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Figure 6c Skryabin, Poeéme, bars 10-14.

Figure 6 c Skryabin, Poeéme, bars 10-14.

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Example 1 Skryabin, Etude, Op. 42, no. 2, bars 12-16.
Example 1 Skryabin, Etude, Op. 42, no. 2, bars 12-16.
Example 2 Skryabin, Flammes sombres, Op. 73, no. 2, bars 1-4. (and later D and A}) can be interpreted as refractions of a single chord complex — a “French sixth’ configuration of interlocking tritones, exemplified here by the pitches F, B, A, and D+ (E}). Dernova calls this complex the ‘tritone link’, because the seventh chord with a flattened fifth reproduces its pitch-class content under the t6 operation: thus F—A—C}—E) becomes B—D#-F—A in Example 3. Many instances of this are found in Skryabin’s output, and the pliability of tonal implication that it enables in respect of tritone-related keys makes the chord a highly flexible resource, particularly when so much of this music is organized by t3, t6, and t9 sequences.
Example 2 Skryabin, Flammes sombres, Op. 73, no. 2, bars 1-4. (and later D and A}) can be interpreted as refractions of a single chord complex — a “French sixth’ configuration of interlocking tritones, exemplified here by the pitches F, B, A, and D+ (E}). Dernova calls this complex the ‘tritone link’, because the seventh chord with a flattened fifth reproduces its pitch-class content under the t6 operation: thus F—A—C}—E) becomes B—D#-F—A in Example 3. Many instances of this are found in Skryabin’s output, and the pliability of tonal implication that it enables in respect of tritone-related keys makes the chord a highly flexible resource, particularly when so much of this music is organized by t3, t6, and t9 sequences.
But each sonority expressly comprises ‘tritone link’ chords, meaning that a chromati chord such as B’” (of the B>B) progression) also embodies its tritone relative — an F chor in this instance, which thereby produces F>B} motion, commensurate with the circle o fifths. This enharmonic ‘tritone link’ is a more discreet version of the ‘tritone substitution common in jazz, and can be mapped successfully onto the collapsed spatial model. Figure - ‘a and b) lays out Berg’s paths along the tritone-linked circle of fifths, notwithstanding th apparent chromatic chord progression of Example 4b. Squares here represent the chord neard, while arrows show their progression. Unlike Berg in this instance, Skryabin does not always adhere to ‘French sixth’ chord
But each sonority expressly comprises ‘tritone link’ chords, meaning that a chromati chord such as B’” (of the B>B) progression) also embodies its tritone relative — an F chor in this instance, which thereby produces F>B} motion, commensurate with the circle o fifths. This enharmonic ‘tritone link’ is a more discreet version of the ‘tritone substitution common in jazz, and can be mapped successfully onto the collapsed spatial model. Figure - ‘a and b) lays out Berg’s paths along the tritone-linked circle of fifths, notwithstanding th apparent chromatic chord progression of Example 4b. Squares here represent the chord neard, while arrows show their progression. Unlike Berg in this instance, Skryabin does not always adhere to ‘French sixth’ chord
Example 4a Berg Op. 2, no. 2, bars 1-5.
Example 4a Berg Op. 2, no. 2, bars 1-5.
For all that this particular ‘French sixth’ chord is utilized seemingly inexhaustibly by skryabin, nowhere in his own output is it used as exclusively as in the first of Alban Berg’s arly settings of Alfred Mombert’s Der Gliihende (Op. 2, no. 2). The beginning and end of he song are reproduced in Examples 4a and 4b. In Example 4a the bass circle of fifths stretches from Bj) to E (with C}/B providing an enharmonic bridge). In the final lines, by -ontrast, the central circle-of-fifths passage (moving again from B} to E in Example 4b) is surrounded by chromatic progressions.
