Messiaen: Quatuor pour la Fin du Temps

On this CD:

1. Quatuor pour la fin du temps, for violin, cello, clarinet, & piano, I/22
Composed by Olivier Messiaen
Performed by Thorkell Sigurbjornsson, Gunnar Egilson, Nina Flyer, Rut Ingolfsdottir

Tracks:

Quartet For The End Of Time: Liturgy of Crystal
Quartet For The End Of Time: Vocalise, for the Angel who announces the end of Time
Quartet For The End Of Time: Abyss of the birds
Quartet For The End Of Time: Interlude
Quartet For The End Of Time: Praise to the Eternity of Jesus
Quartet For The End Of Time: Danse of Fury, for the seven trumpets
Quartet For The End Of Time: Cluster of rainbows, for the Angel who announces the end of Time
Quartet For The End Of Time: Praise to the Immortality of Jesus

Amazon.com

This all-star chamber ensemble was specifically formed to play Messiaen's masterpiece. Two decades after this recording was made, it still shows the effects of their intense identification with the music. Some listeners find Messiaen's music longwinded and difficult, and my own opinion varies depending on the work and my mood. But this piece, written in a German concentration camp during the early years of World War II, is truly one of the greatest works of music of the 20th century. Although it lasts nearly an hour, its variety of color and its powerful expressiveness will engross any responsive listener, especially in this performance. --Leslie Gerber

Customer Reviews:

A great work, a Catholic work.......2007-02-17

This recording of the "Quartet for the End of Time," one of the greatest musical works of the 20th century, is precious to me. Performers Peter Serkin (piano), Ida Kavafian (violin), Fred Sherry (cello), and Richard Stoltzman (clarinet) offer a stunning, heartfelt performance. Olivier Messiaen, a Frenchman born in 1908 who demonstrated an early gift for music as a pianist, composed the piece in a Nazi prison camp for the few instruments he had available, including an out-of-tune piano on which he performed, a violin, a cello, and a clarinet. Imagine. World War II was obviously a dark time, and Messiaen went into the army with some rations and a few musical scores that he kept in his backpack. Not to diminish his suffering, but he was not treated as poorly as Jewish prisoners were in the death camps. He was not made to work in total starvation, nor was he deprived of all contact with the outside world (he was able to write home and have supplies sent to him). However, being a Catholic mystic, Messiaen sensed that the rise of the Third Reich signified the Apocalypse as prophesied in Revelations. Germans being Germans (they do love their music, after all), the camp guards allowed him to perform this piece in the camp with the group of musicians he assembled. His astonishing music captures not only that desperation and discord of the earth's final days, but also the redemption that can only be found through Our Lord Jesus Christ. However, you do not have to be a Christian to feel or understand the power in this music. Christianity has inspired the best music in Western culture (those "scientists" and "mathematicians" and "philosophers" who misguidely try to secularize J.S. Bach are wrong), and while Messiaen's music speaks for itself, his explanation for the final passage of this quartet is eternal: "Why this second glorification? It addresses itself more specifically to the second aspect of Jesus -- to Jesus the man, to the Word made flesh, raised up immortal from the dead so as to communicate His life to us. It is total love. Its slow rising to a supreme point is the ascension of man toward his God, of the son of God toward his Father, of the mortal newly made divine toward paradise." Amen to that, son, which is an important message for today's youth.

Imagining the end..........2007-02-07

I wonder how many other masterpieces were in fact lost in prisoner or war camps. We shouldn't be listening to this work today. It should not have survived. Perhaps Messiaen should not have either. But he did, and it did, and we are lucky because of it.

The quartet, composed for violin, clarinet, cello and piano because those were the instruments Messiaen's fellow inmates played, is in, oddly, eight movements instead of the Biblical seven. It is prefaced by a quotation from the Apocalypse of St. John Chapter 10: "I saw a mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud; and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire." That moment is depicted on the cover of this CD. The eight movements describe the harmonious "silence" of the heavens (including the awakening of birds--birds fascinated Messiaen all his life), Vocalise for the angel who announces the end of Time,* the Abyss of the birds, with a very technically-demanding clarinet solo (as an amateur clarinetist myself I find it hard to just play it all in tune, never mind the extreme dynamics), a bouncy scherzo interlude, which is the brightest part of the work, Praise to the Eternity of Jesus, which is deeply moving and spiritual if pulled off right, Dance of Fury for the Seven Trumpets, which is a real rhythmic tour-de-force (try to figure out the time signatures), Cluster of Rainbows, for the angel who announces the end of time (supremely haunting) and finally Praise to the Immortality of Jesus, which is supposed to represent the man Jesus more than the divine Son of God.

In terms of time, the work is extraordinarily complex, even in this post-Stravinsky universe. In fact, I couldn't begin to tell you I understand all that's going on, and would love to get my hands on a score. But the sonorities of this unusual combination of instruments makes you really pay closer attention--the unusual message is heard in an unusual voice. Use of dissonance is extremely intelligent--compared to so many "modern" compositions I hear today that claim to be profound (the Fourth Concerto for Orchestra by Robert Holloway, which I just heard premiered the other night in San Francisco, comes to mind), this score uses dissonance and consonance for a very high purpose, very judiciously, and not just because it can. Oh, and the ending pages of this work are a stunner, one of the most chilling finishes I've ever heard in a work. It's like the end of Mahler's 9th without the sentimental comfort--and yes, next to this, Mahler's 9th sounds sentimental and comforting.

This is all-around the best performance I've ever heard of the Quartet, though a Philips recording with Vera Beths, George Pieterson, Anner Bijlsma and Reinbert de Leeuw is better-recorded. They don't quite reach the heights and depths that these four musicians do, however, particularly in the Abyss of the Birds and the Praise to the Immortality. Despite some intonation issues by Stoltzman, he's more soulful in his lengthy solo than the more-in-control Pieterson.

