Eschatomusicology: Based on the Ideas of Richard Wagner and Alexander Scriabin

Abstract

The concept of Eschatomusicology emerges from the intersection of music, philosophy, and eschatology—the study of ultimate meanings, transcendence, and the destiny of humanity. This approach interprets music not only as an aesthetic phenomenon but as a medium through which composers express metaphysical visions of the end, renewal, or transformation of existence. The present research aims to investigate the eschatological dimensions in the artistic philosophies of Richard Wagner and Alexander Scriabin, two composers who viewed music as a path toward spiritual revelation and universal harmony.

The primary goal of the study is to define Eschatomusicology as a theoretical field that explores the relationship between musical expression and eschatological consciousness. The main tasks include analysing Wagner’s concept of Gesamtkunstwerk (total artwork) as a redemptive synthesis of art and religion, and examining Scriabin’s mystical project Mysterium as a vision of collective transcendence and cosmic unity. The research also seeks to reveal how both composers transformed musical language and structure to embody metaphysical and spiritual ideals.

As a result, the study demonstrates that Wagner’s mytho-Christian and Scriabin’s theosophical-cosmic ideas converge in their shared belief in the transformative power of art. Both envisioned music as a sacred act capable of guiding humanity toward enlightenment and renewal. Eschatomusicology thus offers a new framework for understanding music as a force of ultimate revelation, where sound becomes a means of transcending material reality and approaching the metaphysical “end” of human evolution.