Messiaen: Organ Works Vol II (2 CDs)

OLIVIER MESSIAEN ORGAN WORKS MICHAEL BONAVENTURE LIVRE D’ORGUE MONODIE MEDITATIONS SUR LE MYSTERE DE LA SAINTE TRINITE THE RIEGER ORGAN OF ST GILES’ CATHEDRAL EDINBURGH

OLIVIER MESSIAEN ORGAN WORKS

MICHAEL BONAVENTURE

Notes on the Music

THE RIEGER ORGAN OF ST GILES’ CATHEDRAL EDINBURGH Disc I Livre d’orgue 1. Reprises par interversion 2. Pièce en trio 3. Les mains de l'abîme 4. Chants d'oiseaux 5. Pièce en trio 6. Les yeux dans les roues 7. Soixante quatre durées 8.

Monodie

Disc II [6:33] [1:55] [7:53] [7:10] [8:18] [1:53] [11:53] [3:54]

Méditations sur le mystère de la Sainte Trinité 9. Méditation I 10. Méditation II

[9:23] [13:06]

Total playing time

[72:02]

Recorded in St Giles’ Cathedral, Edinburgh, on 1 December 2005, and 8 January 2007 Original 24-bit stereo sound recordings made

by Delphian Records Ltd

Producer: Paul Baxter 24-bit digital editing & mastering: Paul Baxter Executive producer: Michael Bonaventure

Méditation III Méditation IV Méditation V Méditation VI Méditation VII Méditation VIII Méditation IX

[2:35] [6:25] [12:09] [8:20] [7:00] [11:58] [12:43]

Total playing time

[61:12]

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

Design: John Christ Photography: Dr Raymond Parks © 2008 Delphian Records Ltd 2008 Delphian Records Ltd

Between 1945 and 1948 Messiaen wrote three pieces based on the Tristan myth: Harawi (1945), Turangalîla-Symphonie (1948) and Cinq Rechants (1948). Having established an innovative musical language, which he outlined in his 1944 treatise Technique de mon langage communicable, the Tristan trilogy developed many of these techniques, including the extended use of leitmotifs and further developments in rhythm. As early as 1944 Messiaen considered using a series of timbres, intensities and durations as the basis for a compositional technique and these came to fruition in a period of experimentation from 1948 to 1952. During this time Messiaen wrote a number of pieces which developed his musical language, including Cantéyodjayâ (1949), Quatre Études de Rythme (1949 -50), Messe de la Pentecôte (1950) and the Livre d’orgue (1951). Cantéyodjayâ, for solo piano, derives much of its material from the Turangalîla-Symphonie. It is in three distinct sections and has a couplet which includes a ‘mode of durations, of pitches, and of intensities [dynamics]’, which anticipates the ‘mode’ (a term used here as ‘method’ or ‘system’) employed in Mode de valeurs et d’intensités, the second of the Études.

The Études, also for solo piano, are probably the most radical departure from his fundamental compositional aesthetic, and the most influential to the next generation

of composers. In addition to spawning sonatas for two pianos by both Karel Goeyvaerts and Michel Fano (both pupils of Messiaen), it directly influenced Stockhausen’s Kreuzspiel (1951) and Boulez’s Structures for two pianos (1951-52), whose twelve-tone row is derived from it. Although Mode de valeurs is not strictly serial, it separates four sound parameters and applies a generalised serial technique to each.

The Livre d’orgue continues these rhythmic developments and contains three particular procedures of note: rhythmic characters, fan-form and chromatic time-values. The first movement Reprises par interversion is monodic. It uses three Hindu rhythms as ‘rhythmic characters’ which Messiaen himself described in detail in his programme notes for the piece, likening the rhythms to characters on stage in a theatre: The first character is the protagonist who is dominant in the dramatic action, the second is the antagonist, driven to action by the first; and the third is a passive and immobile observer of the action. In the same way, three rhythms are present in this piece: the first is augmented by a demi-semiquaver on each repetition; the second is diminished by a demi-semiquaver on each repetition, while the third remains unchanged.

