Alexander Scriabin (1872 – 1915), Quatre morceaux, Op 56 (1908)
Performed by Vladimir Ashkenazy
00:00 – No. 1 Prelude
01:00 – No. 2 Ironies
03:07 – No. 3 Nuances
04:42 – No. 4 Etude
The four short pieces of Op. 56, along with the 2 Pieces, Op. 57, and the Feuillet d’album, Op. 58, serve as transitional links between, and share some of the musical traits of, two of Scriabin’s large orchestral works, the symphonies Le poème de l’extase (Poem of Ecstasy, 1905 – 1908) and Prométhée (Prometheus, 1908 – 1910). The opening prelude begins and ends with big, grandiose chords, with a calm and mysterious central section between. After the scherzo-like “Ironies” and the atmospheric “Nuances” comes the flickering gestures of the playful, yet dissonant, closing etude, which travels by in barely half a minute.