The rest of the forces here are magnificent too. Ida Kavafian has always struck me as an underrated violinist. For a while she played with the Beaux Arts Quartet, but recently I have not seen her with them--what happened?

The Quartet was premiered to an audience of fellow prisoners and prison guards in Stalag VIII-A in Görlitz, Germany on January 15, 1941. "Never have I been heard with as much attention and understanding," Messiaen later said. Considering the effect this music has on us, as we arrive warm and fed at the concert hall after the attendant parks our Mercedes or Lexus, how this work must have felt to the starving cold war prisoners of 1941 surely cannot be imagined.

*The "end of time" is not purely an allusion to the Apocalypse, the work's ostensible subject, but also refers to the way in which, through rhythm and harmony, Messiaen used time in a way that was completely different from the music of his predecessors or contemporaries.

Unique Spiritual Expression.......2006-12-22

The Quartet for the End of Time and The Turangalila Symphony are great pieces by Messaien. If you're looking at this version by Tashi, you are looking at a legendary performance. Similarly, Antoni Wit on the Naxos label does wonders in the Turangalila Symphony, a very lively work. Let's not skirt the issue: both are strange pieces, lovable for their insanity. Here, however, you have a piece with an amazing history and an intimate depth of soul.

I think the titles of some of the movements say a lot about the work, like "Cluster of Rainbows, for the Angel Who Announces the End of Time." As a person who is awe-inspired by symbols, alchemical art work, and out of the ordinary things, titles like these bring tears to my eyes. The cover art for this album is a striking representation of this rare kind of beauty.

The music expresses itself on its own terms. You are receiving the language of another dimension. It is that bizarre, and you must be prepared. Put down all conceptions of what Western music is. Do not compare this to any other work. Extraterrestrial visitors will guide you to the mothership. Take the ride. And remember that for Messaien God is at the center of all things. You will feel this presence as the music wends its way through the final moments.

Unique and Interesting.......2006-07-19

Oliver Messiaen's music takes some getting used to. It's not unlike some of Stravinsky's works, but doesn't quite fit into any particular category. This particular work was written in a German prison camp and first performed there in 1941. Some people might want to buy it just for the historical significance, but I encourage you to buy it because it is downright interesting and enjoyable music. This might not be the best first album to buy as an introduction to Messiaen, as it's not his best work. It is somewhat subdued music; not particularly upbeat or awesome. It's not meant to be. Still well worthy of 5-stars.

An unmissable tribute to a composer calling on mysticism in a time of anguish.......2006-06-14

Peter Serkin championed Messiaen long before most American musicians did, and this 1976 tribute marked a definite break in public image from his father, Rudolf Serkin, who I am sure never recorded a piece of French music, from any era, in his life. I don't know how the reviewer below manages to get 98 people to approve of his reviews in a matter of weeks (!); however, Messiaen's Quartet for the End of Time wasn't written in a ocncentration camp but a POW camp (the former being a death camp), and there is nothing political about this work. In fact, all of Messiaen's mystical Catholic refernces are generally impossible to match to the kind of music he writes.

The expression markings here include such words as extatique, paradisiaque, avec amour, terrible. Tashi takes ecstasy, paradise, and love to heart. Theirs is a delicate reading, and they take pains to find added wit, color, and sensuousness in Messiaen's idiom, which can get cryptic and tiresome over the long haul. Not here--Stoltzman in particular brings out an amazing range of tone in his clarinet playing.

This is Messiaen's most popular work because of its overall serenity and its lack of tough dissonances. After Tashi, no one will ever perform it better, I imagine, even though there are other approaches that would bring out the work's more overt romanticism and song. Highly recommended.

Average customer rating:

A regular listener's impression
VIOLIN
Everything remembered and wanted on strings
Absolutely Wonderful

Violin for Relaxation

Manufacturer: RCA
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B00004SSEC
Release Date: 2000-05-16

Tracks:

Meditation - Philharmonia Orchestra
Vocalise
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Nana
The Lark Ascending - Philharmonia Orchestra
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Customer Reviews:

A regular listener's impression.......2006-03-24

I am not an expert in classical music, but have always loved the string instruments. I bought this CD for relaxation (as the title implies) and to help me focus on writing a thesis. I was torn between this CD and the Cello for Relaxation. I am pleased with my choice. My favorites are track #2 and #10 (listen to the samples through Amazon) - I usually play these two on repeat. My least favorite is track #7 because it sounds like a piano dominated movie soundtrack.
Although I wish I could have exchanged some of the tracks for others, I think this CD was worth the money and is a nice mix for those of us who don't know specific composers by name or who want a good sampling.

VIOLIN.......2005-09-10

The selection of music was a good mix and pleasant in listening to them.

The choice of orchestras and conductors are also very well selected offering very good variety in the similar music mood.

My two long time favourites "Meditation" and "Salut d'amour" were very well played in the right tempo and instrumental arrangement.

The recording quality is good offering both clarity and defination in the recording.

Everything remembered and wanted on strings.......2003-10-16

To me, it is an extraordinary combination demonstarting the old world beauty and timeless artistry of the violin.

It will take you back to everything good remembered, and forward to everything good ahead of us.

Absolutely Wonderful.......2000-06-16

The music on this cd is so beautiful. It is perfect to listen to when you want to relax.

Average customer rating:

Breathtaking Virtuosity!
good but not flawless
Lovely

Jonathan Cohler: The Clarinet Alone

Manufacturer: Ongaku
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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20th Century Music For Unaccompanied Clarinet
The American Clarinet
The Essential Clarinet
French Portraits
French Clarinet Art

ASIN: B000001Z2I
Release Date: 1995-10-31

Tracks:

A Set: 1. Allegro
A Set: 2. Adagio
A Set: 3. Allegro
Ste, Op.74: 1. Rhap: Tempo Rubato
Ste, Op.74: 2. Ser: Molto Tranquillo
Ste, Op.74: 3. Scherzo: Vivace
Ste, Op.74: 4. Dance: Allegretto
Quatour Pour La Fin Du Temps: Abime Des Oiseaux
Monolog 3: 1. Andante Sostenuto
Monolog 3: 2. Allegro Vivace
Five Pieces: 1. Vigorous
Five Pieces: 2. Flowing
Five Pieces: 3. Rhythmic
Five Pieces: 4. Singing
Five Pieces: 5. Spirited
Parable, Op.126 (Parable XIII)
Rhap
Moto Perpetuo, Op.11

Album Description

Stunning collection of some of the most important 20th century solo clarinet works performed by one of the world's most renowned clarinetists.