Notes on the Music The music for this movement is in four sections – the thematic material is heard in the first section and then repeated in three different ways: first presented in a form Messiaen likened to a closed fan, which unfolds from the outside inwards; then in the form of an open fan unfolding in the opposite direction; and finally the same music is heard in retrograde canon.

Messiaen described the rhythmic procedures for the last movement of the Livre, Soixante-quatre durées, in the score: ‘64 chromatic durations, from 1 to 64 demi-semiquavers invested in groups of 4, from the ends to the centre, forwards and backwards alternately treated as a retrograde canon. The whole peopled with birdsong.’

The movement is therefore a complex retrograde canon on a series of 64 note-values graded from a single demi-semiquaver to a value of four minims (64 demi-semiquavers).

Messiaen’s series unfolds simultaneously from both ends of the piece, presenting a total of 2080 demi-semiquavers.

According to the score, the Livre d’orgue was composed in 1951, although Hill and Simeone in their biography of Messiaen (Yale, 2005) note that since the fourth movement indicates that some of the birdsong used in that movement were collected in the gardens at Gardépée which Messiaen did not visit until

April 1952, this movement at least must post-date that visit. The score was published in 1953 and the world premiere was given

by Messiaen himself on 23 April, 1953 in Stuttgart at a concert to inaugurate the organ in the Villa Berg. Messiaen also gave the French premiere at a concert on 21 March, 1955 for the Domaine Musical series organised

by Pierre Boulez and given at Sainte Trinité, the church at which Messiaen was organist.

Apparently Boulez was expecting around 50 people to attend and only opened a small side door. In fact the crowd was much larger (some say around 2000) and the result was a great crush and a delayed start to the concert.

For Messiaen 1963 was marked by a trip to Argentina, the premiere of Sept Haïkaï and the start of composition of Couleurs de la Cité céleste. It was also the date of composition of a short work for organ which was commissioned by Jean Bonfils, his assistant at La Trinité who was writing an organ tutorial.

The piece was first published by the Schola Cantorum and republished by Leduc in 1997.

Monodie is a curious piece. As its title suggests, it consist of just a single line of music written in treble clef for flute (8) or Quintaton (16) with Cor de nuit (8), Nazard and Octavin (2). It is atonal, although it has a pitch centre of A-flat. It combines intervallic leaps and complex rhythms in just 17 bars played at a slow tempo. Given the enormous

complexity of much of Messiaen’s music his use of just a single line is refreshing in this aurally intriguing miniature.

Completed in 1969, following the monumental orchestral work La Transfiguration de Notre Seigneur Jésus-Christ (1963- 69), the Méditations sur le mystère de la Sainte Trinité are a summation of Messiaen’s compositional technique up to this point. They contain a sophisticated semiotic system which includes birdsong, modes of limited transposition, Hindu rhythms, plainsong, quotations from the Summa Theologiae by Saint Thomas Aquinas, and text superscriptions written in the score which are taken from a variety of sources. They reach a new height in Messiaen’s idiomatic use of the timbral resources of the organ, and they incorporate an innovative feature that Messiaen termed the ‘communicable language’. This novel musical technique, which he explains in the preface to the score, is comprised of three elements: 1) a musical alphabet which assigns a rhythmicised pitch to each letter of the Roman alphabet, 2) a simple grammar using a Latin-based case system plus three verbs, and 3) a series of leitmotifs.

In the preface to the Méditations Messiaen cites examples of how music may be considered a language (such as Wagner’s concept of the leitmotif), after which he gives

the following reason for devising his own musical language: Overwhelmed by these grandiose examples – and not wishing to imitate the cabbalist who searches for hidden meaning behind the letters or the numerical values of those letters – I have tried nevertheless, as a game, and to stimulate my thoughts, to find a kind of musical language that can be communicated.

