Sonata No. 9 (Scriabin)

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The ninth piano sonata (opus 68) written by Scriabin in 1912-1913 is often known by the nickname "Black Mass". Although the nickname was not invented by Scriabin (who did however refer to his Seventh Sonata as "White Mass"), he personally approved of it. The piece is highly chromatic and atonal like Scriabin's other late works. The Black Mass Sonata is particularly dissonant because many of its themes are based around an interval of a minor ninth, one of the most unstable sounds.

The ninth sonata is an unmistakable masterpiece; notable Scriabin contemporaries such as Stravinksy praised it. Its marking 'legendaire' exactly captures the sense of distant mysterious wailing which grows in force and menace. The opening theme is constantly transformed, from the early trill arpeggio's sounding unsettling and then completely shifting, in accordance to Scriabin's markings, instructing the performer to play with a new born purity. The deceit and dissonance sharply bloats, eventually tumbling in rapid cascades into an explosion of soul-rattling power. The piece ends with the original theme reinstated. Scriabin builds a continuous structure of mounting complexity and tension, and pursues the combination of themes with unusual tenacity, eventually reaching a climax as extraordinary as anything in his music.

Like Scriabin's other sonatas, it is both technically and musically highly demanding for the pianist, sometimes extending to three staves as opposed to the standard two used in piano music. A typical performance lasts 8–10 minutes.