Rachmaninoff and Scriabin — The Final Form of Russian Romanticism

The Final Form of Russian Romanticism — Two Opposing Lives

In parallel with the French Impressionism of the previous article, the last light of Romanticism kept burning in Russia in the early 20th century:

• Sergei Rachmaninoff (Sergei Rachmaninoff, 1873–1943) — 70; the heir of Romanticism
• Alexander Scriabin (Alexander Scriabin, 1872–1915) — 43, an escape into mysticism

Classmates at the Moscow Conservatory, they took opposite paths. Rachmaninoff guarded “the music of the vanished century,” while Scriabin attempted a “mystical leap into the future.”

The Russian Lineage of Music

Successors to Tchaikovsky (1840–1893) and the Five (1860s) from the previous article on classical music (07):

• Sergei Taneyev (1856–1915) — Tchaikovsky’s pupil, professor at the Moscow Conservatory
• Alexander Glazunov (1865–1936) — Saint Petersburg, Rimsky-Korsakov’s pupil
• Anton Arensky (1861–1906) — Moscow, Rachmaninoff’s teacher
• Rachmaninoff and Scriabin (born in the 1870s) — this article
• Prokofiev (1891–1953), Shostakovich (1906–1975) — 20th-century Soviet (next article of the sister series)

Sergei Rachmaninoff — The Last Great Romantic

Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff (1873–1943) was born near Novgorod, Russia (in Semyonovo). Composer, pianist, and conductor — a great triple threat, one of the greatest pianists of the 20th century.

Life (Outline)

• 1 April 1873 — Born near Novgorod (his family was aristocratic)
• 1885 — Enters the Moscow Conservatory; studies with Nikolai Zverev, Arensky, Taneyev
• 1892 — Graduates; composes Prelude in C-sharp minor, Op. 3 No. 2 (his lifelong “cursed piece”)
• 1897 — Disastrous premiere of the First Symphony, conducted (drunk) by Glazunov
• 1897–1900 — Severe depression; cannot compose for three years
• 1900 — Hypnosis treatment by Dr. Nikolai Dahl
• 1901 — Premiere of the Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op. 18 — a huge success; dedicated to Dr. Dahl
• November 1917 — The Russian Revolution; the family flees via Finland and Switzerland to the United States
• 1918–1943 — Concertizes in the US and Switzerland; composes little
• 28 March 1943 — Dies of melanoma in Beverly Hills, aged 70

The “Cursed Prelude” — C-sharp minor, Op. 3 No. 2

In 1892, at 19, Rachmaninoff wrote the Prelude in C-sharp minor, Op. 3 No. 2 — a worldwide hit. For the rest of his life it was demanded as an encore at every concert:

“I could not, in my entire life, give a concert without playing this piece.” (Rachmaninoff)

A symbolic example of “a composer chained to his own youthful work.”

The Four Piano Concertos

Rachmaninoff’s largest body of work:

• No. 1 in F-sharp minor, Op. 1 (1891, revised 1917) — a youthful work, still performed
• No. 2 in C minor, Op. 18 (1900–1901) — one of the most famous piano concertos in the world; opening bell tones, the sweet Second-movement melody
• No. 3 in D minor, Op. 30 (1909) — the most difficult piano concerto ever, “Rach 3”; the theme of the 1996 film Shine
• No. 4 in G minor, Op. 40 (1926, rev. 1941) — post-emigration; performed relatively rarely

“Rach 3” — The Everest of Pianists

The Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor, Op. 30 is one of the most difficult piano works ever:

• 45 minutes
• Passages that require a very large hand (Rachmaninoff himself could reach a 13th — an octave plus a sixth)
• Two cadenzas for the first movement (“ossia” and simpler); the player chooses
• Both technique and musicianship are extremely difficult

The film Shine (1996, directed by Scott Hicks, starring Geoffrey Rush) — the true story of the pianist David Helfgott, who broke down mentally playing Rach 3. World-famous.

Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Op. 43 (1934)

Theme and 24 variations on Paganini’s Caprice No. 24. The 18th Variation (an inverted theme) is one of the most famous melodies in the world, especially after the film Somewhere in Time (1980).

Sometimes called “the effective fifth piano concerto.” A masterpiece for piano and orchestra.

24 Preludes — All 24 Keys

In the lineage of Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier and Chopin’s Op. 28:

• 10 Preludes, Op. 23 (1901–1903)
• 13 Preludes, Op. 32 (1910)
• Together, 24 preludes in all 24 keys

Études-tableaux, Op. 33 and Op. 39

“Painterly études.” Each has an implicit programme (Rachmaninoff did not reveal them). Modern interpreters explore. Seventeen in all.

