Sonata No. 2 (Scriabin)
Encyclopedia
Scriabin
's Piano Sonata No. 2 in G sharp minor, (Op.
19, also titled Sonata-Fantasy) took five years for him to write. It was finally published in 1897, at the urging of his publisher. The piece is in two movements, with a style combining Chopin
-like Romanticism
with an impressionistic
touch. This piece is widely appreciated and although obscure, it is one of Scriabin's more popular pieces.
The first movement Andante begins with echoing effects, followed by two lyrically themed sections. After a short climax, the piece modulates to E major
(also C-sharp minor) and lyrical sections are restated with a slightly more complicated accompaniment. The second movement Presto, in sharp contrast to the first movement, is very fast and intense. In fact, at the given tempo indication, the second movement averages nearly 15 notes per second, making it comparable to an étude
. Alternating crescendo
s and decrescendo
s may give the listener the impression of waves.
The precedent of Beethoven's 'Moonlight' Sonata allowed Scriabin the luxury of an opening slow movement to his Second Sonata, whose programme reads thus:
"The first section represents the quiet of a southern night on the seashore; the development is the dark agitation of the deep, deep sea. The E major middle section shows caressing moonlight coming up after the first darkness of night. The second movement represents the vast expanse of ocean in stormy agitation."
Like Scriabin's other sonatas, it is both technically and musically highly demanding for the pianist and is written for large hands (in fact, there is an enormous reach of a twelfth, although many pianists will agree that this implies an unnotated arpeggio
). The piece lasts about 11 minutes.
Alexander Scriabin
Alexander Nikolayevich Scriabin was a Russian composer and pianist who initially developed a lyrical and idiosyncratic tonal language inspired by the music of Frédéric Chopin. Quite independent of the innovations of Arnold Schoenberg, Scriabin developed an increasingly atonal musical system,...
's Piano Sonata No. 2 in G sharp minor, (Op.
Opus number
An Opus number , pl. opera and opuses, abbreviated, sing. Op. and pl. Opp. refers to a number generally assigned by composers to an individual composition or set of compositions on publication, to help identify their works...
19, also titled Sonata-Fantasy) took five years for him to write. It was finally published in 1897, at the urging of his publisher. The piece is in two movements, with a style combining Chopin
Frédéric Chopin
Frédéric François Chopin was a Polish composer and virtuoso pianist. He is considered one of the great masters of Romantic music and has been called "the poet of the piano"....
-like Romanticism
Romantic music
Romantic music or music in the Romantic Period is a musicological and artistic term referring to a particular period, theory, compositional practice, and canon in Western music history, from 1810 to 1900....
with an impressionistic
Impressionist music
Impressionism in music was a tendency in European classical music, mainly in France, which appeared in the late nineteenth century and continued into the middle of the twentieth century. Similarly to its precursor in the visual arts, musical impressionism focuses on a suggestion and an atmosphere...
touch. This piece is widely appreciated and although obscure, it is one of Scriabin's more popular pieces.
The first movement Andante begins with echoing effects, followed by two lyrically themed sections. After a short climax, the piece modulates to E major
E major
E major is a major scale based on E, with the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. Its key signature has four sharps .Its relative minor is C-sharp minor, and its parallel minor is E minor....
(also C-sharp minor) and lyrical sections are restated with a slightly more complicated accompaniment. The second movement Presto, in sharp contrast to the first movement, is very fast and intense. In fact, at the given tempo indication, the second movement averages nearly 15 notes per second, making it comparable to an étude
Étude
An étude , is an instrumental musical composition, most commonly of considerable difficulty, usually designed to provide practice material for perfecting a particular technical skill. The tradition of writing études emerged in the early 19th century with the rapidly growing popularity of the piano...
. Alternating crescendo
Dynamics (music)
In music, dynamics normally refers to the volume of a sound or note, but can also refer to every aspect of the execution of a given piece, either stylistic or functional . The term is also applied to the written or printed musical notation used to indicate dynamics...
s and decrescendo
Dynamics (music)
In music, dynamics normally refers to the volume of a sound or note, but can also refer to every aspect of the execution of a given piece, either stylistic or functional . The term is also applied to the written or printed musical notation used to indicate dynamics...
s may give the listener the impression of waves.
The precedent of Beethoven's 'Moonlight' Sonata allowed Scriabin the luxury of an opening slow movement to his Second Sonata, whose programme reads thus:
"The first section represents the quiet of a southern night on the seashore; the development is the dark agitation of the deep, deep sea. The E major middle section shows caressing moonlight coming up after the first darkness of night. The second movement represents the vast expanse of ocean in stormy agitation."
Like Scriabin's other sonatas, it is both technically and musically highly demanding for the pianist and is written for large hands (in fact, there is an enormous reach of a twelfth, although many pianists will agree that this implies an unnotated arpeggio
Arpeggio
An arpeggio is a musical technique where notes in a chord are played or sung in sequence, one after the other, rather than ringing out simultaneously...
). The piece lasts about 11 minutes.