De Profundis (Out of the Deep) is a piano piece based on a poem of William Sharp (1855 - 1905) from his cluster of poems called "Sospiri di Roma." Charles Griffes took four (or possibly five) of these poems, set them to piano scores, and called them Roman Sketches. The four piano pieces of this set are, "The White Peacock," "Nightfall," "The Fountains of Acqua Paola," and "Clouds." De Profundis is thought to be Griffes' intended fifth piece in this series, as he mentions his "five Sharp pieces" in his diary. However, when G. Schirmer published Griffes' Roman Sketches, Op. 7, in 1917, it consisted of only four Sharp pieces, and left out De Profundis. As a result, De Profundis was not published until 1978. De Profundis is thought to be musically equal to the other four in the set of Roman Sketches, so it is unclear why Schirmer decided to only publish the other four.

In 5/4 time and the key of G minor, Griffes had not chosen the title for this piece when he started writing it. He constantly referred to it in his diaries and to other people simply as his "piece in g minor." Here again, Griffes wrote a piece of music without having a scene in mind (as far as it is known), and yet, when the piece is completed, it very well describes the scene of the poem or the text that he has chosen for it. Griffes was an expert in portraying scenes and atmosphere, and many of the pieces that he wrote during this time exemplify that.

The poem "De Profundis" speaks of an ethereal beloved who is now gone, a "passion of beauty" who has been "worshipped" by many. The poem wistfully calls for the vision to return forever. Written during Griffes' Impressionistic period, it consists of beautiful melodies floating over lush harmonies. During the middle of the piece, it turns rather disquieting, but goes back to its Impressionistic devices quite quickly. At some points, the piano sounds almost harp-like in its high arpeggios, and is suggestive of Ravel or Debussy. It is sad to think that a piece as well-written and beautiful as this did not have its first performance until May 1964, 49 years after it was written. Many of Griffes' pieces and songs have been neglected like this, as has his genius as a composer in general.

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