Scriabin: The Poem of Ecstasy / Salonen · The Philharmonia Orchestra

Great interpretation of Alexander Scriabin's The Poem of Ecstasy, played by the Philharmonia Orchestra and conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen at 2010 BBC Proms.
Gran presentación del Poema del Éxstasis interpretada por la Orquesta Filarmonia, y dirigida por Esa-Pekka Salonen en los Proms de la BBC año 2010.
(C) BBC and ALL their respective owners. No personal work here.

[@positive.juice.apartment]

one of the single greatest pieces of music in human history

[@laceystephens8800]

18:30 to the end is literally the most beautiful sequence of music I will ever hear. I’m young and I may feel this way again but I’m literally weeping on my kitchen floor at how beautiful it is.

[@vegarguleng1748]

Yeah, it is a life-changer. I will never forget the first time I heard this piece. I could not believe what I was hearing, I still can't, and I probably never will.

[@broundothisrightneow]

this and the ending to rachmaninoff's 3rd piano concerto are some of the most incredible bits of music i have ever heard.

[@gavincannon8385]

Like EVER!

[@hijena1234]

was listening in the kitchen aswell , it was so intense i

[@slowpainful]

You are definitely reacting to the "ecstatic" in Scriabin, the word I most associate with this composer. He wanted to transform mankind through the power of music, he was planning a massive total-immersion experience in the Himalayas to that end when he died. There is nothing like him.

[@funnydude4567]

Scriabin had said, in the premiere's program, that the piece revolved around 3 tenants. 1. The orgy of love 2. The observation of a fantastical dream 3. The sheer glory of art The ending reminded me of 'The Great Gates of Kyiv,' almost a meta-physical, ephemeral version.

[@nicolasdelaforge7420]

We will disappear into the whilwind of space and into the lyre's mystical chord, in the naked beauty of our souls'.

[@jacksongrant15]

Heard this live in Seattle two nights ago. In the last five or so minutes, I was holding on and couldn't let go. It was like the boundaries of my soul and mind had been parted from the force of a gale of cosmic and spiritual wind. When it had blown over at the finish, the audience seemed stunned, unsettled. Applause was slow in coming. I was so happy.

[@josemitti]

Extrordinario. Verdaderamente exita , y quedas sorprendido e inmovil

[@peterwimsey1]

I like the way the organist releases the chord at 19:44 like he got an electric shock

[@TheMikeOrganist]

Yes, although you don't hear anything of the organ except the low 32' reed at the end... ^^

[@TheMelopeus]

The last notes was like listening to the last beat of the universe

[@laurencedankel4751]

TheMelopeus - how would you know?

[@timothychan3481]

@@laurencedankel4751 Uhm, simile?

[@segmentsAndCurves]

@@timothychan3481 Coffee, cereal, and a little bit of trashing about the heat death of the universe. Perfect morning!

[@gabrielagutierrez8717]

This has gotta be the most incredible piece of music I have ever heard in my life....

[@malcolmparker1852]

I have loved Scriabin's music since college (1962-1966) The fact that he died on the same day as my great-grandfather amazes me.

[@nicolasdelaforge7420]

The poem surpasses anything done by Debussy, Ravel, Rachmaninov, Dvorak, Bruckner, Mahler or Sibelius. I can only think of Brahm's 1st Symphony at this level. But Brahms had Beethoven; Scriabin brought the mystical chord out of the void.

[@stevennaylor3900]

This piece defines happiness of every kind possible to humanity.

[@Odin_Limaye]

This is one of the most emotionally impactful and beautiful pieces of music I've ever heard; Scriabin's unique sound is other-worldly and definitely is ecstatic.

[@demetriussheats9926]

Hope you see this 2 yrs l8r. Curious on what emotions this piece brings out in you specifically?

[@honda412000]

Very difficult piece to play and to conduct with so many voives, melodies and harmonies. If not done very well the sound becomes just like "scrambled eggs". This rendition here is quite perfect as on can hear almost all the instruments and follow at will every one of the many "lines" of sound that intermingle with another. Salonen is superb as well as the Philharmonia. The sound is great to. Chapeau!

[@SCRIABINIST]

From 18:30 and onwards, it's like an eternal march towards the end of time and universe.

[@HappyHauptwerk]

I was at this concert. The last chord with orchestra and organ was awesome.

[@user-zh9ji5ck3q]

+Greg McAusland Lucky you! I wish I was there.

[@riverphoenix3471]

+Justin Skrundz It was incredibly loud with the full organ as well. I was at this concert as well.