What is interesting about this quotation is that Messiaen was searching for a technique that might inspire him to find an aspect of music that can be communicated. He seems to have been aiming for a direct analogue to spoken language rather than the sign system which is part of his musical style. The search for purely musical signifiers is treated only as a diversion, yet Messiaen clearly had in mind the possibility of extending his language for a number of years. In 1962 he received a commission from Heinrich Strobel and in a personal memo wrote: ‘compose Fragments from the Apocalypse. Reread the Apocalypse, and find a language of leitmotifs, applied to the main ideas, characters, symbols and colours of the Apocalypse.’ The piece he eventually wrote for this commission was Couleurs de la Cité céleste; however, it is interesting to note that he was at this time thinking of using leitmotifs again (he used them extensively in the Turangalîla-Symphonie) in a sophisticated exposition on a religious theme.

Notes on the Music In another memo, written in November 1974, five years after having completed the Méditations he noted to himself ‘write versets for the organ (look for new combinations of timbres – look for new language).’ This demonstrates that he was perhaps still not satisfied with the totality of the sign system devised to date and needed new means of expression. In fact no distinctive innovative techniques were forthcoming.

Instead he found new ways to use the ones accumulated in the Méditations. This is demonstrated in the remarkable works written in the last fifteen years of his life, including the spectacular Eclairs sur l’Au-delà (1991) which is a marvellous reworking of the accumulated elements of his musical style (with the exception of the ‘langage communicable’) in a manner which is both fresh, engaging and often of great aesthetic beauty.

sermon on the Trinity. We agreed that his sermon would be divided into three parts and that after each I would play an improvisation. It was from that sermon and those improvisations that the work we’re speaking of was born. But, out of an improvisation grew a work that is completely written out. And I myself meditated a great deal on the mystery of the Holy Trinity. The work comprises nine movements, each of which refers to one aspect of the mystery. I did not want each part to bear a title.

The evening of music and preaching was titled ‘The Mystery of God’ and followed this format: I

Improvisation on the organ

II

Father, Son, Spirit, revealed by the story of salvation

III Improvisation on the organ The Méditations are an expository reflection on the Trinity. They were originally conceived as a series of improvisations by Messiaen on 23 November 1967 at the rededication of the organ at La Trinité after its electrification and enlargement by Beuchet & Debierre.

In conversation with Claude Samuel, Messiaen explained: When the Trinité’s organ was inaugurated after its great restoration, I invited Monseigneur Charles, the celebrated rector of the Sacré-Coeur de Montmartre, and asked him to deliver a

IV God is love: relation and unity V

Improvisation on the organ

VI The Trinity lives in us VII Improvisation on the organ Each movement of the Méditations reflects upon a different aspect of the Trinity, but they can be grouped together according to their content. It is revealing to split the movements into the persons of the Trinity, bearing in mind that the word ‘God’ is used by Messiaen to

express the unified concept of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Taking these four divisions, the movements can be assigned thus:

Person

Movement

God

3, 4, 5, 8, 9

Father

1, 7

Son

2, 6, 7

Holy Spirit

5, 7

The score of Méditations includes a musical and theological explanation of each movement, a detailed description of how Messiaen devised his musical language and a translation of the Thomist texts transliterated into music which form the theological basis of the work.

Messiaen premiered the Méditations himself on March 20, 1972 at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, Washington D.C. – the European premiere was given by Almut Rößler in Düsseldorf on June 10, 1972. Rößler also gave the French premiere (in La Trinité) during the ‘Festival du Printemps’ in 1973. It is surprising that Messiaen chose to give the premiere on one of the largest organs in the United States considering that the score of the Méditations contains six pages of details concerning the specification and layout of the instrument in La Trinité. The Great Organ and Chancel Organ of the Basilica of the National

Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, Washington, D.C. were built by the Möller Organ Company of Hagerstown, Maryland in 1964. The Great Organ is situated in the rear gallery and is played from a four-manual console in that gallery. Messiaen liked this organ, and in conversation with Claude Samuel made special note of the reception given to his choice of stops: I arrived ten days ahead of time to study the organ’s layout and to find my timbres and note them in the score. At the end of the concert [...] some people told me they had never heard those timbres and had been surprised by the previously unused possibilities of the instrument.

