BaL 19.02.2022 - The Piano Music of Alexander Scriabin

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

9.30 am
Born in Moscow 150 years ago this year, Alexander Scriabin's music for solo piano has been recorded by many of the great pianists over the last century. But where to start if you're not familiar with this late-Romantic, sometimes elusive repertoire? David Owen Norris is on hand to navigate through some key pieces and makes some recommendations.


Recommended Recording:

Alexander Melnikov
Alexander Melnikov Plays Scriabin
Harmonia Mundi HMN911914

Other Recommendations:

Vladimir Sofronitsky
Scriabin: Piano Works (live)
Russian Compact Disc RCD16291

Vladimir Horowitz
Horowitz plays Scriabin
Sony SMK90445

Gordon Fergus-Thompson (piano)
Scriabin: Piano Works
Eloquence ELQ4829034 (5 CDs)

Vladimir Ashkenazy
Scriabin: The Piano Sonatas
Decca E4529612 (2 CDs)

[Joseph K]

Szidon & Maltempo for the sonatas are my go-to...

[mikealdren]

Certainly the stuff of virtuosos if my CD collection is anything to go by: Berman, Grosvenor, Horowitz, Pletnev, Volodos and Yuja Wang to the fore.

[Braunschlag]

Alexeev, Zhukov?

[Bryn]

Maria Lettberg, for me.

+

[BBMmk2]

Looking forward to this>

[gurnemanz]

Maria Lettberg, for me.

+

Sorted. Beautiful sound and beautifully put across. A labour of love from a pianist who really knows her Scriabin. She did her thesis on him and many of her insights are included in the booklet notes.

[Joseph K]

Sorted. Beautiful sound and beautifully put across. A labour of love from a pianist who really knows her Scriabin. She did her thesis on him and many of her insights are included in the booklet notes.

Sounds like I need this set.

[Serial_Apologist]

Sounds like I need this set.

Like a whole in the head, JK?

[RichardB]

I think Szidon and Maltempo would be my favourites for the sonatas, but Lettberg is very good and of course contains a lot more stuff. There's a fantastic performance of the Tenth Sonata with Yuja Wang on a recital disc, it would be very nice to hear her play some of the others.

[HighlandDougie]

As an addition to Szidon and Ugorski (plus Arcadi Volodos etc), a bargain at only 9,99€ from JPC at the moment. Postage from Germany to France is reasonable so it works out at about £12.00. Thanks, both, for the enthusiastic recommendation.

[CallMePaul]

Once again I am disappointed to see Russian badly transliterated. There are only 2 syllables, not 3, in the composer's name, so the systematic "Skryabin" is more appropriate. having got that out of the way, I will look forward to this as I need to add to my collection, although a more focussed BAL might have been more welcome for the sesquicentenary, say the Poem of Exstacy or Prometheus.

[LeMartinPecheur]

Once again I am disappointed to see Russian badly transliterated. There are only 2 syllables, not 3, in the composer's name, so the systematic "Skryabin" is more appropriate. having got that out of the way, I will look forward to this as I need to add to my collection, although a more focussed BAL might have been more welcome for the sesquicentenary, say the Poem of Exstacy or Prometheus.

Sorry, I can't see how Skryabin gets us any closer to two syllables than Scriabin!

[gurnemanz]

And second syllable is byin not bin.

[Dave2002]

Like a whole in the head, JK?

Easy to check [Lettberg] on Tidal!

The BBC Music Magazine CD features music by Scriabin this month, I believe.