Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor born in the late nineteenth century in what today is known as eastern Ukraine. Composing his first music at the age of five, he entered St. Petersburg Conservatory at the age of thirteen and made his first public appearance four years later. Soon he made his name known nationwide, but after the February Revolution, he realized that he had little scope in Russia and left first for USA and then for France with an official passport. Later he returned to his homeland and by the age of fifty-four began to be counted as the foremost composer of Soviet Union. Unfortunately soon after that, he fell foul with the authorities and had eight of his major works banned from public performances. His last years were spent in ill health and financial constraints, but a few years after his death, he once again began to be counted as one of the best Russian composers working in every genre of music, including symphonies, concerti, film music, operas, ballets, and program pieces.