Scriabin (1872-1915) was a close contemporary of Rachmaninov but died nearly 30 years earlier. His 10 piano sonatas span the whole of his relatively short adulthood. Accordingly they range stylistically from straightforward, often Rachmaninov-like passion (sonatas 1 and 2) to the more fantastical landscapes familiar from Scriabin’s distinctive orchestral works such as The Poem of Ecstasy. Formal structures give way to organically shaped single movements, at once radiant, mysterious and improvisatory. Peter Donohoe is a masterly guide, his playing both unearthly and earthy. With his visionary notions of creation and the cosmos, Scriabin can feel like too much of a good thing. Donohoe reins him in just enough, and makes a powerful case.