Customer Reviews:

Breathtaking Virtuosity!.......2007-04-07

Love the album! First heard a live performance of the Martino "A Set for Clarinet" while in college. This recording is as good, for sure! Also love Mr. Cohler's take on Wm. O. Smith's "Five Pieces for Clarinet Alone".
(I know Bill Smith personally, and I'm sure he loves it too!). Best of all though, is the Paganini "Molto Perpetuo". Superb circular breathing!

good but not flawless.......2003-11-22

I don't have any overwhelming complaints about this recording, but from a clarinetist's standpoint, there are a few detractions. I thought the use of vibrato was a bit overdone and definitely affected the tone in a less than positive way. The echo-y sound of the recording definitely helps gloss over some things, but it almost has the effect of a pianist who uses too much pedal. On pieces for solo clarinet, I'd really like to hear a good clear tone with more core to it, rather than a somewhat flighty sound that uses vibrato to maintain your interest.

Matters of taste aside, the technical facility was excellent, except for a few minor spots where the rhythmic consistency seemed a little shaky. Some of the pieces have a lot of rubato feel to them, and that's fine, but some of them clearly demand a steady pulse, and there are just a few minor places were you're not quite sure if it's still there (a couple places in the smith 5 pieces for clarinet for example). Pitch on the extreme registers was good, and most of the weird effects came across well.

All in all, I'd recommend this to any clarinet aficionados, but serious students would be advised to take the performance with a grain of salt (as I suppose could be said of any recordings really.)

Lovely.......2003-03-25

Every composition well-chosen, every performance well-played. The recording quality is clear with splendid presence.

The Paganini--wow! I've already moved the doleful Osborne to my frequent-listening shelf. It's unsurprising the Martino appeals to clarinetists: it's exciting and athletic, leaping over multiple octaves at a single bound! I also enjoyed Enland von Koch's alternatively playful and pensive "Monolog 3".

Tracks:

Honey: Jesus
Messiaen: Louange a l'Eternite de Jesus
Part: Spiegel im Spiegel
Messiaen: Louange aL'Immortalite de Jesus
Satie: 6 Gnossiennes
Satie: 6 Gnossiennes
Satie: 6 Gnossiennes
Satie: 6 Gnossiennes
Satie: 6 Gnossiennes
Satie: 6 Gnossiennes
Curiale: Forgiveness - Movement 2
Satie: Le Fils des etoiles - pastorale kaldeenne: La vocation
Satie: Le Fils des etoiles - pastorale kaldeenne: L'initiation
Satie: Le Fils des etoiles - pastorale kaldeenne: L'incantation
Honey: Morning
MacMillan: Angel
Adams: Alone...again or at last

Amazon.com

Black Box may be one of the preeminent record labels for modern composers, but that doesn't mean its music can't be soothing. On The Calm, we get a 17-track sampling of some lesser-heard 20th-century pieces that are all (you guessed it) calming. Paul Honey's atmospheric track from Two Days, Nine Lives sets the opening tone for this disc, while tracks featuring the music of Erik Satie and Olivier Messiaen are a little less predictable but still soothingly meditative. Arvo Pärt's "Spiegel im Spiegel" gives a listener a hint of his "holy minimalism" style of composing; it's a gorgeous piece and well-played by violinist Rebecca Hirsch. John Adams's electronic keyboard-based "Alone ... again or at last" is an odd closer; it sounds more like smooth jazz than classical music. Still, as classical compilations go, this set is one of the most eclectic and interesting available. --Jason Verlinde

Customer Reviews:

Terrific, rarely heard music.......2002-07-06

The title of this compilation is incredibly accurate IF you enjoy modern music. It doesn't really fit the traditional, mainstream definition of relaxing music -- nice, quiet Mozart or Vivaldi, for example. It does, however, feature beautiful, powerful, sublime modern music. Each track is a revelation, from the more familiar Messiaen and Satie to the rest of the album, all pieces that I had not heard before. Paul Honey, Joseph Curiale, and James MacMillan all deserve a wider audience. Hopefully, their inclusion on this compilation will help them gain that audience.

20th Century Music For Unaccompanied Clarinet

Average customer rating:

very virtuosic
Great cd
WHAT HAPPENED TO THE SWEET FRENCH EMBOUCHURE?
Paul Meyer: 20th Century Music for Unaccompanied Clarinet

20th Century Music For Unaccompanied Clarinet

Manufacturer: Denon Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

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ASIN: B0000034X7
Release Date: 1995-03-28

Tracks:

Three pieces For Clarinet Solo (1918): I.
Three pieces For Clarinet Solo (1918): II.
Three pieces For Clarinet Solo (1918): III.
Lied per clarinet solo (1983)
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'Domaines' pour clarinette seuls (1968): Cahier C
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'Domaines' pour clarinette seuls (1968): Cahier A
'Domaines' pour clarinette seuls (1968): Cahier D
'Domaines' pour clarinette seuls (1968): Cahier F

Customer Reviews:

very virtuosic.......2003-11-22

The pieces on this cd are very difficult to perform & on this cd are performed so perfectly. A great collection of 20th century music.

Great cd.......2001-08-28

Paul Meyer plays incredibly here. I can't imagine why anyone would be disappointed with his sound. No, it's not the French sound of 40 years ago, but it's a beautiful, flexible sound that works beautifully in these pieces. The pieces on the cd are some of the high points in clarinet literature in the twentieth century. The Berio Sequenza especially is an incredible piece of music for the clarinet. Anyone interested in the clarinet should have this cd.