For all that this particular ‘French sixth’ chord is utilized seemingly inexhaustibly by skryabin, nowhere in his own output is it used as exclusively as in the first of Alban Berg’s arly settings of Alfred Mombert’s Der Gliihende (Op. 2, no. 2). The beginning and end of he song are reproduced in Examples 4a and 4b. In Example 4a the bass circle of fifths stretches from Bj) to E (with C}/B providing an enharmonic bridge). In the final lines, by -ontrast, the central circle-of-fifths passage (moving again from B} to E in Example 4b) is surrounded by chromatic progressions.
Figure 3 Berg’s path through tritone-linked circles of fifths in (a) bars 1-5 (b) bars 14-18.
Figure 3 Berg’s path through tritone-linked circles of fifths in (a) bars 1-5 (b) bars 14-18.
bombastic opening Dernova claims, ‘It is difficult to see how any tonal orientation other than a motion from D to G; could be deduced.’”° In response to this calamitous under- statement, the analytical method now adopted organizes the fascinating linear chain of seemingly disjointed harmonies into a clear circle of fifths, though this fifth progression is rerouted by minor-third and tritone relationships. Plotting the path Skryabin takes in the opening four bars of his Poéme puts this in a nutshell (see Example 5).
bombastic opening Dernova claims, ‘It is difficult to see how any tonal orientation other than a motion from D to G; could be deduced.’”° In response to this calamitous under- statement, the analytical method now adopted organizes the fascinating linear chain of seemingly disjointed harmonies into a clear circle of fifths, though this fifth progression is rerouted by minor-third and tritone relationships. Plotting the path Skryabin takes in the opening four bars of his Poéme puts this in a nutshell (see Example 5).
Figure 4 Path traced by Poeme, Op. 32, no. 2, bars 1-5. In spite of its key signature, Skryabin’s opening sonority is highly ambiguous. An inter- pretation of the chord as D is problematized by the seventh (C) in the bass, the diminished fifth (A}), and the delayed third (F#). Nevertheless, this reading is retrospectively validated when Skryabin moves to a G major chord (albeit in first inversion with the suspended F# above it) at the end of bar 2. This retroactively consolidates the function of the opening chord as a dominant seventh on D that drives towards G, regardless of the fact that the diminished fifth (A}) creates the potential for the chord to act additionally as ‘tritone link’ on A) (hence implying Dj).*’ The next two bars are slightly more straightforward. An E’ chord is struck in bar 3 which, despite the suspended Ft, the chromatic flirtation with E#, and the delayed fifth (B) in the melody line, is projected forcefully by the firm bass E and the D—G+ tritone. Following this, the subsequent protracted harmony is consolidated as a chromatically elabo- rated A’ chord by its resolution onto a full D major triad. This is now posited as a firm tonic for the piece, or at least for the opening phrase. Using my modified version of the Weber/ Lerdahl ‘table of tonal relations’ this procedure could be modelled as in Figure 4. In this four-column grid squares still represent chords (rather generally to include both triads and sevenths) and the double conjoining line (A) = D) demonstrates the synonymity between the ‘tritone link’ chords. Although this A} is only potentially operative at this stage, it plays its part in both the chord’s aural ambiguity and the piece’s tonal narrative. Notwithstanding the chromatic uncertainty of this opening passage, the progression seems relatively clear once the initial chord is retrospectively understood: D>G+E’>A’>D, or IsIV>II>V>I. once the initial chord is retrospectively understood: D>G-+E’>A‘’>D, or Io IVsHsV-1
Figure 4 Path traced by Poeme, Op. 32, no. 2, bars 1-5. In spite of its key signature, Skryabin’s opening sonority is highly ambiguous. An inter- pretation of the chord as D is problematized by the seventh (C) in the bass, the diminished fifth (A}), and the delayed third (F#). Nevertheless, this reading is retrospectively validated when Skryabin moves to a G major chord (albeit in first inversion with the suspended F# above it) at the end of bar 2. This retroactively consolidates the function of the opening chord as a dominant seventh on D that drives towards G, regardless of the fact that the diminished fifth (A}) creates the potential for the chord to act additionally as ‘tritone link’ on A) (hence implying Dj).