[@michaelschuman7717]

Justin Skrundz the house and you socket socket

[@michaelschuman7717]

The ONLY THING 5TH ST

[@michaelschuman7717]

竹谷純一郎 ur7fh6rg47rjr rush 40 5 4 4480710007230720 5 hehe y8hery3u4845

[@yowzephyr]

A long time ago I got the feeling that Scriabin is special and worth looking into. I listened to his music (sending in requests to radio stations - this was way before the Internet). I also read a book about him. But unfortunately I could never really get into his music. I gave up. Then much later I read that Shostakovich hated Scriabin's music. I love and admire Shostakovich. So that made me feel better about my not liking Scriabin's music. I now felt justified in not caring for his work and felt redeemed. -- But then I heard this recording. This one right here. Oh dear me. Now I'm thinking that Scriabin was a genius.

[@jonathanhenderson9422]

While I do love this piece, I actually think Scriabin's genius was most fully expressed in his middle-to-late piano sonatas. These symphonies were not Scriabin's natural idiom and while they do bear some of his stylistic hallmarks, like the incredibly ambiguous tonality (at times so chromatic to border on atonal), they also sound much more typical of late romanticism, drawing comparison to Mahler, Sibelius, R. Strauss, etc. and not, IMO, for the better. Still, if you're drawn to Scriabin's more harmonically adventurous music and prefer orchestral works to piano music then I can understand preferring this. I'm also curious as to what other Scriabin you heard before this. He had at least two distinct periods with his early work being more influenced by Chopin and his later period being much more unique and idiosyncratic.

[@mysterium364]

They both broke some standards of classical music. Scriabin touched some rhythmic standards that Shostakovich wouldn't touch, and I think that the way which Scriabin broke tonal rules might have been more structured and less ambiguous than the way Shostakovich did it. If I remember correctly, Shostakovich took issue specifically with Scriabin's orchestration. I don't know enough theory to say anything about that. If there is a problem with Scriabin's orchestration, then I fear my ear is so bad that I am unable to appreciate the beauty of good orchestration.

[@yowzephyr]

@@mysterium364 Yeah, I'll never be sophisticated enough to judge orchestration. I mean I've heard it said that Beethoven (my favorite composer) was actually not very good at orchestration. Really? Okay. Whatever you orchestration junkies say.

[@mysterium364]

@@yowzephyr Part of me wonders how much of "good orchestration" is a somewhat arbitrary standard subject to the whims and preferences of some elite individuals. In my opinion, if thematic material is able to be clearly conveyed, then the orchestration is sufficiently good. Of course I have preferences. I do not like droning brass for example. I tried to listen to some Mahler recently, but turned it off because the brass part which sounded boring was drowning out the more interesting thematic material. But this preference is probably driven by my exposure to Scriabin's orchestral music, because I listen mostly to Scriabin and he never does that. I don't think it's inherently wrong if that is what the composer has in mind.

[@yowzephyr]

@@mysterium364 Conductors often make a big difference too of course. Perhaps another conductor would have softened the brass in that Mahler piece you heard and would have made it more pleasing for you. Recording engineers can mess things up too.

[@dgcmusi]

No one was like him before or after...totally unique ...I remember learning those op 11 preludes when I was very young...I’ve loved his music my whole life..

[@brunozauhar1879]

The ffff sustained last chord note at the end is so tonal it hurts. Even the mystical Scriabin can end a work in complete resolution.

[@Sploooks]

This is by far the best interpretation of this piece, one thing Salonen has that I think that lots of conductors lack is a sense of continuity, consistency and pace, some conductors vary their tempos to an extreme standard but by doing this loose the flow that the piece may have had, also note how the trumpet stays with the orchestra during this interpretation, in many other recordings of the poem of ecstasy the trumpet sounds like it’s rushing and that it’s trying to get away from the orchestra. Salonen knows how to keep things together in order to maximise dramatic and emotional impact.

[@roymayh3819]

Something needs to be said for WATCHING the performance of this live. The musicians themselves, they are in ecstasy, toward the final chords the entire orchestra is just pulsing with energy. Worth paying attention to and enhanced the overall experience.

[@Odin_Limaye]

Scriabin's Poem of Ecstasy remains one of the greatest and most emotionally impactful pieces of music ever composed in human history.

[@fiscalcpiano]

I highly recommend reading the poem Scriabin wrote. It is rather evocative and (un)fortunately difficult to understand at times, but it is such a wonderful window into the composer's mind and emotional turmoil, and really quite a brilliant example of creative ability

[@ivancaragia9993]

James Clift thank you so much!