Two Piano Sonatas

• Sonata No. 1 in D minor, Op. 28 (1907) — vast (35 minutes); performed relatively rarely
• Sonata No. 2 in B-flat minor, Op. 36 (1913, rev. 1931) — often performed

Symphonies and Choral Works

• Symphony No. 2 in E minor, Op. 27 (1907) — hugely popular; the third movement (Adagio) is famous
• Symphony No. 3 in A minor, Op. 44 (1935–1936) — written in exile
• The Isle of the Dead, Op. 29 (1908) — a symphonic poem after Böcklin’s painting
• All-Night Vigil (Vespers), Op. 37 (1915) — Russian Orthodox unaccompanied chorus, of great depth

Rachmaninoff’s Hands

Rachmaninoff had unusually large hands:

• Reached a 13th (C to the octave above’s A) in one hand
• Could play a single 12-note chord in the left hand
• Possibly had Marfan syndrome (six feet six inches tall, “spider fingers”)

He is said to have “written music only he could play.” The average pianist today adapts difficult passages for smaller hands.

The “Compositional Silence” of Exile

After his 1917 exile, Rachmaninoff wrote only six works in 25 years:

• Piano Concerto No. 4 (1926)
• Three Russian Songs (1926)
• Variations on a Theme of Corelli (1931)
• Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini (1934)
• Symphony No. 3 (1935–1936)
• Symphonic Dances, Op. 45 (1940)

“The pain of losing home stopped his composing” — the tragedy of Rachmaninoff’s exile. Even while gaining fame as a performer, his heart remained in Russia.

Symphonic Dances (1940) — His Last Work

His last composition in exile. Three brilliant orchestral movements with hidden Russian Orthodox chorales and the recurring Dies irae motif.

“Rachmaninoff’s musical testament” — a work that looks back and forward.

“Rachmaninoff’s Exile Is Music’s Exile”

Rachmaninoff’s exile symbolizes the exile of 19th-century Romanticism. In 20th-century America, he alone incarnated a lost 19th-century Europe.

His enormous worldwide popularity today (concerts, recordings, uses in films) is the musical expression of “nostalgia for a lost world.”

Alexander Scriabin — The Light of Mysticism

Alexander Nikolayevich Scriabin (1872–1915) was born in Moscow. He was Rachmaninoff’s classmate — one year older — but died at 43 and led an opposite musical life.

Life

• 6 January 1872 — Born in Moscow (into an aristocratic family; his mother, a pianist, died soon after his birth)
• 1888–1892 — At the Moscow Conservatory, a classmate of Rachmaninoff. Injured his hand and gave up the pianist’s path for composition
• 1897 — Marries
• 1904 — Leaves his wife and children and elopes with Tatiana Schloezer
• 1904–1908 — Geneva, Switzerland; drawn deeply into mysticism
• 1909–1915 — Returns to Moscow; performs and composes
• 27 April 1915 — Dies suddenly of septicemia (a lip tumor) in Moscow, aged 43

The Turn to Mysticism

Scriabin was deeply drawn from the 1900s to mysticism and theosophy:

• The writings of Helena Blavatsky (founder of the Theosophical Society)
• Russian symbolist literature (Merezhkovsky, Ivanov)
• The correspondence of color and sound (synesthesia)
• A sense of mission to “change the world through music”

His works gradually took on mystical color.

The “Mystic Chord”

The central chord of late Scriabin: C, F♯, B♭, E, A, D — a six-note chord built on fourths. Its distinctive sound blurs tonality.

The “mystic chord” is a direct ancestor of the later twelve-tone technique. Scriabin arrived at the dissolution of tonality independently of Schoenberg.

Ten Piano Sonatas

The core of Scriabin:

• Early (Nos. 1–3) — Chopin-Liszt, Romantic
• Middle (Nos. 4–6) — the mystic chord introduced
• Late (Nos. 7–10, 1911–1913) — fully “atonal” world; single movements; mystical titles (“White Mass” for No. 7; “Black Mass” for No. 9)

From No. 5 he abandoned key signatures, moving into polytonality and atonality.

Modern performances: Sofronitsky (his son-in-law), Horowitz, Richter, Ashkenazy, Sokolov, Fujita Mao.

Symphonies and Symphonic Poems

• Symphony No. 1, Op. 26 (1899–1900) — six movements, with soloists and chorus
• Symphony No. 2, Op. 29 (1901)
• Symphony No. 3 “The Divine Poem”, Op. 43 (1902–1904)
• The Poem of Ecstasy, Op. 54 (1905–1908) — the summit of middle Scriabin
• Prometheus — The Poem of Fire, Op. 60 (1908–1910) — large orchestra + piano + chorus + color keyboard (clavier à lumières)

Prometheus — The Poem of Fire — The Fusion of Color and Sound

The 1910 Prometheus is the summit of Scriabin’s mysticism:

• Specifies a “color keyboard” projecting colors corresponding to each pitch
• Modern performances often realize it with light projection
• Synesthesia (the ability to see colors while hearing sounds) — whether Scriabin actually had it or set the piece up mystically is debated

The Unfinished Mysterium

Scriabin’s final project:

• A vast ritual work of 7 days and 7 nights
• To be performed in the Himalayas
• “End-of-the-world music that changes human consciousness”
• After the performance, the world would move to a new stage

Entirely unfinished (fragmentary sketches). Scriabin’s death ended it. Judged as mystical megalomania by some, a forerunner of 20th-century avant-garde art by others.

