Piano Sonata No. 8 in A Major

The Eighth Piano Sonata, composed between 1912 and 1913, represents Scriabin’s boldest attempt to create music in which melody and harmony work in equal partnership. Fearsomely difficult and brimming with complex textures that don’t lie easily under the hands, the Sonata remained unfairly neglected throughout most of the 20th century until Vladimir Ashkenazy’s revelatory Decca recording confirmed its status as one of Scriabin’s greatest compositions. After a slow introduction of eight soft bell-like chords, the main section of this one-movement work moves at a faster tempo, introducing five distinctive thematic ideas that the composer associated with the elements of fire, water, earth, air and atmosphere. As with many of Scriabin’s late works, there are several fluctuations in mood, with moments of darkness and despair giving way to more aspirational music that projects luminosity and hope. Sudden eruptions of aggressive energy become increasingly volcanic; the final section, a kind of macabre dance operating at breakneck speed, eventually burns itself out.