[@signifidelica2819]

I like how the world hasn't caught up to the fact that Scriabin has transcribed music from the higher dimensions of existence yet. It's like a surprise waiting for people to realize. Fun stuff.

[@daveerhardt1879]

What a powerful piece of music! Scriabin is a musical genius. After listening to this, listen to his Poem of Fire. The ending of that piece will bring shivers to your very soul.

[@slowpainful]

Thrilling performance! Jeezus, six French horns! Six trumpets! More percussion than you can shake a stick at! And I'm pretty sure I spotted a kitchen sink somewhere. This piece is the very definition of decadence, everything wonderfully too much and overflowing its banks. This was the modernism of its time and it still astounds. Scriabin's harmonies at this point are based on various configs of 7th chords and augmented chords, giving a sense of never resolving, always poised on an orgasmic edge. I love the solo violin, surely it must represent mankind lost in the mysteries of the universe and brought to enlightenment. Scriabin was forgotten after his death, in 1915, and those who knew him mostly despised his music and deemed it too weird for any serious musician to take seriously. Then, in 1972 or thereabouts , he was rediscovered and the great Scriabin rehabilitation began... the sixties' mystical love-fest paved the way. I remember that year quite clearly, and falling in love with this strange, compelling, thrilling music....

[@stephenjablonsky1941]

What an amazing leap forward from the previous symphony. Finally, this is the Scriabin of total fulfillment. One of the great symphonic works of the 20th century.

[@mikehutton3937]

... And he followed that up with the seminal 5th piano sonata, written just after.

[@anonym0usplatypus]

Wow those trumpets are fantastic! Those parts are insanely difficult

[@iesbenlliure]

Bestial la interpretación de Esa-Pekka Salonen !!!qué pasada

[@MaestroEspressivo]

A true pinnacle of ecstatic musical art. The primary comparisons for Scriabin's 'Poem of Ecstasy' are the two other big climax works: 'What Love Told Me', Mahler Sym. #3, mvt. VI, and the opening of Strauss, 'Also Sprach Zarathustra'. Each also represents, while wildly divergent by method, the most extreme examples of thematic metamorphosis. Listen to those three...

[@DCM8828]

That ending, with the giant deep sustained note brought tears to my eyes. So lovely!

[@castaneasativa7368]

Everybody speak about the divinity of the music itself but remember, all notes remain death until a hero is not born to fired the light into them: Esa-Pekka Salonen!

[@Rx-mn5fv]

The sonorities of this piece are enthralling creating an unlimited space, not physical, but cerebral where the ultimate kinds of existence occur. I'm lost, but captivated in it. Wow! Thank you for the video. Indebted.

[@lowefinney]

There are several performances of this on KZbin, but this is by far the best. Incredible. Salonen. The fff ending. The precision of the players and tempo throughout. Genius all around. The crowd goes wild for good reason.

[@beatrax8006]

The best one was played on RTV

[@davidbrant390]

The camera loves that flute player and so do I :)))

[@VelhoTeste]

Futurism guides Russia forward, a land of poets and glory.

[@shukshinite]

Severyanin moment

[@EdwardENigma-cg3kt]

This is the closest thing I've heard to the maraviglia performance. The sounds of this piece are something truly mystical. Those horns are just *mwah* chef's kiss.

[@lucaswide3685]

The best performance of le poeme de l'extase there is and probably shall ever be.

[@CVsnaredevil]

Favorite interpretation of this piece. Perfect.

[@patatosoldier4902]

18:28 Severyanin Moment

[@totallyoriginalname5421]

Empire of Dreams.

[@_H_2023]

That has to be the best interpretation and recording of Scriabin's Poem, sublime.

[@nathanpangilinan4397]

Futurist Russia here we go!

[@BostonBum15]

This orchestra is so underrated

[@billmarrufo]

This Scriabin´s work (Op. 54) came just after he wrote his 5th Sonata (Op. 53), which is also one of my favorite pieces ever. I particularly enjoy Lubyantsev live rendition.

[@ScarsUnseen24]

My absolute favorite composer. The master of simultaneous beauty and chaos.

[@jorgequirosfernandez7713]

I love being able to read from people who feel the same and know appreciate this joy!

[@conw_y]

Hardcore mystical shit. Love it!

[@rr7firefly]

Love your comment! Says it very directly.

[@peterfeltham5612]

You have a way with words sir.

[@christopherhoggarth3922]

haha wow

[@CVsnaredevil]

@@christopherhoggarth3922 Literally...Theosophy anyone?