WHAT HAPPENED TO THE SWEET FRENCH EMBOUCHURE?.......2000-10-22

As Ignatius Gennusa use to tell me, "anyone can blow into a clarinet and push buttons; very few people these days seem to care about a beautiful tone such as Ralph McLane's, however".

And I say Mr Gennusa would find this clarinetist's sound rather painful; I unquestionably do. And, thus, herein the tone quality cries out as the major dissapointment with this disc.

Paul Meyer: 20th Century Music for Unaccompanied Clarinet.......2000-08-25

As usual, I am quite impressed by the performance by Paul Meyer. Although he sometimes plays pieces a little on the fast side, his interpretations were in good taste. I was a little surprsied by his tone in the Stravinsky 3 pieces. Of the CD's I own performed by him, I always thought his tone had focus and a rich tone, but this selection on the CD wasn't quite what I was familiar with in his playing. However, a wonderful performance of Andre Jolivet's "Asceses pour clarinette". How often do I hear clarinet players struggle with multiphonics and just contemporary works in general. I would recommend this CD.

Average customer rating:

excellent overview of contemporaneous classic music
For the price you can't lose

Discover Music of the 20th Century

Manufacturer: Naxos
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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A History of Musical Style

ASIN: B000B6N6B8
Release Date: 2005-11-01

Tracks:

Prelude A L'Apres-Midi D'un Faune - Alexander Rahbari
Walzer - Peter Hill
I. Andante-Scherzo - Rebecca Hirsch
Sehr Ruhig Und Zart - Ulster Orchestra
Lebhaft Und Zart Bewegt - Ulster Orchestra
Sehr Langsam Und Ausserst Zart - Ulster Orchestra
Fliessend, Ausserst Zart - Ulster Orchestra
Sehr Fliessend - Ulster Orchestra
Forlane: Allegretto - Klara Kormendi
First Tableau: The Shrove-Tide Fair - Philharmonia Orchestra
The Mountebank - Philharmonia Orchestra
Vivo - Bournemouth Sinfonietta
III. Moderato Pesante - Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra
Hymn To St. Cecilia - Choir Of St. John's College, Cambridge
IV. Allegretto - Ondrej Lenard
Introduzione: Andante Non Troppo-Allegro Vivace - Alexander Rahbari

Tracks:

Romance - Czecho-Slovak State Philharmonic Orchestra (Kosice)
II. Allegro - Ladislav Slovak
III. Allegro Agitato - Stephen Gunzenhauser
Main Theme From Schindler's List - Paul Bateman
The Unanswered Question - Northern Sinfonia
Second Electonic Interpolation (Conclusion) - Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
Third Electronic Interpolation (Beginning) - Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra
I. Liturgie De Cristal - Amici Ensemble
IV. Commentaire - Idil Biret
Warming Up, Leading To Model 1, Bass - Gregory Rose
'Gott Nochmal' Sun God - Gregory Rose
'Vishnu' God Of Storms - Gregory Rose
God Of The Earth - Gregory Rose
First Interlude - Boris Berman
I. - Roger Heaton
Short Ride In A Fast Machine - Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra
The Lord's Prayer - Choir Of St. John's College, Cambridge
II. Lento E Largo-Tranquillissimo - Zofia Kilanowicz
Lullaby - Philharmonia Orchestra
Vision Of The Hunt I - Philharmonia Orchestra
Voice For Solo Flute - Robert Aitken

Customer Reviews:

excellent overview of contemporaneous classic music.......2007-03-22

excellent overview of contemporaneous classic music.

Should be continued, plenty more 20th-century composers to be discovered.

For the price you can't lose.......2007-02-21

This 2 cd set consists of, as the title indicates, various 20c pieces or movements from the Naxos catalog. Sound quality is uniformly high, although for some such as Stockhausen's it's not clear if that's good or bad. What is excellent is the variety of the collection--some familiar (Debussy), others not, some pretty, others intentionally weird. Few will find every piece to his or her taste, but many listeners who do not spend much time on 20c music will find something to like. Overall, a great introduction to a period of much off-putting, yes, but also much compelling music.

Olivier Messiaen: Turangalîla-Symphonie; Quatuor pour la fin du temps

Average customer rating:

I hate to be controversial, but ...
Quatuor pour la fin du temps
FORMIDABLE

Olivier Messiaen: Turangalîla-Symphonie; Quatuor pour la fin du temps

Manufacturer: EMI Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B0007RA7BS
Release Date: 2005-05-24

Tracks:

I. Introduction - Peter Donohoe
II. Chant D'amour I - Peter Donohoe
III. Turangalila I - Peter Donohoe
IV. Chant D'amour II - Peter Donohoe
V. Joie Du Sang Des Etoiles - Peter Donohoe
VI. Jardin Du Sommeil D'amour - Peter Donohoe
VII. Turangalila II - Peter Donohoe
VIII. Developpement De I'amour - Peter Donohoe

Tracks:

IX. Turangalila III - Peter Donohoe
X. Final - Peter Donohoe
I. Liturgie De Cristal - William Pleeth
II. Vocalise, Pour I'Ange Qui Annonce La Fin Du Temps - William Pleeth
III. Abime Des Oiseaux - William Pleeth
IV. Intermede - William Pleeth
V. Louange A I'Eternite De Jesus - William Pleeth
VI. Danse De La Fureur, Pour Les Sept Trompettes - William Pleeth
VII. Fouillis D'arcs-En-Ciel, Pour I'Ange Qui Annonce La Fin Du Temps - William Pleeth
VIII. Louange A I'Immortalite De Jesus - William Pleeth
Le Merle Noir - William Pleeth

Customer Reviews:

I hate to be controversial, but ..........2006-07-30

The appeal in this release is that it contains two of Olivier Messiaen's (1908-1992) best known works, the Turangalila Symphony and the Quartet for the End of Time, at a budget price. There's really nothing bad about these performances, but to be quite frank, there's not much exciting about them either. In the symphony, the playing/conducting is often a little dull, or perhaps just a little mechanical. The sound, while certainly not horrible considering that the symphony and quartet were recorded in 1971 (DDD) and 1968 (ADD) respectively, really isn't terrific either. If you are looking to pick up your first recording of the symphony, it seems the Naxos release under the direction of Anton Wit would be a good choice, as it has received very high reviews.

