Nocturne (Scriabin)

Alexander Scriabin

This work bears the designation Op. 9, No. 2.

General Info

Year: 1886 / 1953 / 1975
Duration: c. 7:05
Difficulty: (see Ratings for explanation)
Original Medium: Piano
Publisher: Edward B. Marks
Cost: Score and Parts - Out of print.

Instrumentation

Full Score
Flute I-II-III (III doubling C Piccolo)
Oboe I-II
English Horn (optional)
Bassoon I-II
E-flat Soprano Clarinet
B-flat Soprano Clarinet I-II-III
E-flat Alto Clarinet
B-flat Bass Clarinet
B-flat Contrabass Clarinet
E-flat Alto Saxophone I-II
B-flat Tenor Saxophone
E-flat Baritone Saxophone
B-flat Trumpet I-II-III
Horn in F I-II-III-IV
Trombone I-II-III
Euphonium
Tuba
String Bass
Harp (or Piano, optional)
Timpani
Percussion, including:

Vibraphone

Errata

None discovered thus far.

Program Notes

One of the most influential Russian composers that is often missing from the conversation, Alexander Scriabin (1872-1915) left his initial mark as a concert pianist. During his piano performances, he performed largely a repertoire of his own works. Scriabin's early music is described as tonal, but heavily romantic. His later music moved towards atonality and was influenced by his synesthesia in which he associated music with color. In the 1890s, it is said that he practiced so much that he injured his right hand. Scriabin's response was to compose Prelude and Nocturne, Op. 9 solely for his left hand. After Scriabin's death in 1915, Sergei Rachmaninoff helped solidify the composer's reputation by touring Russia playing a series of all-Scriabin programs. This was the first time Rachmaninoff publicly performed music that was not his own. Leo Tolstoy said of Scriabin's music that it was "a sincere expression of genius" and The Great Soviet Encyclopedia said that "no composer… had more scorn heaped on him or greater love bestowed."

Scriabin's Nocturne, Op. 9, No. 2 (1894) for left hand piano is rooted heavily in his tonal period of composition but features the extended harmony and intentional dissonances expected from late Romantic piano composers. The melodies have ebb and flow, and the harmony struggles with it for dominance.

In 1975, Alfred Reed transcribed the work for concert band, greatly expanding the palate of instrumental color available in Scriabin's harmony. The improvisatory melodic material is performed by solo clarinet.

- Program Note by Kennesaw State University University Band concert program, 17 April 2018

Media

Audio CD: Senzoku Gakuen Symphonic Wind Orchestra (Alfred Reed, conductor) – 1998

State Ratings

Florida: IV
Iowa: IV
Kansas: V
Louisiana: IV
Michigan: Senior High B
Mississippi: VI-A
North Carolina: IV
Oklahoma: IV-A
Tennessee: IV
Texas: IV. Complete

Performances

To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project

West Virginia University (Morgantown) Symphonic Band (Cheldon R. Williams, conductor) - 26 February 2023
Pinnacle Winds (Kansas City, Mo.) (John C. Carmichael, conductor) – 3 April 2022
University of Florida (Gainesville) Symphonic Band (John Watkins Jr., conductor) – 27 February 2020
Cornell University (Ithaca, N.Y.) Wind Symphony (Joseph Hermann, conductor) – 6 October 2019
Northshore Concert Band (Evanston, Ill.) (Mallory Thompson, conductor) – 14 April 2019
Kent State (Ohio) Wind Ensemble (Jesse Leyva, conductor) – 3 March 2019
University of Michigan (Ann Arbor) Concert Band (Courtney Snyder, conductor) – 5 December 2018
Arkansas Tech University (Russellville) Symphonic Wind Ensemble (Daniel A. Belongia, conductor) – 18 November 2018
University of Texas San Antonio Wind Ensemble (John Zarco, conductor) – 18 October 2018
Kennesaw (Ga.) State University University Band (Trey Harris, conductor) – 17 April 2018
Texas Tech University (Lubbock) University Band (Eric Allen, conductor) – 29 March 2018
The Ohio State University (Columbus) Symphonic Band (Jeff Krubsack, conductor) – 23 February 2017
Gettysburg College (Penn.) Symphony Band (Christopher Heffner, conductor) – 10 April 2016

Works for Winds by This Composer

Nocturne (arr. Reed) (1886/1953/1976)
Ô Forces Mystérieuses! (arr. Tamura) (1907/2012)
Prelude, Op. 9, No. 1 (arr. Reed) (1894/1985)
Prelude and Dance of the Mystic Flames (arr. Rhoads) (1981)
Symphony No. 2, c minor (mvt. 5) (tr. van de Braak) (1901/1999)
Two Scriabin Etudes (arr. Davis) (1959)

Resources

Heritage Encyclopedia of Band Music. " Alexander Scriabin." Accessed 10 April 2016
Nocturne (Scriabin, Aleksandr), International Music Score Library Project Accessed 10 April 2016
Scriabin, A.; Reed, A. (1975). Nocturne: Op. 9, No. 2 [score]. Piedmont Music: Melville, N.Y.