[@purpleblue946]

Scriabin, you crazy genius. One of my, if not the, favorite performances of this piece. For a spectacular performance of this piece "twin brother" - Prometheus - I recommend Alexei Volodin - Vladimir Jurovski (see the youtube video uploaded on 30-1-2017). Look it up, I promise you will not be disappointed. The Poem of Ecstasy or Prometheus: The Poem of Fire? I cannot choose. Both are ridiculously fantastic pieces of music.

[@mr.thickey1820]

Yes, “ Ach du lieber, mein schatz”!!! This piece almost “transcends mortality”!! No words to describe the this gorgeous music! But you feel it in your “inner being” - it “moves you” into another world! How can these musicians play this piece & not be “shaken to their core”??? I’d be paralyzed with AWE!!! Give these musicians a great amount of credit to keep their “composure & discipline” to pay attention to their playing!!! WOW!!!!!

[@MegaVicar]

9 horns!!! ‘Messiaen without the birds’ indeed! Utterly wonderful!

[@totallyoriginalname5421]

Empire of Dreams

[@henrygingercat]

A piece so gloriously and seethingly decadent one feels spiritually unclean by the end of it. Marvellous.

[@nineballin]

Severyanin Approved

[@Rosenbar731]

The most Stupendous performance Ever !

[@Valheurbia]

I feel I'm transported to the vast space. The null and void. Just close your eyes towards the end. Wow!!!

[@noradosmith]

That last chord ran through my entire body

[@stanpetrovich5253]

If I recall correctly, Joyce's plan to follow up Finnegans Wake was to be a simple tale of the sea! The rhythmic complexities of Scriabin really do remind me of the linguistic somersaults of the great Irish writer.

[@patricktulher]

Scriabin was such a genius, omg

[@NeedingMusic]

Just amazing! The man was a genius. Thank you for posting this! I've been reading about him and wish he had lived long enough to finish his final massive project.

[@user-us4rm6qm9y]

Гениальное произведение Александра Скрябина! Взрыв эмоций! А местами просто волшебство! Сказка! Блестящее оркестровое исполнение и замечательный дирижёр! Я получил истинное наслаждение от Музыки и данного исполнения. Браво оркестру и... Скрябину!

[@levanneb]

maybe one of the best symphonical masterpieces I've ever listened to. great interpretatiton too

[@user-rg9pb3sh4y]

Very good. Thank you for the posting!

[@AndrewWilliamsify]

Truly magnificent! It takes an energetic orchestra and an inspired conductor to make this piece work! Goose bumps bordering on tears all the way through!

[@supermerkava]

Bravo! One of the most powerful endings I've ever heard.

[@agodsey1]

OMG!!!! What a dynamic ending. Incredible.

[@asqwert2121]

This triggers my ASMR so much!! I love it!

[@CyrusDarius]

The vastness of space, the flight of photons, billions of billions of galaxies: its all there in one final explosion of sound.

[@purpleblue946]

Yes, so true!

[@theinternet1424]

noice1 boi

[@b1i2l336]

Sallonen is the greatest living conductor, and one of the greatest conductors of all time. His musicality and power of concentration is on a higher level than any other living conductor I could name; everything I've heard him perform is in a class by itself; for example, Mahler's 3rd, The Rite of Spring, Debussy's La mer, the Sibelius Symphonies (especially No. 3!).

[@Quim141]

Absolutely amazing.

[@pedropozo6913]

Wonderful music and the ending is sublime...GOD BLESS SCRIABIN IN THE HEAVEN....I LOVE SCRIABIN FOREVER

[@richardwilliams473]

I love that timpanist, Andy thumping that last finishing note !!!!

[@organboi]

Scriabin goes down in history for writing the most colossal great ending of all time. Even more intense than the finale of Pines of Rome. Unreal. And there is no experience on this planet like hearing this piece live.

[@MorbidMayem]

The ending of Bruckner’s 8th is also colossal (but lots of bad recordings imho).

[@Emilien-hy3sy]

@@MorbidMayem Mahler and Bruckner definitely wrote some of the most colossal endings, but this is just another level in so many aspects. Just look at the harmony man, it's just overwhelmingly incredible!

[@789armstrong]

A masterpiece way ahead of its time.

[@peenut169]

The nine people who dislike it have no soul... How one can possibly find a fault in this piece is beyond me.

