ToneBase Scriabin Stage

I made a Scriabin video and thought, hey, why not make a place for us to share any of our Scriabin performances/works in progress? I wonder how many Scriabin fans we have here at ToneBase! (I know, this is a much smaller niche than the great ToneBase Bach Stage, haha.)

 

I especially love Scriabin’s earlier works, which have a lot of Chopin influence but which have a special magic to them, with frequently gorgeous melodies (and not just in the soprano), exotic harmonies, and sometimes deadly serious drama. His later works are also interesting and can be lovely, but they tend to be more disturbed and anxiety-inducing, to my ears at least.

 

To start, here are four of my favorite early Scriabin preludes. I added a little commentary to the video so you can see what I’m listening to (or thinking) while playing them.
https://youtu.be/m804aa5steE

 

I look forward to seeing what Scriabin pieces everyone here is playing!

56 replies

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    • Amateur piano enthusiast
    • Marc_M
    • 1 yr ago
    • Reported - view

    Here's Scriabin's Op. 11 No. 21 in Bb Major. It was a bit of a puzzle the first few times I listened to it, but after spending time with it I decided it was really beautiful. (Hope y'all have been well--I've been out traveling so I haven't been able to join in TWIs or challenges. This video I recorded some weeks ago and only just finished adding text and silly images...haha.)

      • Pianist, composer and piano teacher
      • Sindre_Skarelven
      • 1 yr ago
      • Reported - view

      Marc M Beautiful playing and prelude! Looking forward to hear more from the list! 

      • Amateur piano enthusiast
      • Marc_M
      • 1 yr ago
      • Reported - view

      Thank you, Sindre Skarelven !

      • vbashyam
      • 1 yr ago
      • Reported - view

      Marc M Really beautiful! As always, nice editing! Will have to look into CapCut as well. 

      • Amateur piano enthusiast
      • Marc_M
      • 1 yr ago
      • Reported - view

      Vidhya Bashyam Thank you! 😊 

      • Philosophy teacher and piano lover
      • Juan_Carlos
      • 1 yr ago
      • Reported - view

      Marc M Your playing is very beautiful and sensitive, Marc! And, as always, sound and editing are perfect. Thanks for sharing Scriabin music.

    • Have a growth mindset, no matter what!
    • Gail_Starr
    • 1 yr ago
    • Reported - view

    Love this one so much!  So glad you're posting again.  We've missed you and hope you had a wonderful trip.

      • Amateur piano enthusiast
      • Marc_M
      • 1 yr ago
      • Reported - view

      Gail Starr Thanks! Actually, I’m still on the trip…will be here a week or two longer. It’s a monthlong trip to Asheville, NC, hiking in morning and remote working afternoons. I recorded the video a few weeks ago and only finished editing it recently. Glad you liked the prelude! :)

      • Have a growth mindset, no matter what!
      • Gail_Starr
      • 1 yr ago
      • Reported - view

      Marc M So wonderful that you can work remotely! I could never do that in my old job.  
       

      May I ask what editing software you’re using? Your videos are SO much fun!🤩 

      • Amateur piano enthusiast
      • Marc_M
      • 1 yr ago
      • Reported - view

      Gail Starr Haha, glad you find them fun. I'm trying to strike the right balance between providing helpful (or funny) commentary/visuals and distracting too much from the music itself. If I ever overdo it you're welcome to say so, so I can know what to avoid in the future.

      I'm using CapCut Desktop--it's pretty nifty!

      • Have a growth mindset, no matter what!
      • Gail_Starr
      • 1 yr ago
      • Reported - view

      Marc M Marc M Super! I’ve only used CapCut on my phone and everything is so tiny that I get frustrated and never finish anything I start. 😂

      • Amateur piano enthusiast
      • Marc_M
      • 1 yr ago
      • Reported - view

      Gail Starr Yeah, the CapCut phone app is pretty useless to me also. Desktop is the way to go!

    • Retired marketing and design firm owner.
    • Jack_vreeland
    • 5 mths ago
    • Reported - view

    Thanks for setting up this area. Here is my recording of Etude Opus 8 No 8. 

    • Amateur piano enthusiast
    • Marc_M
    • 1 mth ago
    • Reported - view

    I was a bit apprehensive about recording this one due to its difficulty, but I gave it a go anyway! Scriabin's etude Op. 8 No. 5 in E major. Constructive feedback is welcome! :) 

      • Have a growth mindset, no matter what!
      • Gail_Starr
      • 1 mth ago
      • Reported - view

      Marc M fabulous job!  The leaps (and everything else) sound great.  You must have worked super hard on this.  Thank you for sharing 

      • Michelle_Russell
      • 1 mth ago
      • Reported - view

      Marc M This is lovely. I appreciate how detailed your notes are in the score. It helped me follow along in both an artistic and intellectual way. Well done!

      • Amateur piano enthusiast
      • Marc_M
      • 1 mth ago
      • Reported - view

      Thank you, Michelle R and Gail Starr! It could still use a bit more polish, but this is about as far I can take the piece for now...have to draw the line somewhere and move on, haha. 

      These ToneBase teachers have been assigning so many score markups that now I'm marking them up as a matter of course. I was worried the score would be too small to follow--next time I may try positioning things so that the score can be bigger.

      • Have a growth mindset, no matter what!
      • Gail_Starr
      • 1 mth ago
      • Reported - view

      Marc M And I didn't even KNOW what a chromatic mediant was until Dominic's Schubert live stream yesterday... you're way advanced, Marc! 😄

      • Amateur piano enthusiast
      • Marc_M
      • 1 mth ago
      • Reported - view

      Gail Starr 

      Shortly after he departed from ToneBase, Ben Laude did a TWI on Schubert, and he had us do a big harmonic analysis of a Schubert work. That’s when I learned about chromatic mediants. I still have lots to learn, though, as evidenced by the part where I gave up and wrote, “WUT is DIS??” 😂

      • vbashyam
      • 1 mth ago
      • Reported - view

      Marc M Sounds great Marc! You look so relaxed playing too!

      • Amateur piano enthusiast
      • Marc_M
      • 1 mth ago
      • Reported - view

      Thank you, Vidhya Bashyam! 😊

      • Have a growth mindset, no matter what!
      • Gail_Starr
      • 1 mth ago
      • Reported - view

      Marc M 😂😂😂

    • Have a growth mindset, no matter what!
    • Gail_Starr
    • 1 mth ago
    • Reported - view

    I need to watch Ben’s video!  I’m on my way to a chamber music weekend where I’ll be doing the Trout.  Dominic gave me some handy pointers on the piece yesterday!

    • Philosophy teacher and piano lover
    • Juan_Carlos
    • 3 wk ago
    • Reported - view

    Hi Marc and everyone,

    Better late than never... I've been wanting to participate in your Tonebase Scriabin Stage since you created it, but I kept getting drawn into other composers and pieces.  So, here's my first contribution (hopefully not the last!): Prelude op 11 nº 14.

    I first heard this fiery miniature at a concert by Mikhail Pletnev, who played it as an encore and I found it absolutely fascinating and haunting.

      • Dominic_Cheli
      • 2 wk ago
      • Reported - view

      Juan Carlos Olite It's great to see you participating in the Tonebase Scriabin Stage! Prelude op 11 nº 14 is such a remarkable piece, especially when interpreted with that intensity! Mikhail Pletnev's performance must have been unforgettable! Bravo to you!!!

Content aside

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