These five songs held special significance for Prokofiev: they are settings of works by one of his favorite poets and friends, Konstantin Balmont; and they are compositions he dedicated to his future wife, the Spanish singer Lina Llubera (whose real name was Carolina Codina), whom he married in 1923. Ironically, Prokofiev's friendship with Balmont would wither and his marriage to Lina would end in divorce, though she remained a strong supporter of him and his works until her death in London in 1989, at age 91.

The theme of all the texts here is nature, its creatures and its forces, the sadnesses and hopes man sees in it. The first song, "Incantation of Water and Fire," is melancholy and mysterious, powerfully atmospheric in invoking vivid images of the dark forces implied in the text. "The Voice of the Birds" follows, not an effort at picture-painting of winged creatures but an effective conveyance of a deeper philosophical view of love and nature.

No. 3, "The Butterfly," is, on the surface, brighter than anything else in the collection, but as it proceeds its playfulness peters out as human elements are mentioned in the text. The fourth song, "Remember Me," is an obsessive work whose tense music captures the desperation in the text, as its repeating phrase "Remember me" comes across as a frantic plea. "The Pillars," the last item in the set, is one of the darkest and most disturbing of Prokofiev's songs. Its depressing text speaks of lonely funerals by the "black sea," dark winters, and mournful feelings. While Prokofiev's music paints a bleak atmosphere, it does not wallow in the dark mists and unshakeable, pre-Prozac depression that grips the text. Rather, the song develops tension in its anxiety, vaguely suggesting escape from its awful netherworld. In the end, however, a quicksand of hopelessness forbids exit and the music ends despairingly.

In sum, these songs will certainly not appeal to a wide audience, but will offer rewards to those seeking profound and often disturbing vocal music.

© Robert Cummings, Rovi