Singer Secada to join PB Symphony for updated 'Peter and the Wolf'

Sergei Prokofiev’s orchestral folktale "Peter and the Wolf," which doubles as an introduction to the instruments of the orchestra, has been a staple of programming for children’s audiences almost since its debut in the late 1930s.

Today’s young audiences, though, are not as likely to enjoy one of the events in this tale: A duck being swallowed whole by a gray wolf.

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With that in mind, the Palm Beach Symphony will present an updated version of the story in a concert Oct. 16, with narrator Jon Secada. A three-time Grammy winner, Secada is a Cuban-American who grew up in Hialeah and has enjoyed a major career in Latin pop music.

“We focus on the story and the music equally to create something we hope will fascinate children and adults alike,” said Gerard Schwarz, the orchestra’s director, in a prepared statement. Earlier this year, Schwarz and the Palm Beach Symphony presented another instrument-introduction tale for children, "Eudora’s Fable," with a score by the American composer Samuel Jones.

"Peter and the Wolf" was commissioned from Prokofiev by a Moscow children’s theater in 1936, supplying him with a tale of Soviet virtue that Prokofiev then rewrote to make it more appealing to children. In the story, a young Russian boy named Peter (depicted by the strings) has gone into the meadow, leaving the gate open at the house where he lives with his grandfather. The duck (oboe) in the backyard escapes, heading for a swim in the meadow’s pond, where she is joined by a bird (flute) who argues with the duck about whether birds should swim or fly.

Peter sees a cat (clarinet) stalking the bird, and warns it, allowing the bird to escape and the duck to swim to the middle of the pond. Peter’s grandfather (bassoon) arrives, angry with Peter, reminding him that wolves are lurking in the forest, and takes him home, where he locks the gate. A wolf (three horns) then comes out of the woods, chases the duck and swallows it.

Seeing all this, Peter climbs the wall at his house and jumps onto a large tree, then lowers a lasso onto the ground, catching the wolf by the tail. Hunters who have been chasing the wolf come into the meadow, and Peter pleads with the hunters not to shoot, but to instead take the captive wolf to the zoo. During the victory parade that follows, the duck can still be heard, quacking away inside the wolf’s belly.

Although the first performances of the work were less than successful, its fortunes improved, especially after Prokofiev conducted the American premiere of the work in Boston in 1938. Since then it has become the composer’s most popular and often-performed piece, not just for its easy-to-understand, exciting story, but its instantly memorable musical themes.

The new story, written by Schwarz’s wife, Jody, a writer and musician, turns the same characters into musicians who must learn to play together.

“Together they learn to accept their differences, play together as chamber musicians, and finally join to create an orchestra and make magical music together,” Jody Schwarz said. “The joy this brings them and their community at the final concert is palpable … These once wary and diverse characters, united in music, become lifelong friends sharing a greater purpose together than alone.”

This new adaptation of the tale, retitled "The Adventures of Peter and the Wolf," will be recorded in two versions, one with English and the other with Spanish narration, and will be made available to PBS television stations nationwide.

The concert is set for 3 p.m. Oct. 16, at the Eissey Campus Theater on the campus of Palm Beach State College in Palm Beach Gardens. Tickets are $20, or $10 for students and teachers. They can be had by calling 561-281-0145, stopping by the Palm Beach Symphony box office from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. weekdays at 400 Hibiscus St. In West Palm Beach, or by visiting palmbeachsymphony.org.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Daily News: Palm Beach Symphony, Jon Secada team for recast 'Peter and the Wolf'