It was simply the result of a lot of work.

© 2008 Andrew Shenton

Andrew Shenton is a member of the faculty of Boston University and editor of www.oliviermessiaen.net. His book Olivier Messiaen’s System of Signs (Ashgate) includes a detailed analysis of the Méditations.

Michael Bonaventure Born 1962 in Edinburgh, Michael Bonaventure was an organ pupil of Herrick Bunney at St Giles’ Cathedral, and a composition student of Judith Weir at Glasgow University. He is currently based in London, where he is Organist of All Saints Church, Blackheath.

Although his solo repertoire embraces the music of all periods, it is as an indefatigable advocate of new music that Bonaventure has become known, both at home and abroad.

Inspired by the work of such pioneers as KarlErik Welin, Bengt Hambraeus, Juan AllendeBlin, Guy Bezancon and Jean-Pierre Leguay, he has to date given over 50 premieres of new works and arrangements for solo organ by composers including Avril Anderson, Laurence Crane, Lyell Cresswell, Gabriel Jackson, Geoffrey King, Jean-Pierre Leguay, Edward McGuire, James McMillan, Ian McQueen, Paul Patterson, Glyn Perrin, Timothy Salter, David Sutton-Anderson, Judith Weir and many others.

From 1980 to 1997 Bonaventure appeared regularly as a recitalist in the Edinburgh International Festival Fringe, promoting unusual repertoire and new works for the organ, and he has twice been presented in concert by the Edinburgh Contemporary Arts Trust (ECAT); this included a criticallyacclaimed performance of Messiaen’s Livre d’Orgue in 1994, and the world premiere of

Jean-Pierre Leguay’s Horizon in 1996, both given on the world-renowned Rieger organ in St Giles’ Cathedral, Edinburgh.

His playing has been broadcast in programmes of contemporary music on BBC Radio 3 (Music for Organ, Hear & Now), BBC Radio Scotland and on Swedish Radio, and he has performed widely around the UK, in Sweden, the USA (with Scottish Arts Council subsidy) and France, where he has several times given recitals in Notre Dame Cathedral, Paris, at the invitation of Jean-Pierre Leguay, many of whose organ works he has performed and broadcast for the first time in the UK. Bonaventure records exclusively for Delphian Records. 2000 Nails, his first solo recording with Delphian, was released in 2005, attracting universal critical acclaim (DCD34013). His performances have also appeared on discs of music by Sir Peter Maxwell Davies (DCD34037), Gabriel Jackson (DCD34027), and Giles Swayne (DCD34033).

The 1992 Rieger Organ The present organ was built in 1992 by the Austrian firm of Rieger Orgelbau, in consultation with Herrick Bunney and Peter Hurford. The instrument, with its distinctive case of Austrian oak designed by Douglas Laird, stands in the South Transept.

The 1992 organ was completely new, except for the Pedal Open Wood 16' and the Bombarde 32' which were retained from the previous instrument (Willis III 1940). In addition, the lowest seven pipes of the old 32' Double Open Wood are mounted at the back of the case and form the bass of the Untersatz 32' – the remaining metal pipes of which form part of the façade.

The instrument possesses mechanical key and stop action. There are 47 speaking stops spread over three manual divisions and the pedal division. The louvred top of the central pipe tower contains a chromatic ring of 37 Whitechapel bells, which are playable from the Swell manual and from the Pedal.

