to be brought out, and then convey that to the audience. This makes the music very clear, but it is a common phenomenon in this piece for performers to overuse the pedal, creating a muddled sound, failing to bring out the top voice, and resulting in an incomprehensible performance. Use the pedal sparingly, articulate clearly, and bring out important notes distinctly, no matter how difficult the passage.

Next, an explanation of direction. For example, the melodic line in measure 27 is D-sharp, F-sharp, F-sharp, F, E, E-flat, D. In this short line, the loudest note should be the final D. You must build towards this D, creating a sense of approaching intensity.

Finally, when performing this piece, there is a very helpful work I would like to introduce: his opera The Love for Three Oranges. This opera is a relatively early work, and it features a devil character. The devil growls and begins to dance; this image corresponds to measures 81 and 83. Furthermore, where the scene changes in the opera, string instruments play fast ascending and descending scale passages. Therefore, measure 105 is precisely that section; use the pedal to play it as if it were a glissando.

Conclusion: In any case, listening extensively to Prokofiev's music is crucial for performing this piece. In addition to the opera The Love for Three Oranges, listen to many orchestral works such as the Scythian Suite. And thoroughly master his style.