21st Annual Student Research Conference
Alexander Scriabin: Exploring the Universal Transformation of Art; A look at the synesthetic approach of the Mysterium and preceding works
Savana A. Ricker
Prof. Shirley McKamie, Faculty Mentor
Alexander Scriabin was an early 20th - century composer in Russia during the time when romanticism and tonality were being pushed to their outer limits. His conceptual masterpiece, Mysterium, although incomplete, calls for unique polyphonic practices—not in the usual sense—but rather in the layering of every art form to extend a unique synesthetic experience. For example, by suspending bells from the clouds in the Himalayas, in addition to other esoteric ideas, Scriabin was able to construct one of the most abstract liturgical pieces of the 20th century. The philosophical ambience of most of his compositions provides the "mystique" which permeates Scriabin’s art.
Keywords: Alexander Scriabin, mysterium, synasthesia, liturgical drama, visual music, romanticism, gesamtkunswerk, atonality
Topic(s):Music
Presentation Type: Oral Paper
Session: 20-4
Location: OP 2117
Time: 10:30