Specification Great (Manual II) 1. Bourdon 2. Principal 3. Stopped Diapason 4. Harmonic Flute 5. Octave 6. Nachthorn 7. Quint 8. Superoctave 9. Mixture VI 10. Mixture IV 11. Cornet V 12. Trumpet 13. Trumpet 14. Trumpet Tremulant Swell (Manual III) 26. Bourdon 27. Diapason 28. Souffle 29. Flûte à cheminée 30. Gambe 31. Voix Céleste 32. Prestant 33. Flûte pointue 34. Nazard 35. Quarte de Nazard 36. Tierce 37. Sifflet 38. Plein Jeu VI-VIII 39. Basson 40. Trompette 41. Hautbois 42. Voix humaine 43. Clairon Glocken Tremulant

16' 8' 8' 8' 4' 4' 2 2/ 3' 2' 2' 1 1/3' 8' 16' 8' 4'

16' 8' 8' 8' 8' 8' 4' 4' 2 2/ 3' 2' 1 3/ 5' 1' 2 2/ 3' 16' 8' 8' 8' 4'

Positive (Manual I) 15. Gedackt 16. Salicional 17. Principal 18. Chimney Flute 19. Octave 20. Recorder 21. Sesquialtera II 22. Larigot 23. Mixture IV 24. Rankett 25. Cromorne Tremulant

8' 8' 4' 4' 2' 2' 2 2/ 3' 1 1/3' 1' 16' 8'

Pedal 44. Untersatz 45. Principal 46. Open Wood 47. Sub Bass 48. Octave 49. Gedackt 50. Choral Bass 51. Flute 52. Mixture V 53. Bombarde 54. Bombarde 55. Fagotto 56. Posaune 57. Clarion Glocken

32' 16' 16' 16' 8' 8' 4' 4' 2 2/ 3' 32' 16' 16' 8' 4'

Compass: manuals C - a''' (58 notes) pedals C - f' (30 notes) Couplers: III/I, I/II, III/II, I/P, II/P,III/P Combinations: 12 generals, 6 individuals per division on 16 memory levels Sequencers - General Crescendo - Tutti - General cancel

2000 Nails: Contemporary works for solo organ Michael Bonaventure organ World premiere recordings DCD34013

Olivier Messiaen: Les Corps Glorieux, Le Banquet Céleste & L’Apparition de l’Église éternelle Timothy Byram-Wigfield organ DCD34024

Bonaventure’s longstanding position as proponent of new music for the organ is recognised here, on disc, for the first time. Composers featured are Avril Anderson, Lyell Cresswell, Eddie McGuire, Ian McQueen, Peter Nelson, Judith Weir and Bonaventure himself.

Timothy Byram-Wigfield presents Messiaen’s ground-breaking Les Corps Glorieux on the organ of Windsor’s St George’s Chapel, with its protean personality. Byram-Wigfield is an ideal exponent of this work and its extremities; from his sensitive approach to its spiritual narrative, to his thrilling handling of its gargantuan climaxes, the listener cannot fail to be drawn into Messiaen’s colouristic world.

‘This fine player has commissioned more than 50 works in 25 years.

Here are eight of them, recorded on the organ of Edinburgh University’s McEwan Hall – at once meditative and turbulent.’

– The Sunday Times, May 2005

Giles Swayne: Convocation The National Youth Choir of Great Britain Laudibus Mike Brewer conductor Michael Bonaventure organ Stephen Wallace counter-tenor DCD34033 When a powerful team of new music exponents come together, magic will happen; when the music is by Giles Swayne, a composer whose light shines brilliantly in its own unique direction, the results will entrance. This disc offers a bracing sonic experience – vividly communicative music performed with rare verve, passion, and youthful vibrancy.

‘Swayne is undoubtedly the finest choral composer writing today’ – The Times, October 2006

‘This is a highly successful disc’ – Gramophone, July 2006

Gabriel Jackson: Sacred Choral Works Choir of St Mary’s Cathedral, Edinburgh Matthew Owens conductor Susan Hamilton soprano Michael Bonaventure organ DCD34027 The culmination of a four-year association between the choir of St Mary’s Cathedral and British Composer Award winner Gabriel Jackson, this disc presents eight world premiere recordings. Whether gentle and meditative, brilliantly exuberant, or soaring in ecstatic contemplation, Jackson’s vividly communicative music is brought thrillingly to life by a choir at the peak of its powers.

‘Owens has trained this choir to an exceptionally high level and the sound can only be described as luxurious’ – Gramophone, December 2005