It's not so much Peter And The Wolf that I remember from school, more Carnival Of The Animals, as our music teacher stuck on a crackly old record to reveal how Saint-Saens could capture the essence of various living creatures through different orchestral instruments.
The Prokofiev piece is, however, the clear model of The Boy And The Bunnet, a lively little folk tale by James Ross (music) and James Robertson (story, with Gaelic interpretation by Aonghas MacNeacail) that sends brave young Neil into the dark forest in search of his bonny bunnet when it's stolen by a crow.
Ross's compositions – further enhanced by the musicians who play them – work hand-in-hand with Gerda Stevenson's narration to bring scenes and characters to vivid life. It's easy to visualise Neil's youthful sense of wonder in his fiddle motif; likewise the proud nature of the Stag (bagpipes), the mysterious grace of the Selkie (harp) and the weight of wisdom in Neil's Granny (cello). By cleverly selecting the instrumental palette, this music has Scotland in its DNA.
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