Sonata No. 4 (Scriabin)
Encyclopedia
The Piano Sonata
No. 4 in F sharp major, Op. 30, was written by Alexander Scriabin
in 1903. It consists of two movements, Andante and Prestissimo volando, and is the shortest of Scriabin's sonatas (a typical performance takes about 8 minutes).
style, similar to Scriabin's other works of the time, and the mood could be described as erotic. The first movement, expressive and calm, is monothematic (based on a single theme). The second movement, celebratory and climatic, starts attacca right after the Andante movement.
A more Romantic
idea is the use of cyclic form
in restating the Andante’s main theme (dolcissimo) as the ecstatic climax of the Prestissimo volando movement (Focosamente, giubiloso). This outlay appears closely related to the last two movements from the 3rd sonata
, also linked by an attacca, where the climax of the finale likewise restates the lyrical Andante theme of the third movement. Russian composers such as Tchaikovsky
or Rachmaninoff
often restated the lyric theme of the finale movement as climactic coda
(for example in the piano concerto
s). Scriabin instead returns to the ‘slow’ movement’s theme, and this may have led to further experiments with a condensation of form in the one-single-movement 5th sonata where the climax (estatico) is again a restatement of the Languido theme (dolcissimo).
Piano sonata
A piano sonata is a sonata written for a solo piano. Piano sonatas are usually written in three or four movements, although some piano sonatas have been written with a single movement , two movements , five or even more movements...
No. 4 in F sharp major, Op. 30, was written by Alexander Scriabin
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,...
in 1903. It consists of two movements, Andante and Prestissimo volando, and is the shortest of Scriabin's sonatas (a typical performance takes about 8 minutes).
Stylistic traits
The sonata is written in a post-RomanticRomantic 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....
style, similar to Scriabin's other works of the time, and the mood could be described as erotic. The first movement, expressive and calm, is monothematic (based on a single theme). The second movement, celebratory and climatic, starts attacca right after the Andante movement.
A more Romantic
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....
idea is the use of cyclic form
Cyclic form
Cyclic form is a technique of musical construction, involving multiple sections or movements, in which a theme, melody, or thematic material occurs in more than one movement as a unifying device. Sometimes a theme may occur at the beginning and end Cyclic form is a technique of musical...
in restating the Andante’s main theme (dolcissimo) as the ecstatic climax of the Prestissimo volando movement (Focosamente, giubiloso). This outlay appears closely related to the last two movements from the 3rd sonata
Sonata No. 3 (Scriabin)
The Piano Sonata No. 3 in F sharp minor, Op. 23, by Alexander Scriabin was composed between 1897 and 1898. The piece is one of Scriabin's early piano sonatas, but does exhibit some modernistic traits.-Background:...
, also linked by an attacca, where the climax of the finale likewise restates the lyrical Andante theme of the third movement. Russian composers such as Tchaikovsky
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Russian: Пётр Ильи́ч Чайко́вский ; often "Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky" in English. His names are also transliterated "Piotr" or "Petr"; "Ilitsch", "Il'ich" or "Illyich"; and "Tschaikowski", "Tschaikowsky", "Chajkovskij"...
or Rachmaninoff
Sergei Rachmaninoff
Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of the last great representatives of Romanticism in Russian classical music...
often restated the lyric theme of the finale movement as climactic coda
Coda (music)
Coda is a term used in music in a number of different senses, primarily to designate a passage that brings a piece to an end. Technically, it is an expanded cadence...
(for example in the piano concerto
Piano concerto
A piano concerto is a concerto written for piano and orchestra.See also harpsichord concerto; some of these works are occasionally played on piano...
s). Scriabin instead returns to the ‘slow’ movement’s theme, and this may have led to further experiments with a condensation of form in the one-single-movement 5th sonata where the climax (estatico) is again a restatement of the Languido theme (dolcissimo).