An Early Death at 43

In April 1915, from a small tumor on his lip (treatable with modern antibiotics), he developed septicemia and died within days. He left the Mysterium unfinished.

“Another possibility of 20th-century music died” — a great loss.

Classmates at the Moscow Conservatory — A Contrast

	Scriabin	Rachmaninoff
Born	1872	1873 (1 year later)
Moscow Conservatory	1888–92	1885–92
After graduation	Pianist → composer	Pianist + composer + conductor
Turning point	Mysticism (c. 1900)	Second Concerto success (1901)
1917 Revolution	Already dead (1915)	Exile to the US
Died	1915 (43)	1943 (70)
Posterity	A prophecy of 20th-century avant-garde	The heir of the 19th century

Two paths from the same classroom into the 20th century. Scriabin the avant-garde, Rachmaninoff the conservative. Both are, in their own ways, symbols of 20th-century music.

Other Early-20th-Century Russian Piano

Nikolai Medtner (1880–1951)

Moscow Conservatory; a friend of Rachmaninoff. Three piano concertos, Skazki (fairy tales), 14 piano sonatas. “The Russian Brahms.” Died in London in exile.

Anton Rubinstein (1829–1894)

The great Saint Petersburg (not Moscow) figure of the late 19th century. Founded the Saint Petersburg Conservatory (1862). One of the great 19th-century virtuosi alongside Liszt.

Sergei Taneyev (1856–1915)

Tchaikovsky’s pupil, teacher of Rachmaninoff and Scriabin. Director of the Moscow Conservatory, an authority on counterpoint.

The Russian Pianistic Lineage

The Russian piano school dominates the 20th century:

• Anton Rubinstein → Taneyev → Rachmaninoff and Scriabin
• Nikolai Rubinstein (Anton’s brother) → Siloti → Rachmaninoff
• Leschetizky (Vienna) → Schnabel, Paderewski

The 20th-century Richter, Gilels, Sofronitsky, Ashkenazy, Pletnev, Sokolov, Kissin, Matsuev — all direct descendants of this lineage.

The Lineage of Emigré Russians

After the 1917 Revolution, many Russian musicians went into exile:

• Rachmaninoff (US)
• Stravinsky (France → US) — see the earlier article
• Prokofiev (1918 exile → 1936 return, next article of the sister series)
• Medtner (London)
• Horowitz (1903–1989) — emigrated 1928; one of the greatest pianists of the 20th century
• Hofmann, Boris Berman and others

The “emigré Russian musicians” decisively influenced 20th-century American and European culture.

Rachmaninoff and Scriabin Players — 20th–21st Centuries

Rachmaninoff Players

• Rachmaninoff himself — one of the great pianists of the 20th century; extensive recordings
• Vladimir Horowitz (1903–1989) — practically Rachmaninoff’s son-in-law-in-spirit
• Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (1920–1995) — Italy
• Sviatoslav Richter (1915–1997)
• Vladimir Ashkenazy (1937–)
• Evgeny Kissin (1971–)
• Denis Matsuev (1975–)
• Daniil Trifonov (1991–)
• Fujita Mao (1998–) — contemporary Japan

Scriabin Players

• Vladimir Sofronitsky (1901–1961) — Scriabin’s son-in-law; carried on the mysticism
• Sviatoslav Richter
• Vladimir Horowitz
• Grigory Sokolov (1950–)
• Alexander Toradze, Boris Berman

Modern Impact

Rachmaninoff

• Central to the world’s piano repertoire
• Quotations in films — Shine, The Seven Year Itch, Somewhere in Time, etc.
• A YouTube/SNS-era favorite — appeal to younger audiences
• “A Russian musical icon”

Scriabin

• A prophecy of 20th-century avant-garde music — atonality independent of Schoenberg
• Synesthetic art, the fusion of light and sound — modern installations and VR music
• Mystical music — the influence on Messiaen, Tavener, Pärt

From This Article to the Next

We have traced the final form of Russian Romanticism through Rachmaninoff and Scriabin. The next article turns to the great 20th-century pianists. Vladimir Horowitz (1903–1989), Sviatoslav Richter (1915–1997), Glenn Gould (1932–1982), Martha Argerich (1941–), Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli (1920–1995), Alfred Brendel (1931–), Maurizio Pollini (1942–2024), Uchida Mitsuko (1948–) — the great performers of the recording age. From “the composer” to “the performer.”