Now to the controversial part (Messiaenites need not read further, as the next portion of this review is directed to those unfamiliar with these works and contains my impression of these two works, as a newcomer to this composer). Upon examining the various Messiaen releases on Amazon, I was not only surprised by the number of Messiaen CD's available, but also the awe and amazement professed in the reviews of such works. Why had I not come across the music sooner, or so I thought at the time. Not only are Messiaen's compositions great, they defeat all evil on Earth and unlock the eternal mysteries of the universe - or at least that's what I came to expect after reading the reviews. So perhaps my expectations were a little inflated.

Well, I listened to the music. Yet, as the music ended I realized that I hadn't been transported to Heaven. Possibly, I wasn't listening hard enough. So I listened to this release again, and as the music ended, I was still on Earth, and the only thing that had become "illuminated," perhaps, was that I was not destined to be a Messiaen fan. Now from what I have read on this site, and elsewhere, some followers of Messiaen would indicate that I am musically immature, not very sophisticated, or even closed-minded. Maybe that's true. I really don't consider myself to be a sophisticated person. However, there could be a second interpretation here, and that is, I understand what this music is about, but I am just not ecstatic about it. After all, should we really view art music in such absolute terms? Should we say if a listener doesn't like the compositions of Messiaen that something is wrong with that person? This view doesn't make much sense to me.

On a whole, I enjoy symphony more than the quartet. Many parts of the symphony are quite enjoyable in their uniqueness. There is a lot of interesting percussion writing, and there is a part for an electronic instrument called the ondes martenot. The writing for this instrument tends to include glissandos between pitches, and reminds me of the sound effect used to depict whirring UFO's in those black and white science fiction movies (CD1 - Track 8). The writing in Turangalila is often exuberant and contains readily identifiable melodic ideas over busy orchestral and percussion writing, such as in "Joie du sang des etoiles" (CD1 - Track 5). But why is this work 80 minutes long, and why does it have 10 movements? I found that, sometime in the seventh movement I was ready for a break from Messiaen's world of sound. I noted that the motives presented in the earlier movements occasionally appeared throughout the symphony, but for me, this wasn't enough to hold the whole work together. Even the movements themselves seem to be a little long-winded. Sure, any snippet of "Jardin du sommeil d'amour" (CD1 - Track 6) is lovely - but why does this movement go on for 12 minutes? Other movements, such as long and repetitive "Developpement de l'amour" tends to addle me just a bit. So my thoughts on the symphony is somewhat mixed. I will rarely return to the music for a start to finish listening. However, some of the movements are enjoyable as well as interesting and I occasionally listen to those every now and then.

I found the quartet, scored for violin, clarinet, cello and piano, to be far less enjoyable. Again, this is a long work and contains eight movements, for some reason. Although this is a quartet, the writing within the movements themselves rarely has four parts appearing simultaneously. For instance, the third movement (CD 2 - Track 5) is a 6 minute clarinet solo, while the fifth movement is a duet for piano and cello. For me, this serene movement (CD 2 - Track 7) is the most successful of the quartet, but it tends to go on just a bit too long. My least favorite movements would be the third, or maybe the second (CD 2 - Track 4), with its nasty introduction and the endless phrase scored for violin, cello and piano that occupies the last four minutes of the movement. I feel like this music is supposed to give the impression of timelessness, but to me, much of this is just (sorry Messiaen fans) boring.

In conclusion, I would place this release somewhere between two and three stars, but I will round down in this case given this particular performance, and to provide some contrast to all the five star reviews out there. But, of course, all of this is just an opinion. Anyone new to this music (after listening to the sound clips) should weigh this one less-than-stellar review, against the endless five star reviews of Messiaen's works.

CD 1: 68:39
CD 2: 63:14

Quatuor pour la fin du temps.......2006-04-15

The record is in the very highest class, the players meeting every demand the composer makes upon them and the fine, clear EMI record gives the group striking presence while affording proper background ambience.

FORMIDABLE.......2005-07-03

Most surprising, I should say, that this account of Turangalila should be receiving its first notice here only now. In his more recent eminence as chief conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic Rattle has received high praise, and rightly so, for his recording of Messiaen's Eclairs sur l'Au-dela. However it was through his work with the City of Birmingham Symphony that Rattle first came to international notice for sheer and simple genius, and this performance will go a long way to showing why.

Rattle has Messiaen's style to perfection, and he is joined in this 1986 recording by Peter Donohoe, greatly under-recognised in my own opinion, as a completely exemplary piano soloist. The piano part is very difficult and the composer himself made references to the work as a `piano concerto', which I think a slight exaggeration. What it really is is a symphony with piano obbligato, a description first coined for the Brahms D minor. The description fits Turangalila much better, but Brahms's grim masterpiece came to mind shortly after the start with some memorable martellato trills from the soloist. Otherwise there is nothing grim about Turangalila, which is a huge upbeat masterpiece like Mahler's 8th, and one that can be mentioned in the same breath so far as I am concerned. The title is apparently Sanskrit (how's that for one-upmanship?) and means something like `play of time'. Its theme is love, ordinary human love and not something with a divine dimension except insofar as it is set against a background of eternity, as is everything that the deeply spiritual Messiaen ever did. In terms of how it deals with its theme it fits Beethoven's description of his own Pastoral Symphony very well `more expression of feeling than depiction' - it would be easy to recognise the movements called `Joy of the blood of the stars' and `Garden of love's repose', but I imagine it would be anyone's guess which of the remainder are the 3 Turangalila movements, which are the 2 love-songs and which is about the `development of love' if we had not been told. As usual, the expression is extrovert, perhaps a little kitsch and probably more than a little self-indulgent. I have no complaint with any of that, as this is a composer I take to in a big way without sharing a shred of his religious belief. His grasp of orchestral sound, for one thing, is simply colossal, he can carry off demotic effects that would have made Ravel or Delius hesitate, and Rattle is exactly the man to put it all across to us. One thing conspicuous by its absence from this score is Messiaen's beloved birdsong effects, but music lovers bored with Holst's Jupiter may find, as I do, the Joie du sang des etoiles something more to their taste.

