Scriabin - left hand nocturne op. 9 No. 2

[sueannepiano]

This was absolutely beautiful and touched my heart ... Thank you

[retrogamerdave]

anybody else think the yamaha he's playing sounds like a steinway?

[equitater]

Beautiful beautiful  performance!

[sergeypiano]

@equitater Thank you!

[equitater]

@sergeypiano My son Dr. Seth Darst was given

(at age 14) this piece when he broke a bone in his right hand hitting his brother! I loved it and then learned it as well.

[Pianofy]

The piano is already amazing at just one hand.. just wow

[AnnaaaBananaa]

When I heard it for the first time, I had to close my eyes. It was on a presentation and I didn't know it before that it's only for the left hand, so I wondered because it sounds like it is played with both hands.

And it's still beautiful!

[mepiano1]

Excellent performance. Very expressive and musical. I love it!!!!

[sergeypiano]

@mepiano1 Thank you!

[pianofreakpr]

Sergey...greetings from Puerto Rico!! I am a piano student and I was so overwhelmed by this piece and to see how great and passionate you played this that I took the challenge myself to play it and I have succeded!!! Your Wonderful talent served as my motive and inspiration so I thank you!! One day i hope to play as good as you and in concerts,... Farewell!!

[sergeypiano]

@pianofreakpr Thank you! And good luck! :)

[MrMarmeladow]

Zuerst dachte ich, dass der Pianist nur einen Arm hat. Das ist so sonderbar und doch so schööön! :-)

[sergeypiano]

@MrMarmeladow Hehe, danke!

[mayou59500]

Belle performance Sergey! bravo!

[sergeypiano]

@mayou59500 Merci! :-)

[whythewar1]

Did all piano affiliated composers write stuff like this as a PR stunt to copy ravel?

[sergeypiano]

@whythewar1 No, they didn't. Scriabin had written this nocturne some 36 years before Ravel wrote his left-hand concerto. The practice of writing for piano one-hand had existed at least since Karl Czerny, Ravel was anything but pioneer in this respect.

[whythewar1]

@sergeypiano Ah, okay, I don't know much about Musical history.

[retrogamerdave]

@sergeypiano and it's a historical fact that Scriabin hurt his right hand at the conservatory because he over practiced Mozart's don juan fantasy. The historical question is if this injury was truly the catalyst for scriabin to write left-handed pieces.

[sergeypiano]

@retrogamerdave Well, we've evidences that Scriabin perceived his 'right-arm-ingjury period' as that of a struggle against fate, wherein he fought also by writing and playing music and won.

[bhbum]

I just injured my right hand. This will be perfect to learn.  Thank you for a beautiful performance.

[12345qazx1]

beautifull.right from the heart!!

[erictellez]

Do somebody knows if this piece was compoused for Paul Wittgenstein??

[sergeypiano]

@erictellez Not at all. This was written in early 1890-s when Scriabin had his right hand injured and couldn't play it for some time; that is, some 25 years before Wittgenstein actually lost his right arm.

[erictellez]

@sergeypiano Nice. Thanks a lot.

[alanclass35]

absolutely amazing! this was very very good thank you.

[sergeypiano]

@alanclass35 Thank you!

[kalevala78]

it's perfect!

[sergeypiano]

@kalevala78 Thank you!

[poefanatic]

Brilliant, beautiful phrasing and interpretation. I wish I could do half as well.

[TheKeenanBoy]

I love this piece...and how scriabin makes all these 'tugs' at your heart. Also, your interpretation is magnificently slow.

I've got the challenge to memorize this piece without playing it, just by memorizing the music. Is there any tip you could give me?

[sergeypiano]

@TheKeenanBoy Thank you!

Tips for memorising the piece? I hardly can invent one, the piece is simple enough for having time to remember its text as you play it. :)

[rbob200]

nice interpretation..

