MOSCOW CITY GOVERNMENT

Èslzl2ffi English uersion

MOSCOW CITY CULTURE DEPARTMENT

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A. N. ScriabinMemorialMuseum

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fi{rtA.N. ScriabinMemorialMusem

11, B. Nikolopeskovsky lane, I 190A2, Moscow, Russia

tel. : +7 (+gg) 241, - 1.9 O t, e -mail : s criabinmus eum (à mail. ru

l).9A02, r. Mocxea, EoruuroÍ Hxxorronecxoscrl4li nepey,to«, 11

r er.. : +7 (+gg) 241 - 19 A l, e -mail : scriabinmus eum(à mail.ru

Nn**t ofmany great musicians are closely associated withMoscow" §*me cíthem were born *nd lived here, others sougiat

for their inspiraticir. In Moscow, musie lias al'arays been loved;every new w*rk Íras b*en awaited *agerl3'. l\€usic was heard in'democretic' concert halls, in high society salcns, as lvell as in theapartrnents of the musicíans and ttrreir worshippers. This guide-bock proposes a tour through tire suite of rooffls of t}:e great

Russian composer Alexander §eriabin, rvhose flat is situated inthe area oíÀrbai.

A.I. LazarevDirector of the Museum, Honoured Culture Worker of the Russian Federation

On the cultural map of Moscow, in one of theArbat side-streets, there is a place which has preserved

the charm of the Silver Age: the house where AlexanderNikolayevich Scriabin - composer, pianist, philosopherand poet - spent his last years. His visitors includedmusicians K. IgumnovandA. Goldenweiser, philosophersS. Bulgakov and N. Berdyaev, artists N. Sperling and

L. Pasternak, poets Vyacheslav Ivanov, K. Balmont,

J. Baltru§aitis, and many other outstanding people.

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Now let us enter the Scriabin MemorialMuseum, situated on the second floor of a beautifulmansion at 11, Bolthoy Nikolopeskovs§ side-street.

Scriabin rented this flat from Apollon ApollonovichGrushka, Professor of the Moscow University,between Aplil l9l2 and April 1915.

ln the centre ofthe study room is the Bechsteingrand, offered to Scriabin by the famous Germanfirm in l9l2.The Eiqhth, Ninth andTenthSonatas, two Poems op.69, the Dances op.

73 ('Guiilandes" and "Flammes sombres"),

five Preludes op.74, and the poem "Vers laflamme" op.72 were first performed byScriabin himself just on this instrument.

High double doors lead to 'the holy of holies'

- Alexander Nikolayevich's study room. A Bechsteingrand piano, books and paintings - all this create an

artistic ambience. The big, unusually shaped writingtable and the armchair were brought by Scriabin inI9l2 from Brussels. A lamp and a blotting pad are

seen on the table. Next to the table, there is a bureauon which Scriabin preferred to work.

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To the left of the entrance door, photos ofAlexander Nikolayevich, his friends and relatives

are seen. A group photograph represents the famous

teacher N. S. Zverev with his pupils includingScriabin and Rakhmaninov. There are also pictures

of the poet J. Baltru§aitis and the Canadian pianist

A. La Liberté. On the adjacent wall, in an oval

frame, is the portrait of the composer's grandmotherE. Scriabina. À collage of ten pictures, offered toAlexander Nikolayevich by Monighetti sisters,

represents Scriabin from 1873 to 1911.

The sketches of Scriabin's last, unfinishedwork,the "Preliminary Act" (Predvaritel'noe deystvo), are

spread on his bureau side by side with a calendar inthe form of horseshoe. His favourite painting, "The

Oriental Sage" by N. Sperling, hangs on the wall'

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The light projecting device modeled by Scriabin himself

and produced by the physicist A. Moser on his commission.

The device was intended specially for the performances

of the symphonic poem "Prometheus" - the first musical

workwhose score contains a part for ltght proiection.

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Portrait of L. P. Scriabina, the composer's mother,by her brother, artist N. P. Shchetinin

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Next to the central wall is a glassed-in bookcase.The composert library includes books on philosophy,ethics, aesthetics and natural sciences, as well as

collections ofpoetry. Scriabint music, inhis ownwords,is inseparable from philosophy: "Until mythought is notfully clear, until all the phenomena are not explainedfrom mypoint ofview, I cannot fly'|

In a small narrow cupboard are kept Scriabin'sbelongings. These include a small hammer presented tohim when he was still a little boy, keen on constructing

toypianos; aJapanese musical toy sounding like a set ofcharming silver handbells (a gift of E. Gnesina); littlepapersnakesput on chairbacks forfun; a celestialmap, etc.

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Partrait of N. A. Scrrabin, the composer's father

From the study-room, a door leads to the livingroom. The latter is furnished more abundantly than the rest,

because it was meant for parties. The roomt walls are deco-

rated with two big paintings in richly gilded frames: 'Jupiter

and the Nymph Io" and "Bather"; both are copies of works

by the Italian artist Correggig made by N. Shchetinin. By

the left wall stands the Becker grand piano, ofrered to Scri-

abin by his patron M. Belyaev after Scriabin's graduation

from the Conservatoire. The flower vase on the piano rvas

painted after the design of P. Shchetinin, the composer's

maternal grandfather. The photo of Scriabin (t9t4), taken

by E. Bendel, is seen on the wall, while his bust, made by

sculptor S. Sudbinin on the commission of the famous con-

ductor S. I(ussevitzlry (1908), is on the console.

Casts of the composer's hands,

made by D. Merkur'ev

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. \.;í,:::rtu Scriabrn's last public appearance(5t Petersburg, Apill 2, l9l 5),

pictured by B. Kustodiev

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Vase by Fabergé, made of crystal with silver in theform of ancient Russian boat with symbolic figureof the legendary singer and psaltery player Bayan.The vase was offered to Scriabin on the day of thepremière of Le Poème de lbxtase, February 2 t , t 909.

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The living room is connected with the dining room,where Scriabin preferred to have a rest. In his late years hewas especially fond of the domestic comfort.

"In those years, home mattered for him much morethan earlier... Though he still liked to mix with people, hepreferred to receive his friend at his place... He liked to sharehis meals with others, he was fond of good food and wine...in a word, he was fond of anything festive... He playedchess... He liked good decoration and antique objects... so

that everything around him was stylish and elegant" - says

one of Scriabint contemporaries.Scriabin's armchair stood with its back to the window,

since he disliked bright light. In the dining room there aremany objects offered to Scriabin at different times: faiencebowl and plate presented by a Belgian peasant woman, em-broidery on the dinner table...

The paintings and drawings on the roomt walls in-clude a landscape by unknown Italian artist, "Horse Market"by French female painter R. Bonnaire, and a drawing by Scri-abin's friend, the outstanding Russian artist L. Pasternak,representing Scriabin at the piano (it is reproduced on thecover).

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Tea set from the collection of the Museum

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A long lobby leads us to the composert bed-

room. Its centre is occupied with a bed covered with

bedspread; a small couch and a table stand at the bed-

side. On the walls are N. Sperling's pictures "Funeral

March' and "Tibi, purissima", as well as a photograph

of Scriabin.

The composer's gala dress

is kept in the wardrobe

Wooden box

with writing materials

il tlt§,, :e nN.ScriabinMuseumguidebook.TextbyVRubtsova,N.Kaashnikova,PShatskiy.EnglishiextbyL.Hakopian.PhotobyATurusov,deslgnedbyAFKAbureau,o20l0+:*.:iíYLls

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