[@joepianograziose3822]

Listening to recordings of this piece is so inferior to seeing the musicians....almost a trumpet concerto....the brilliance of Scriabin and the way he put his world and vision into music is "ecstatic".....the trumpet entrance in the low range of the instrument at 8:07 has always been one of my favorite moments in this piece.....the effect is so shockingly erotic.....this is the next opus after the 5th piano sonata....probably my favorite piano work of all time...

[@jekyllmd1]

Una versión extraordinaria!!

[@AndrewKosinskicomposer]

2 trumpets good. 3 trumpets better. 5 trumpets...now we're talking

[@nakedmambo]

"Three trumpets means the end of the world" - Satie quoting Vincent d'Indy.

[@edwardchen9619]

And mozart even faints upon hearing the sound of a trumpet... God bless scribin he's not in the same era as mozart

[@user-zf5sk5em9r]

+Edward Chen 🎆 Ckryabin 🎄

[@user-zf5sk5em9r]

+Артур Кондратьев 🌌 SKRYABIN

[@mrbenoit5018]

Andrew Kosinski MORE TRUMPETS

[@user-xb2ot9un6e]

Хорошая интерпретация замечательного произведения.Спасибо.

[@MyPaulocorrea]

Fantastic!

[@mojeo522]

That Tuba solo is so good!

[@dorinamazini2896]

so touching for an excellent video

[@ivancaragia9993]

I truly deep down don’t understand how did the human civilization, evolution..got to this point, to this level.. of creation, expression, understanding, even listening..(to this)

[@jochanaan58]

Salonen is one of the best.

[@henrynash4402]

Scriabins Poeme of Ecstasy only has one movement ,but it speaks volumes! Scriabin left Russia in April of 1904, and he lived in Switzerland where he finished his Poeme of Ecstasy. It premiered in New York in 1908 under the direction of Modest Altshuler. Scriabin returned to Russia in 1910.

[@aerologicalphenomenon]

Severyanin moment

[@filizdener6052]

So impressive!!!!Magnificent!!! Greetings from Türkiye....

[@Dylonely42]

Outstanding.

[@billsullivan3920]

Scriabin's musical statement after he came to Blavatsky's "theosophy" in Russia. In other wards, what we now call mysticism. Audiences love Scriabin, but few conductors know him. I have always thought he was underrated, but it is rare to hear him in concert. He wrote mainly for piano. Horowitz played for him when he was ten.

[@licenselessrider4486]

what Cyril Scott says about him, is that he was directly inspired by Vedic beings (higher dimensional consciousness beings)

[@nyc88s]

Scriabin! The most astonishing musical mind.

[@Thomas_Ruiz]

18:38 to the end it's just incredible , if you close you're eyes and concentrate to the music you gonna see a ton of colors and feel a pure transcendental ecstasy , like you're a god

[@user-xb2ot9un6e]

Хорошая интерпретация.Спасибо.

[@peroz1000]

Great performance, thanks.

[@shahriarkarim-ghovanloorub2562]

As I hear it, the solo and quiet parts in the music are the expressions of the ego-self, and the moments of full orchestra including of course the finale, are the expression of the melting of the self into the wholeness-oneness of our essays.....pretty sure Scriabin was into Psychidelics!

[@Coldron]

Still the best and finest conducters in the world. I hope to hear and see more of hes work.

[@marycordillera]

¡Qué maravilla!

[@galas062]

thank you for the upload..:)

[@deisealbuquerque7193]

Melhor canal.

[@dAvrilthebear]

For no reason, this piece strongly evokes pictures from mythical antiquity: bright morning in an enchanted forest, gods/heroes hunting, nymths bathing, Ortheus singing, Vakh drinking, something like that.)

[@drekc2]

my favourite composer of this piece

[@Dylonely42]

?

[@benmarleor]

I've been listening to the last few minutes of this piece over and over whilst staring at Michelangelo's Creation of Adam...I feel like I am Adam...

[@alexhamilton9758]

Incomparable excess!! What a wonderful palliative to the perfection of Mozart and Bach. Long live passionate indulgence!

[@Anton-vu1ou]

Great!

[@alexhamilton9758]

Finally, a conductor who can read music. The final chord consists of 4 whole notes and a half note - nothing less.

[@MuseDuCafe]

When its this over the top... you just go with it. If you go with it, you will love it ;-)

[@grantveebeejay535]

Truly wonderful manifestation of inner spiritual yearning morphing into music. I feel uplifted by this composer. Thanks for posting!

[@derpyguy7722]

Like the ensembles, the phrasings and the embochure of everyone,it's nice

[@whoitisnot]

Embouchure, seriously? Is that the word you actually meant?

[@vetlerradio]

Even ensembles makes no sense in this context I think.