There is also a performance here of the Quartet for the End of Time that would have had me buying this disc for just on its own. It rivals the famous Tashi account and in fact predates it by several years. It is a more emotional and forceful account than Tashi's, which may or may not be how you like it done, but by any standard it is a superb one. As a final filler there is a 6-minute flute and piano duo called The Blackbird. In this let me reassure you that it's not actually William Pleeth, great cellist though he is, who has taken up the flute, but Karlheinz Zoller. The blackbird's song, when he takes up his recital-position at the end of a branch or at the corner of a rooftop, is one of the most varied in the whole avian kingdom as well as one of the loveliest. What I don't hear in this representation is the familiar `tweety oodle-doodle peep: twit twit twit twit twit' that I know from my local virtuoso, but Messiaen knew birdsong better than I have ever done.

The recordings, respectively from 1986, 1971 and 1968 are very good, if not quite up to the superlative standard of the same conductor's more recent Eclairs, but any music-lovers worried about that are just too fussy I should say. This is a superlative set, and it's high time someone said so.

Average customer rating:

Quartet for the End of Time
Messiaen , Loriod , Poppen , and Fischer-Dieskau
Manufacturer: EMI Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

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Varese: Arcana; Ameriques; Ionization; Offrandes; Density 21.5; Octandre; Integrales

ASIN: B00006J3LD
Release Date: 2005-01-11

Tracks:

I. Liturgie De Cristal
II. Vocalise, Pour L'Ange Qui Annonce La Fin Du Temps
III. Abime Des Oiseaux
IV. Intermede
V. Louange A L'Eternite De Jesus
VI. Danse De La Fureur, Pour Les Sept Trompettes
VII. Fouillis D'arcs-en-ciel, Pour L'Ange Qui Annonce La Fin Du Temps
VIII. Louange A L'Immortalite De Jesus
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V. Variation - Tres Modere

Oliver Messiaen: Quatuor pour la Fin du Temps (Quartet for the End of Time) (1940)

Average customer rating:

One of the most impressive compositions of the past Century!
Do not use this CD as a basis for judging the Quartet !
Music fans
Not so bad!
Sounds unrehearsed!

Oliver Messiaen: Quatuor pour la Fin du Temps (Quartet for the End of Time) (1940)

Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Deutsche Grammophon: Music | Specialty Stores | Music
ASIN: B000001G8W
Release Date: 1990-10-25

Tracks:

Quartet For The End Of Time: 1. Liturgie de cristal
Quartet For The End Of Time: 2. Vocalise, pour l'Ange qui annonce la fin du temps
Quartet For The End Of Time: 3. Abime des oiseaux
Quartet For The End Of Time: 4. Intermede
Quartet For The End Of Time: 5. Louange a l'Eternite de Jesus
Quartet For The End Of Time: 6. Danse de la fureur, pour les sept trompettes
Quartet For The End Of Time: 7. Fouillis d'arcs-en-ciel, pour l'Ange qui annonce la fin du temps
Quartet For The End Of Time: 8. Louange a l'Immortalite de Jesus

Customer Reviews:

One of the most impressive compositions of the past Century!.......2007-02-22

"I saw a mighty angel descending from heaven, clad in mist, having around his head a rainbow. His face was like the sun, his feet like pillars of fire. He placed his right foot on the sea, his left on the earth, and standing thus one the sea and the art he lifted his hand toward heaven and swore by Him who liveth for ever and ever, saying: "there shall be time no longer, but at the day of the trumpet of the seventh angel the mystery of God shall be consummated ."
Revelation X

Oliver Messiaen conceived and wrote this ethereal and emblematic mystic symbol of the resistance and the untamed human will during the course of his captivity. Performed for the first time in Stalag 8-A on January 1941, by Jean Le Boulaire, violinist, Henri Aroka, clarinetist; Étienne Pasquier, cellist and the composer at the piano. It is directly by this excerpt from "The revelation of St. John. "Its musical language is essentially, transcendental, spiritual and catholic. The whole score would seem to convey the listener into a sense of eternity of space or time. Its particular rhythms existing outside the measure contribute importantly toward the banishment of temporalities.

One of the most powerful and expressive versions ever made. Contemplative, reflexive and remarkably mystic.

Do not use this CD as a basis for judging the Quartet !.......2003-06-04

Complaints about tempi cannot always be written off as simple matters of taste. Those who love and have studied Messiaen's entire output, not just the Quartet, develop a sense of appropriate tempi based on the compositional elements, symbolic references, position of the movement within the framework of the entire composition, etc.

There are times when "lent" or "extremement lent" is appropriate and magnificent (I think of "Desseins Eternels" from the organ work "La Nativite"), but I cannot think of any Messiaen composition in which a birdsong passage is to be played slowly. Why should the opening movement of the Quartet be an exception ? Hangovers indeed !

I agree with the reviewer who complained that the Quartet sounds unrehearsed. To me it sounds as though I'm hearing the coincidental occurrence of 4 disparate instruments, not a cohesive quartet (which might explain the awkward tempi). This performance is so uninspiring, I'm quite certain if I'd heard it before I had heard any others I would have written off the Quartet as one of the very few Messiaen compositions that I don't like. What a collossal shame that would have been !

Music fans.......2003-01-21

In defense of the CD and the artists who created it, don't be too harsh on the CD's tempi. Judge tempi in their original acoustic environment.
Enjoy the CD as a reference or resource since it is endorsed by the composer, and go to concerts too!