*’ The next two bars are slightly more straightforward. An E’ chord is struck in bar 3 which, despite the suspended Ft, the chromatic flirtation with E#, and the delayed fifth (B) in the melody line, is projected forcefully by the firm bass E and the D—G+ tritone. Following this, the subsequent protracted harmony is consolidated as a chromatically elabo- rated A’ chord by its resolution onto a full D major triad. This is now posited as a firm tonic for the piece, or at least for the opening phrase. Using my modified version of the Weber/ Lerdahl ‘table of tonal relations’ this procedure could be modelled as in Figure 4. In this four-column grid squares still represent chords (rather generally to include both triads and sevenths) and the double conjoining line (A) = D) demonstrates the synonymity between the ‘tritone link’ chords. Although this A} is only potentially operative at this stage, it plays its part in both the chord’s aural ambiguity and the piece’s tonal narrative. Notwithstanding the chromatic uncertainty of this opening passage, the progression seems relatively clear once the initial chord is retrospectively understood: D>G+E’>A’>D, or IsIV>II>V>I. once the initial chord is retrospectively understood: D>G-+E’>A‘’>D, or Io IVsHsV-1
Figure 5b An extension to illustrate Riemann’s Funktionstheorie.
Figure 5b An extension to illustrate Riemann’s Funktionstheorie.
example, the idea that a tritone-related chord can substitute for the true T chord cannot always be applied directly to diatonic harmony. Lendvai rather overconfidently asserts that “counterpoles’ (by which he means tritone-related chords) are ‘more directly related to each other than the relative keys of classical harmony’, and thus a ‘pole can be replaced by its counterpole without any change in its function’.*° An extreme reading of these words would imply that a simple diatonic tune in C major could end satisfactorily on an Fé triad and still achieve tonal resolution. And yet in specific ways ‘tritone substitution’ can func- tion perfectly. As any jazz pianist knows, a dominant seventh can be readily replaced with its tritone counterpart (for example a G’ chord replaced by a Dj’ chord in C major) at a cadential juncture. Both chords, when imbued with this dominant-seventh driving quality, contain the same potent tritone that pulls towards the established tonic. But this potential
example, the idea that a tritone-related chord can substitute for the true T chord cannot always be applied directly to diatonic harmony. Lendvai rather overconfidently asserts that “counterpoles’ (by which he means tritone-related chords) are ‘more directly related to each other than the relative keys of classical harmony’, and thus a ‘pole can be replaced by its counterpole without any change in its function’.*° An extreme reading of these words would imply that a simple diatonic tune in C major could end satisfactorily on an Fé triad and still achieve tonal resolution. And yet in specific ways ‘tritone substitution’ can func- tion perfectly. As any jazz pianist knows, a dominant seventh can be readily replaced with its tritone counterpart (for example a G’ chord replaced by a Dj’ chord in C major) at a cadential juncture. Both chords, when imbued with this dominant-seventh driving quality, contain the same potent tritone that pulls towards the established tonic. But this potential
Figure 6a Skryabin, Poeme, Op. 32, no. 2, bars 5-7.
Figure 6a Skryabin, Poeme, Op. 32, no. 2, bars 5-7.
G} triad, I draw an arrow on the graph to show an actual progression to C’””’. From this position Skryabin moves to a clearer E} triad (bar 9), which in turn progresses to an A} that shares a tritone link with D’”’. The Aj then switches to an F chord in bar 10, followed by an F/B tritone link. The entire T space is thus filled out using each of its potential repre- sentatives (D-F—A}—-B). Thus Figure 6b exhibits a dense network of chord relationships, despite its clear D> T motion. Of course Skryabin now has the problem of establishing the true T chord of D. After all, substitutes are only substitutes and do not carry the same functional weight as the primary triads that they stand in for. In order to achieve this, he first consolidates F as a full seventh chord and resolves it to a B} in the following bar. The tritone link is once again exploited as he shifts quite forcefully from the initial B} to an E’ chord and activates an A’ in bars 12-14. This chord is drawn out over two bars to confirm itself as the true D function, thus indicat- ing the true T (see Figure 6c). But, after flexing and stretching this A as D in order to fully confirm the D as T, Skryabin denies us the satisfaction of an actual D triad until the end of the piece, offering instead an ambiguous return to the opening D’’’. The full course of Poeme, Op. 32, no. 2, yields two progressions similar to bars 1-14 before the final resolution of the full D major T chord, but the procedures hitherto discussed are charted in Figure 6d.
