On 20 June 1939 Prokofiev's close friend and professional associate, the director Vsevolod Meyerhold, was arrested by the NKVD (Stalin's Secret Police) just before he was due to rehearse Prokofiev's new opera Semyon Kotko; he was shot on 2 February 1940. Although his death was not publicly acknowledged, let alone widely known about until after Stalin's reign, the brutal murder of Meyerhold's wife, Zinaida Raikh, less than a month after his arrest was a notorious event. Only months afterwards, Prokofiev was 'invited' to compose Zdravitsa (literally translated 'Cheers!', but more often given the English title Hail to Stalin) (Op. 85) to celebrate Joseph Stalin's 60th birthday.
| Date of composition | 1942 |
| Premiered | 1943, January 18th in Russia, Moscow |
| Type | Sonata |
| Tonality | B-flat Major |
| Catalogue | Op. 83 |
| Instruments | Piano |
| Autotranslations beta |
Sergueï Prokofiev: Sonate pour piano n°7 en si bémol majeur, Op. 83 Sergej Sergeevič Prokof'ev: Sonata per pianoforte n. 7 in si bemolle maggiore, Op. 83 Sergei Sergejewitsch Prokofjew: Sonate Nr. 7 für Klavier B-dur, Op. 83 |