Not so bad!.......2000-08-27

This recording was done "in the presence of the composer and given his authorization". This is positively not the best recording I have heard of the "Quatuor..." but the severe criticism of the other reviewers is probably a matter of taste. I really appreciate the (not too) slow tempos, and I think that the sixth movement could have been performed even slower. This piece is not a virtuosistic exercise. It expresses religious contemplation. Nevertheless, my personal preference is the Deutsche Harmonia Mundi recording with Aloys Kontarsky on the piano (as far as I know not available on CD).

Sounds unrehearsed!.......2000-02-03

This is probably the worst recording I have heard of this piece! The tempos are too slow, the ensemble is unbalanced, and the recording quality, particularly in the sixth movement is mediocre. In general, it sounds as if the group never rehearsed together. The clarinettist is particularly inept. Listen to the slow section of the sixth movement, when either bad recording technique, or a lack of finesse in the ensemble results in the clarinet suddenly jutting out of the homophonic texture. In the opening movement, the rhythm is far too flexible to maintain any cohesion between the players. Other movements similarly suffer from a lack of consistent tempo and rhythm. Again, the sixth movement contains distortions of the rhythms that, to my ear, destroy much of the charm. The Tashi recording also suffers from several misinterpretations of the music. It is generally too fast, though I'll admit their ensemble playing is amazing (how much time did they spend editing and re-editing! ) I do, however, love the last movement violin solo. I recommend the Erato recording, another Messiaen-was-there venture.

Olivier Messiaen: Quartet for the End of Time

Average customer rating:

Definitive Performance
A Treasure among 20th Century Works
The best I know.
Good, Evil, Ruin, and Trancendence on the western front
The Zenith of Virtuosity

Olivier Messiaen: Quartet for the End of Time

Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

Deutsche Grammophon: Music | Specialty Stores | Music
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Olivier Messiaen: Quartet for the End of Time
Varèse - The Complete Works / Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra · Asko Ensemble · Chailly

ASIN: B00004TL2R
Release Date: 2001-01-09

Tracks:

I. Liturgie De Cristal
II. Vocalise, Pour L'Ange Qui Annonce La Fin Du Temps
III. Abime Des Oiseaux
IV. Intermede
V. Louange A L'Eternite De Jesus
VI. Danse De La Fureur
VII. Fouillis D'arcs-en-ciel, Pour I'Ange Qui Annonce La Fin Du Temps
VIII. Louange A L'lmmortalite De Jesus

Amazon.com

Despite being composed in a Nazi prisoner-of-war camp, Messiaen's masterpiece teems with music of ethereal beauty. Inspired by the Book of Revelations, it features many of his unique stylistic fingerprints--unison homophonic passages, birdcalls, and surprising rhythmic displacements among them. Even with only four instruments (a choice dictated by those available in the camp), Messiaen achieves striking coloristic effects. Virtually any performance by four musicians capable of meeting the piece's technical and stylistic demands will make a telling effect, and this one certainly does. It's one of the slower available performances, primarily because fast movements tend to be faster and slower ones slower than such rivals as the classic Tashi reading on RCA and the vibrant Russian one led by Oleg Kagan on Live Classics. At times, slow movements lack the note-to-note tension that would make them even more powerful, but Messiaen fans will want to hear Shaham, Chung, & Co. in his greatest chamber work. --Dan Davis

Customer Reviews:

Definitive Performance.......2007-02-25

This Messiaen masterpiece was composed and first performed in a Nazi prison camp. The program for this piece is the revelation of St. John the Divine. It is scored for violin, clarinet, cello, and piano. You would expect a piece composed in a prison camp and based on biblical text to be powerful, and this one certainly is.

This extraordinary piece of music lives or dies on the strength of the musicians; both as ensemble musicians and as soloists. Virtuosity is a must. Ensemble work is critical in the first and second movements. The second movement (Vocalise for the Angel who announces the end of Time) has an extended passage for violin and cello, accompanied by simple chords on the piano. The violin and cello are in unison octaves for much of this movement. Shaham and Wang played this movement very well in tune. Messiaen calls this middle section of the movement "impalpable harmonies of heaven" where the violin and cello are engaged in "quasi-plainsong chanting".

The third movement (Abyss of the birds) introduces the soloistic aspects of this piece. This is an extended clarinet solo, expertly played by Paul Meyer. Technical difficulty abounds..the clarinet has to play in all the registers, at all the dynamics, and with varying coloration. Long sostenutos, difficult runs, it's everything a clarinettist might have nightmares about. In Meyer's hands, it sounded like a walk in the park.

The opening of the fourth movement (Interlude) contains some minor intonation issues between the violinist and cellist, mainly when they are on open strings. Octaves are dangerous, as any musician will tell you. The ensemble intonation is perfect in the sixth movement (Dance of frenzy, for the seven trumpets).

The fifth movement is a gorgeous extended cello solo (Eulogy to the Eternity of Jesus), played with tremendous sensitivity by Jian Wang. It is achingly beautiful, and requires tremendous musicianship. While it contains no firework runs, the lines are very long, and the writing takes the cellist well up in thumb position. Wang made every single note sing. The complementary movement to this is the extended violin solo eighth and final movement (Eulogy to the immortality of Jesus), played by the incomparable Gil Shaham. It is just amazing, and Shaham is brilliant as usual. Let's just let Messiaen (through translator Anthony Pople) explain it: "It is all love. Its slow ascent towards the extreme high register is the ascent of man towards his God, of the Child of God towards his Father, of the deified Being toward Paradise." No one could have said it better.

Highly recommended.

A Treasure among 20th Century Works.......2006-01-20

I still may have much to learn about Olivier Messiaen's music if I was to focus at a scholarly/doctorate level, yet I feel incredibly lucky at a relatively young age to understand and fall in love with his music since I heard it for the first time. He was a devout man, and his music represents " the truth".