G} triad, I draw an arrow on the graph to show an actual progression to C’””’. From this position Skryabin moves to a clearer E} triad (bar 9), which in turn progresses to an A} that shares a tritone link with D’”’. The Aj then switches to an F chord in bar 10, followed by an F/B tritone link. The entire T space is thus filled out using each of its potential repre- sentatives (D-F—A}—-B). Thus Figure 6b exhibits a dense network of chord relationships, despite its clear D> T motion. Of course Skryabin now has the problem of establishing the true T chord of D. After all, substitutes are only substitutes and do not carry the same functional weight as the primary triads that they stand in for. In order to achieve this, he first consolidates F as a full seventh chord and resolves it to a B} in the following bar. The tritone link is once again exploited as he shifts quite forcefully from the initial B} to an E’ chord and activates an A’ in bars 12-14. This chord is drawn out over two bars to confirm itself as the true D function, thus indicat- ing the true T (see Figure 6c). But, after flexing and stretching this A as D in order to fully confirm the D as T, Skryabin denies us the satisfaction of an actual D triad until the end of the piece, offering instead an ambiguous return to the opening D’’’. The full course of Poeme, Op. 32, no. 2, yields two progressions similar to bars 1-14 before the final resolution of the full D major T chord, but the procedures hitherto discussed are charted in Figure 6d.
Figure 6d Skryabin, Poéme, bars 1-14, according to both four- and two-column models.
Figure 6d Skryabin, Poéme, bars 1-14, according to both four- and two-column models.
seventh chord, we witness the drive’s failure and its return to its circular path. Lacan’s model corresponds neatly to Skryabin’s practice, with a crucial difference. While the tonic chord (in this instance D, or one of its substitutes, F, B, or Aj) is clearly posited as an object of our desire, Skryabin does achieve this object at the close of the piece when he displays a full D major triad, and this appears to be successful. But for Lacan — and seemingly for Skryabin, who says “When I have no desire I am nothing’ — this is a hollow gesture, a mis- recognition of the drive’s true goal.*! This is where an examination of Skryabin’s late style becomes imperative. Here the tonic chord is at once both implicated and avoided, forcing tonal function to operate quite differently.
seventh chord, we witness the drive’s failure and its return to its circular path. Lacan’s model corresponds neatly to Skryabin’s practice, with a crucial difference. While the tonic chord (in this instance D, or one of its substitutes, F, B, or Aj) is clearly posited as an object of our desire, Skryabin does achieve this object at the close of the piece when he displays a full D major triad, and this appears to be successful. But for Lacan — and seemingly for Skryabin, who says “When I have no desire I am nothing’ — this is a hollow gesture, a mis- recognition of the drive’s true goal.*! This is where an examination of Skryabin’s late style becomes imperative. Here the tonic chord is at once both implicated and avoided, forcing tonal function to operate quite differently.
Example 7 Skryabin, Sonata no. 6, bars 13-15. Example 8 Skryabin, Sonata no. 6, bar 39 ff: second subject or transition?