[computerdborbo]

To me the most beautiful nocturne ever composed, and one of the beautiest piano pieces

[videovarf]

The music is beautiful, and so is the performance, though I think there is something disgusting in the very idea of writing a piece for one hand only, at least when performed publicly rather than just as didactic material.

[sergeypiano]

@videovarf Well, most of the left-hand music was not wrtten for didactic purposes but for public performances... And this nocturne was not even written for a handicapped person. :-)

Actually, in art, extra limitations often helped for creation of great works, so why not using one hand as long as it's capable of doing what the composer wants.

[videovarf]

@sergeypiano You're right in every bit of what you wrote. I'd been just referring to the impression a layman might get looking at this type of performance.

[sergeypiano]

@videovarf :) I see. Well, so far laymen in my presence only wondered as to why such pieces shouldn't be played with two hands, but were not exactly disgusted. They rather felt it as a tour de force, with only one hand used making it more difficult. :)

[chad410]

I d love to hear you in the later sonatas

[sergeypiano]

@chad410 One day, hopefully...

[broiledhobbit]

Beautiful performance! You shape the melodic line extremely well and with some delicate thumb-work, there. Your voicing is perfect. I've no doubt Scriabin himself would have gladly shaken your hand -- both hands.

[sergeypiano]

@broiledhobbit :$ Thank you very much!

[zurzica51]

one more time.. one more great performance but mr Kuznetsov!!

(nice place for the right hand!! when i played this piece i had a big problem with it.. where to put the right hand!?)

thanks for the video!

[sergeypiano]

@zurzica51 Thank you! And welcome!

As for the right hand, if I remember correctly, I got this idea from memoirs about Stanislav Neuhaus (Neygauz), that is, the idea was his.

[Masmorra84]

amazing piano playing. you have great sensibility for this music and above all you have very very good ears. if I quite remember this was taken from the Hamamatsu piano competition, right? I was on the audience it really was a scandal that you didn't win...EVERYONE knows Gorlatch only won because his teacher was on the Jury...what a shame.

[sergeypiano]

@Masmorra84 Hehe, thank you! Indeed, this performance was at the competition.

[byronmcquainable]

great!

[sergeypiano]

@byronmcquainable Thank you! :)

[bassoostenuto1]

This is gem performance of great beauty. Thank you!

[sergeypiano]

@bassoostenuto1 Thank you!

[h3onza]

Iplay piano, keyboard and accordion in my free time. However, I suffered a spiral fracture of my upper right arm four weeks ago. Therefore I obtained the sheet for this extraordinary piece, but I am afraid it might be too difficult for me. However, the results may be rewarding, as I watched your performance. Stunning!

[marginallymental]

Only Scriabin could take a novelty idea and turn it into gorgeousness. And only you could play it so well.

[sergeypiano]

@marginallymental Thank you very much! :)

[coo1965]

This is amazing! I'm playing this and I find it difficult to keep the melody going, seeing as though there's so much else going on in the same hand! You did this PERFECTLY though, and you made it look really easy! This was a great interpretation, (if that's what you might call it,) and thank you for posting this!

[sergeypiano]

@coo1965 Thank you!

[WAMEDJO]

Scriabine never disappoints me...Love it !

[itaiGUITAR]

wonderfull !

[alitalia5]

That's really impressive... I guess you really caught the essence of this piece. I wish I could play like that. Thank you for sharing.

[sergeypiano]

@alitalia5 Thank you!

[pianistpedro]

You are so perfect....so fantastic...so moving. Gorgeous intepretation!!!

[sergeypiano]

Thank you!

[maternelle01]

That's so beautiful ... I'm working this piece but I don't succeed to play the 2 last mesures as Scriabin would want, I'm bored ! Anyway, what you do is just perfect !

(sorry for the bad english)

[sergeypiano]

:-) Thank you! And good luck!

And your English is quite sufficient, don't worry! ;-)

[aaabbbccc5]

i like this piece...

