In 1936, Sergei Prokofiev was commissioned by Natalya Sats and the Central Children's Theatre in Moscow to write a new musical symphony for children. The intent was to cultivate "musical tastes in children from the first years of school".[1] Intrigued by the invitation, Prokofiev completed Peter and the Wolf in just four days.[2] The debut on 2 May 1936 was, in the composer's words, inauspicious at best: "... [attendance] was poor and failed to attract much attention".[3]
The first concert performance of the work outside Russia was by the Dublin Orchestral Players under the direction of Brian Boydell on 9 June 1942 in Dublin, Ireland.[4]