Example 7 Skryabin, Sonata no. 6, bars 13-15. Example 8 Skryabin, Sonata no. 6, bar 39 ff: second subject or transition?
the S is foreshadowed when the seventh chords on B} (bar 43) resolve to chords on E} (bar 47 — mediated by an S substitute on G} in bars 45-6 with the B} pedal retained in the bass). This new chord on E} undergoes tritone substitution with an A from the same S region. But in this transitional passage the listener is pulled back and forth between two functional areas, for Skryabin retreats to the initial T region in bars 54-60 with seventh chords on B), F}, and D} (see Example 9). A reconstruction of bars 43-7 sees a return to G}, E}, and A in bar 64 to stabilize the S, and by bar 69 the S region is utterly secure.
the S is foreshadowed when the seventh chords on B} (bar 43) resolve to chords on E} (bar 47 — mediated by an S substitute on G} in bars 45-6 with the B} pedal retained in the bass). This new chord on E} undergoes tritone substitution with an A from the same S region. But in this transitional passage the listener is pulled back and forth between two functional areas, for Skryabin retreats to the initial T region in bars 54-60 with seventh chords on B), F}, and D} (see Example 9). A reconstruction of bars 43-7 sees a return to G}, E}, and A in bar 64 to stabilize the S, and by bar 69 the S region is utterly secure.
Example 6 Skryabin, Sonata no. 6, bars 10-12.
Example 6 Skryabin, Sonata no. 6, bars 10-12.
The ‘modulatory’ aspect of this passage is analogous to the transitional theme of a classi- | sonata model, and thus I designate it as a transition to a more distinct second theme at ur 82, with its prompt change of character. This reading finds encouragement in Skryabin’s orid performance indications. My transition — Willmann’s second subject — is accom- anied by ‘le réve prend forme (clarté, douceur, pureté)’ (the dream takes shape: brightness, ntleness, purity). This crystallization of the poetic ‘dream’ confirms the function of tran- tion; the consequent ‘avec entrainement’ implies the newly shaped, tonally secured idea — e full second subject. And one must not undervalue melodic stability here; despite its any connections with previous motivic content, the five-note ascending cell is now pre- nted in fully developed form, supporting the new S matrix. However, one would expect tonally functional model to utilize the D region rather than the S in the second subject, id in this regard Skryabin changes the tonal position of the archetypal lyrical second ibject. As is so often the case, the tonal and thematic processes in the movement’s recapit- ation can shed light on the issue. Tha pacanitilatian Ahagine uith the D matriv and ice nracentead a whale tane lair than the
The ‘modulatory’ aspect of this passage is analogous to the transitional theme of a classi- | sonata model, and thus I designate it as a transition to a more distinct second theme at ur 82, with its prompt change of character. This reading finds encouragement in Skryabin’s orid performance indications. My transition — Willmann’s second subject — is accom- anied by ‘le réve prend forme (clarté, douceur, pureté)’ (the dream takes shape: brightness, ntleness, purity). This crystallization of the poetic ‘dream’ confirms the function of tran- tion; the consequent ‘avec entrainement’ implies the newly shaped, tonally secured idea — e full second subject. And one must not undervalue melodic stability here; despite its any connections with previous motivic content, the five-note ascending cell is now pre- nted in fully developed form, supporting the new S matrix. However, one would expect tonally functional model to utilize the D region rather than the S in the second subject, id in this regard Skryabin changes the tonal position of the archetypal lyrical second ibject. As is so often the case, the tonal and thematic processes in the movement’s recapit- ation can shed light on the issue. Tha pacanitilatian Ahagine uith the D matriv and ice nracentead a whale tane lair than the
Example 10 Skryabin, Sonata no. 6, bars 244-5. piVViIttts LIddoli©s Ul CIAGVUUTALE UICTIIAUL ValliallOll Lil illo VYLALIIIL LUCaPIUIAUU TI, A more significant departure from the exposition occurs in the reorganized transition section of the recapitulation. Whereas the transition’s function in the recapitulation is generally to preserve the tonic key between the first and second theme groups, this example operates as a homecoming that returns us to the tonic. The new transition also carries struc- tural weight, as the climax of the work is articulated here in the space between the two themes as a kind of secondary development. This apex is, however, rather subdued, charged by the cumulative effect of ostinatos.
