Scriabin's Morceaux, Op. 57 are two of his classic miniatures for piano, composed around the time he began exploring literal chromatic harmonies, the relation of colors to notes, and after his music had begun to move away from the traditional, Romantic pianistic style into a more mystical realm. These are really mood paintings, conveying ideas through a spare texture of slowly evolving harmonies. They are not atonal, but rather polytonal as they seem to pass through several keys in succession. Désir is less than two minutes, a misty piece that reaches upward, at first gently, then with more strength using chromatic stepping stones. However, it seems to lose that strength at the end, still reaching with an arpeggio covering much of the keyboard. Caresse dansée, the second piece, begins where Désir left off harmonically. The three-minute work also opens slowly, but it never really gains momentum. About two-thirds through, it exhibits a little more dance-like liveliness, but then it returns to its opening falling melody. It continually descends, wandering through several keys in augmented harmonies, but ending in a major chord, as if coming to a safe rest on solid ground. Both pieces have a mystical, pensive atmosphere, but still do not reach the meditative intensity of his later works, such as Vers la flamme.

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1.Désir

Désir is the first of two works comprising Scriabin's Morceaux (Pieces), Op. 57. In the latter part of his career, he composed a number of sets he classified under the catchall Pieces—the Opp. 45, 49, 51, 52, 56, 57, and 59—each containing two, three, or four short works. In many ways, Scriabin had become the master of the keyboard miniature, ever-facile and imaginative in creating mystical moods. He was unconcerned about dazzling the listener with Lisztian pyrotechnics, as evidenced here by the sparsely textured and glacially paced Désir. He could still write challenging music, but by 1907 was beginning to invest his works with a spiritual and cosmic sense. In Désir, Scriabin conveys not some sensual or materialistic want, but a spiritual or mystical urge. This two-minute piece opens slowly, its music moving forward with a stop-and-start gait, its ethereal theme a short-breathed creation that gradually develops greater range as it reaches deeper into mysterious spheres. Eventually, the music builds up, reaching a brief climactic moment before retreating to the subdued manner of the opening. The music fades slowly at the close, creating a mystical, even ghostly, atmosphere.

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