To a casual audience, Scheonberg and Messiaen might as well sound the same, but unlike Scheonberg, Messiaen seems to take us at a whole new dimension of "Art Music" in general, and his religious fervor (he was a devout Catholic) and obsession for this "truth" reflects that. That's why I rank Messiaen as one of my favorite composrs, along with Anton Bruckner and Gustav Mahler, two more composers I deeply admire whose music seems to go beyond this world.

He wrote different works at different scales; some are written for a large orchestra, such as the "Turangalila Symphony", and some only utlize a single piano player, such as "Catalogue of Birds" and "Gazes at the Infant Jesus".

Messiaen's "Quartet for the End of Time" is written for a quartet, but the instrumentation is beyond normal; the work requires a violin, a clarinet, a cello, and a piano. He wrote it during his imprisonment at a German camp, the instruments the only ones available. The work musically describes the Revalation of St. John the Divine, an angel announcing the end of time.

Of the eight movements, I especially like the dazzling "Dance of Frenzy", when the four instruments play in unison to give a unique color, imitating trumpets and gongs, and the two hauntingly beautiful "Eulogies", innocent and beautiful as the words of God itself.

There are different performances of the Quartet and I did listen to some, but I decided to own this version, because of its recent release (with the most advanced recording technology available), the "Yellow" label every one loves (Who Doesn't?), and the roster of internationally-combined soloists - the American violinist Gil Shaham, the French clarinetist Paul Meyer, the Chinise cellist Gian Wang, and last be certainly not least, the Korean pianist Myung-Whun Chung, also a conductor and superb interpreter of other Messiaen works. I don't necessarily agree with the Amazon reviwer about the preference of tempi. Fast segments seems more frantic, while slower segments seems much more meditative.

With all that being said, I consider Messiaen's "Quartet for the End of Time", a treasure among 20th century works, music that should be cherished forever as long as music lives. And I recommend to buy this album if you want to own this beautiful work.

The best I know........2005-12-13

Quatuor pour la fin du Temps is one of my favourite Messiaen's works, together with his Turangalila Symphonie, the Vingt Regards and his opera Saint Françoise. In all that pieces you can feel together with a great development of musical technique a great faith in the work, something that is specially present in this Quatuor, composed in the concentration camp in which Olivier Messiaen was captured.

With a curious and not very common instrumentation, Quatuor pour la fin du Temps, is the result of what Messiaen found in that camp and what he really needed in that moment, a mixture of anxiety for freedom and an incredible faith in the powerful of a presence that we can easily identify with God, the Christian God, as Messiaen was a pity and devout Christian, like we listen in many of his pieces. I'm not really in that way, but I understand something about that feelings and about what is musical techniques, and it really helps to love this wonderful, rare and particular quartet.

I've listened versions played by Barenboim, Tetard... (DG), Kontarsky, Palm... (EMI), De Leeuw, Bylsma... (Philips) and between all of them this is really the one I love much more. I have to mention Palm, Kontarsky, Gawriloff and Deinzer in a wonderful recording that was together with the Turangalila conducted by Simon Rattle, but now deleted. I hope EMI will release again this performance, because it's very, very good too. But the best I know nowadays is this one full of virtuosity and compromise with Messiaen language, very well known by Chung, who have conducted lot of very good CDs of the French composer, apart from being during many years a close assistant to Messiaen in his last period. The other players are really outstanding, specially a terrific Gil Shaham, who is, in my opinion, one of the best young violin players from our time.

The recording is, too, the best I know for this piece, amazing!. Everything is clear and well balanced. The sound is very present and you can even listen the touch of the fingers with the different parts of the instruments. An amazing experience to listen the soloists in this recording.

In sum, one of the best Messiaen's work in the top performance. A must have for all those interested on XXth Century Classic Music.

Good, Evil, Ruin, and Trancendence on the western front.......2004-05-21

The story goes like this. Olivier Messiaen - mystic, troubadour, lover - was minding his business one day, during World War 2, when the Nazis suddenly picked him up and threw him in a concentration camp. The world about Olivier was beset with darkness. Jews were being murdered, land was being stolen, lives were being cut to ribbons and blown to the wind and a great many decent, intelligent people were seriously worried that all of the good things in humanity and earth were going to be permanently destroyed. In this situation utter despair, imbecilic rage, or cold apathy were understandable responses. But not for that great frenchman Olivier Messiaen. Right in the middle of the citadel of darkness, using only a few instruments that came to hand, he composed the Quartet For The End of Time. And by doing so he destroyed the spirit of Naziism, vindicated humanity, and spoke a strange deep word to his God. The music is full of an alien loveliness. Its beauty is not burgeois. It is free and even terrifying. It wrestles with the powers of murder and despair and overcomes them in a way that is hard to describe. On one level the music almost ignores evil. It floats free from it and like a shaft of emerald fire it burns through cruel time into the heart of a calm but taut eternity. On another level the music could very well be called "The Transmutation of Unease". Pure distress is not abolished but siezed by a calm but powerful hand and pulled into a realm where it becomes something aureate. All of Olivier's music is a heroic endeavour but in a certain sense it begins with the Quartet. Stravinsky called Olivier's music "the slag heap of art" but Stravinsky did have his limits. Messiaen permanently takes us in all of his music to a place where the voices of birds are as terrifying as angels in a light that destroys evil by it transmutation.

The Zenith of Virtuosity.......2002-09-08

An incredible recording of a monumental work. This ensemble is made of four high caliber soloists. With the ominous timbre of Paul Meyer, the technical virtousity of Myung-Whun Chung, and the sorrowfull, tear jerking musicality of Gil Shaham and Jian Wang, this recording stands out as an icon of what true virtousity is. The blend of these four is precise, full, and pure, but most importantly, the music being made is unreserved and inspiring.

This is powerful music played by four powerhouse musicians. This recording is one of the best recordings I have in my library. There is no doubt in my mind that these musicians' interpretation of the Messiaen will be remembered as legendary.

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