Example 10 Skryabin, Sonata no. 6, bars 244-5. piVViIttts LIddoli©s Ul CIAGVUUTALE UICTIIAUL ValliallOll Lil illo VYLALIIIL LUCaPIUIAUU TI, A more significant departure from the exposition occurs in the reorganized transition section of the recapitulation. Whereas the transition’s function in the recapitulation is generally to preserve the tonic key between the first and second theme groups, this example operates as a homecoming that returns us to the tonic. The new transition also carries struc- tural weight, as the climax of the work is articulated here in the space between the two themes as a kind of secondary development. This apex is, however, rather subdued, charged by the cumulative effect of ostinatos.
Example 11 Skryabin, Sonata no. 6, bars 254-5.
Example 11 Skryabin, Sonata no. 6, bars 254-5.
Example 12 Skryabin, Sonata no. 6, bars 126-30. = “ — ‘neo-functionality’, a few preliminary considerations are in order. The sonata largely eradicates the possibility of local diatonic progression, directing our full attention to the global progression. The absence of possibilities of discharge within strict minor-third-related harmonies results in clearly demarcated blocks that exploit single matrices and, given the excessive length of these vast stretches involving the claustrophobic alternation of only four chords, an attentive listener could reasonably process the global discharges into a new matrix as a functional shift. Naturally, the literal discharges (i.e., generally V’ +I gestures) at local level give the listener the clearest chance of registering the modulations between matrices. The intersection between the exposition’s concluding S function and the development’s D (shown in Example 12) begins with just such a direct discharge motion from a tritone-linked F#/C to B/F(E¢), which places the developmental restatement of the opening theme firmly in the “dominant key’. Note also how, after the period of transition in the exposition, the final consolidation of the new second subject that occurs at bars 63-4 (a modified repeat of bars 29 ff, shown in Example 8) moves from Bj’ to E}, and although a G;’ chord is nestled between the discharging chord and its resolu- tion, the B) pedal underlying it strengthens this T>S motion. Through a dialectic between local periods of tonal inertia and concentrated structural discharging motions, Skryabin forces us to switch from an octatonic foreground to a pseudo-diatonic background level, structured by fifth motion that, albeit in drastically reinvented form, mirrors the relation- ships between micro harmonic progressions and macro key operations in the prototypical sonata dvnamic.
Example 12 Skryabin, Sonata no. 6, bars 126-30. = “ — ‘neo-functionality’, a few preliminary considerations are in order. The sonata largely eradicates the possibility of local diatonic progression, directing our full attention to the global progression. The absence of possibilities of discharge within strict minor-third-related harmonies results in clearly demarcated blocks that exploit single matrices and, given the excessive length of these vast stretches involving the claustrophobic alternation of only four chords, an attentive listener could reasonably process the global discharges into a new matrix as a functional shift. Naturally, the literal discharges (i.e., generally V’ +I gestures) at local level give the listener the clearest chance of registering the modulations between matrices. The intersection between the exposition’s concluding S function and the development’s D (shown in Example 12) begins with just such a direct discharge motion from a tritone-linked F#/C to B/F(E¢), which places the developmental restatement of the opening theme firmly in the “dominant key’. Note also how, after the period of transition in the exposition, the final consolidation of the new second subject that occurs at bars 63-4 (a modified repeat of bars 29 ff, shown in Example 8) moves from Bj’ to E}, and although a G;’ chord is nestled between the discharging chord and its resolu- tion, the B) pedal underlying it strengthens this T>S motion. Through a dialectic between local periods of tonal inertia and concentrated structural discharging motions, Skryabin forces us to switch from an octatonic foreground to a pseudo-diatonic background level, structured by fifth motion that, albeit in drastically reinvented form, mirrors the relation- ships between micro harmonic progressions and macro key operations in the prototypical sonata dvnamic.
Related topics:
Neo-Riemannian AnalysisAlexander ScriabinHugo Riemann
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