[lildaley003]

BEAUTIFUL! :)

[sergeypiano]

Thank you! :-)

[iluvperkushun]

absolutely gorgeous....GOOSE BUMPS EVERYWHERE!!!!!

[sergeypiano]

Thank you!

[PhilipLu3]

op.9 no.2? reminds me of another famous nocturne!

[OceanbornSWT]

@PhilipLu3 Yeah! The Chopin's Nocturne.. Scriabin really admired the Chopin's works.

[retrogamerdave]

I have worked on this piece and only WISH I could play it like this. This video has inspired me.

[andrewlowewatson]

Absolutely exquisite playing. This is the right way to play this difficult and subtle music, in the real Russian tradition. My own teacher John Bingham was a Neuhaus pupil and he would have loved your interpretation.

[sergeypiano]

Thank you! I am flattered indeed.

[tininina84]

Bravissimoooo! I really like it!

[sergeypiano]

Thank you!

[seremerow]

he expressived his own music.

really really motonal and good playing!!

[sergeypiano]

Thank you!

[f9883h]

I am working on this piece. Its is not that easy. the dynamics are interesting but difficult.

[ugolinoandhissons]

this guy is a genius!!!!!

[sergeypiano]

:$ Thank you!

[zurzica51]

man!! you have a really big hand!! and a wonderfull sound..great playing :)

[sergeypiano]

Thank you!

[carnivalcruiserbill]

Here is another fantastic performance by you. You play with color and intensity. Do you have any plans of playing in Toronto?

[sergeypiano]

Thank you! No, no plans for Toronto so far.

[hamelin69]

One of my personal favorites among your numerious performances that I truly enjoy!

By the way I heard it live!

[fredmex65]

What an intimate yet refined interpretation of Scriabin's Nocturne. Congratulations, you are some pianist! Thank you for sharing. Try the (of course not such a complexe and rich in architecture piece) the Left Hand "Malgre Tout" of our Mexican Composer, Carrasco. Regards, Salvador.

[sergeypiano]

Muchas gracias!

[Yourenigma]

Mmmm....wonderfully subtle in the A-section! I would have loved a bit more drama in the climax of the B-section, really opening up and allowing the F-flat major chord to resonate as an arrival point.

The cadenza was perfect! Sublime even. The final arpeggios and trills were a little fast for my taste, but such things are a personal matter. A fine performance!

[sergeypiano]

Thank you!

[alaindeferrier]

How exquisite i found your playing of the left hand nocturne Absolutely sublime and utterly spellbinding Bravo ,you are a true artist and i'll be looking out for your further recitals Best wishes Alain

[sergeypiano]

Thank you!

[thomasmoredamian]

Has anyone heard Weisenberg play the Scriabin's sonata for the left hand? It is perfection....not that this fellow's playing isn't close....but check out the Weisenberg interprets Scraibin, too.

[sergeypiano]

Do you mean Weisenberg's performance of Scriabin's prelude and nocturne for the left hand op. 9? I am afraid these are the only things written by Scriabin for the left hand, i.e. there is no left-hand sonata by him.

[CloverMouse081227]

What a beautiful nocturne! I love it! Thank you.!

[d920cwc]

That's a beautiful performance - thank you. Out of interest, do you use the sostenuto pedal? I find it hard to play measures 13 & 14 cleanly, and have often wondered if the sostenuto pedal (that my Yamaha upright doesn't have....) would help.

[sergeypiano]

Thank you!

As for these measures, I do not actually find exactly them much different from many others. :-) What do you mean under sostenuto pedal, the right one or the middle one of a grand piano? Seemingly as your Yamaha upright doesn't have it, you talk about the middle one; if so, no, I wasn't using this pedal in this piece, only the right and the left ones. In these bars, it is sufficient to 'build-in' the sounds into the texture carefully and keep slightly moving the right pedal.

[d920cwc]

Thanks for your reply. Yes, I meant the middle pedal. You have taken away my excuse for the sound I make.... ;-) I thought I just needed a better piano, but clearly I shall have to practice more!

