Impressionism and modernityAlexandre Scriabine
Alexander Scriabin was born in Moscow, Russia.
Alexandre Scriabine’s life
The big moments of this life, and what was happening in the world at the same time.
A life at a glance
- 1872👶 Birth
Born in Moscow on 6 January
- 1873❤️ Private lifeage 1
Death of his mother, a pianist; raised by his aunt
- 1875🌍 Meanwhile
The Palais Garnier opera house opens in Paris
- 1877🌍 Meanwhile
Edison invents the phonograph: sound can be recorded!
- 1882📚 Trainingage 10
Cadet school; already composing small pieces
- 1894🎼 Workage 22
The publisher Belyayev publishes his works and organises tours
- 1895🌍 Meanwhile
The Lumière brothers’ first cinema show
- 1897🎼 Workage 25
Piano Concerto
- 1898🎩 Careerage 26
Piano professor at the Moscow Conservatory
- 1905🎼 Workage 33
The Divine Poem (Symphony No. 3)
- 1912🌍 Meanwhile
The Titanic sinks
- 1915🕯️ Deathage 43
Dies in Moscow on 27 April of an infection
Listen to the music
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Excerpts of up to 90 seconds, freely licensed recordings from Wikimedia Commons.
Once upon a time…
Alexander Scriabin was born in Moscow, Russia. His mum, a pianist, died when he was very small, and his grandmother and aunt brought him up. He loved the piano more than anything.
At the Conservatory he was in the same class as Rachmaninoff. He practised so much that he hurt his right hand! So he composed pieces for the left hand alone.
For Scriabin every note had a colour. He imagined a concert where coloured lights would fill the hall along with the music: he invented a “keyboard of light” for it!
He dreamed of a giant seven-day show with music, dance, colours and perfumes, but he died before he could write it.
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