Scriabin or Skriabin, Aleksandr Nikolayevich 1872-1915
Russian composer and pianist

Born in Moscow, he studied at the Moscow Conservatory with Rachmaninov and Nikolai Medtner, and became Professor of Pianoforte (1898-1904). His compositions, which include a piano concerto, three symphonies, two symphonic poems, and 10 sonatas, show an increasing reliance on extramusical factors (even coloured light, as in Prometheus of 1910), and the influence of religion and theosophical ideas. His earlier work was influenced by the late romantics, especially Liszt and Chopin. Among his most widely played works is the Poem of Ecstasy (1908).