[sergeypiano]

:-) Perhaps I might console you if I say that I cannot deem any upright piano known to me sufficiently suitable for music of this degree of subtlety, so I assume you do need a better piano; whether this will suffice is another matter. ;-)

[pianodb]

My piano seems to be sufficient for "this degree of subtlety." I'm not entirely sure if I am talking about the right thing. My piano is an upright one. It was built by Lindeman and Sons of New York. It is a fantastic piano. It is nearly 100 years old and still has original ivory keys, woodwork, pedals, and everything. I am not sure if the strings were replaced or not. It has been in my family for generations. I believe my great, great grandfather bought it. I will keep typing in the next comment

[pianodb]

It was a top-of-the-line piano at the time. It has a rich deep sound that you won't find in pianos anymore. My parents were thinking about replacing it with a Steinway baby grand, but if they do, I hope they me keep our piano already. Very nice playing, btw.

[jasjjb]

Very beautiful piece of music - not know to me before. And superbly executed by you - played with much feeling ! Thank you !

[sergeypiano]

Thank you!

[javacisnotrecognized]

When you played this (Or other left hand alone pieces) do you sometimes get the strange feeling your arm is somehow seperated from your body?

[sergeypiano]

... Do you mean the playing arm? Actually no, I don't feel like this.

[aaabbbccc5]

I think i can play it with 2 Hands...

Scriabin is a Dear!

[chelzzler]

This piece is very dear to my heart; I grew up with my mother playing this often and it has always "struck a chord" with me. Great performance!

[psycholudwig00011]

wow!!! ur perfromance almost made me cry... I really love this piece ever from the first time I've heard this... just wanna ask wgere can I find the sheet for that piece. By the wasy you're performance is very orgasmic!!! I just love it when you open ur mouth. it's too sexy... sets me on fire...

[SalQrazy]

I hope you're a female.. anyway, here's the sheet music link; imslp . org / wiki / Main_Page - Fix the spacing. Search Scriabin. Play this piece. Record it. Put it up for us to see and hear.

[NOSEhow2LIV]

Beautiful. A model for this piece, full of melting harmonies,controlled rubato,long lines...the instrument's limitations forgotten.All this with left hand only, AND on a Yamahaha...doubly impossible! Double Bravo!

[TheIzzoGuy]

Excellent performance. I think the video needs better sound quality, though. It's too quiet. :( Anyway, although you have big hands, Scriabin did not. He could barely reach a ninth, but that didn't stop him from being great.

[gmailpwns]

Again, the playing was amazing in terms of dynamics and rubato and etc. You could try to move your body with the music a bit.. as you looked pretty stiff. Nevertheless, great recording

[sergeypiano]

Thank you! I agree that I might have moved more, however if I remember correctly I wanted to get away from the body feelings as much as possible. Scriabin himself used to sit complete straight and without moving the body; I guess I was thinking about him when I was playing it.

[chad410]

if you move too much you ll lose the feeling of flow in the music. you are beautiful musician. :p and yes you have big hands too.

[carnivalcruiserbill]

You don't need to move your body more. You used your body efficiently. The tone that you produced speaks for itself.

[gmailpwns]

Your playing totally beats mine... Also, i noticed that your hands are pretty big, which comes as a big boon. =D

[skryabyn]

Nice interpretation!

[dobrivecher]

Da --soglasen, tvoe ispolneniye etova nokturna ochen krasivo -- s chustvom dobrim i tainstvenom -- molodyets! Ya rekomendiruyou takzhe ispolneniya (zdes) drugikh zamichatlenikh Skryabinistov, im. Rudolf Kerera i John Bell Younga -- Pozdravleniya!

[chad410]

youd play some of the later studies very well i think ;)

[LM1350]

Simply awesome!!

[gromoglas77]

Очень мне нравится этот ноктюрн в твоем исполнении! Высший пилотаж!