Naturszenen Op. 3, No. 18

There is a Chopinesque quality to this piece, but with a haunting, unsettled aspect more reminiscent of Scriabin as it searches for an ever-elusive rest. It is a walk through the woods at the end of Autumn, when the leaves are all but gone and the ghostly branches reach their skeletal fingers toward the moonlit sky. The clouds float across the sky, blotting out the light of the moon as you find yourself descending deeper into an almost hypnotic trance. There is the tolling of a bell off in the distance. It does not waver, hanging on to a single note as the harmonies change beneath in the left hand while the opening melody returns. There is a change in mood as the music becomes more chromatic while shifting between two chords until it finally resolves and the opening melody returns. As it comes to a close, there is no sense of resolution...rather it ends with a question.