Messiaen in Context

Messiaen in Context enables specialists and non-specialists to engage with and understand the cultural and aesthetic foundations of Messiaen's music.

Robert Sholl (Edited by)

9781108487917, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 30 November 2023

350 pages
23.5 x 16.1 x 2.4 cm, 0.73 kg

'[An] absorbing and always readable collection.' Richard Whitehouse, Gramophone

Exploring the many dimensions of Messiaen's life, thought and music, this book provides fresh perspectives on the contexts within which the composer worked, the intellectual currents that influenced him, and the influence he himself exerted on twentieth-century music. It enables a holistic understanding of this 'mondial' French composer in relation to the wider world, including his engagement with and refiguration of theology through music, the performance and reception of his work, the ways in which his aesthetics and conceptual universe have been understood by his students, and how his legacy continues to evolve. Reappraising known facts and adding new interpretations from a variety of inter-disciplinary and multi-disciplinary viewpoints, Messiaen in Context provides a fresh understanding and engagement with one of the most significant musicians of the twentieth century.

Part I. Mondial Messiaen: 1. Introduction: the image of Messiaen Robert Sholl
2. Messiaen's family Nigel Simeone
3. Yvonne Loriod Matthew Schellhorn
4. Messiaen and the Paris conservatoire Christopher Brent-Murray
5. Messiaen and classical India and Greece Peter Asimov
6. Messiaen and the USA Nigel Simeone
7. Messiaen and the idea of Japan Peter Burt
8. Messiaen and China Wei-Ling Cheong
9. Messiaen and Australia: the composer as Lyrebird Charles Bodmin Rae
Part II. Messiaen and Theology: 10. Messiaen and tournemire Jenifer Donelson
11. Theology in the interwar works of Olivier Messiaen Elizabeth McLain
12. Revitalising the spiritual: Messiaen and La Jeune France Caroline Rae
13. The theology and aesthetics of Thomas Aquinas in the compositions of Olivier Messiaen Siglind Bruhn
14. Messiaen's musical language of religious symbolism Siglind Bruhn
15. The composition of glory: Olivier Messiaen and Hans Urs von Balthasar Jennifer Newsome Martin
16. Messiaen and the franciscan spirit Robert Fallon
Part III. Composers, Performers and Critics: 17. Before Le Cas: Messiaen in the musical press Stephen Broad
18. Messiaen and borrowing Christopher Brent-Murray, Yves Balmer and Thomas Lacôte
19. Messiaen and criticism Arnold Whittall
20. Messiaen as organist of la Trinité Andrew Shenton
21. Messiaen and the organ recordings Andrew Shenton
22. 'Un sens artistique très développé': Messiaen's cahiers as performance aid Roderick Chadwick
23. Pianism and virtuosity in Messiaen's vingt regards sur l'Enfant-Jésus Caroline Rae
24. Messiaen as orchestrator Christopher Dingle
Part IV. Concepts and Legacy: 25. The simplicity of Messiaen Jacques Amblard
26. Messiaen and synaesthesia Duncan Carmichael
27. The opposite of time: What birds meant for Messiaen David Rothenburg
28. Messiaen and surrealism Robert Sholl
29. An explosive confrontation: Messiaen and the post-war avant-garde Amy Bauer
30. Messiaen and Jacques Charpentier Robert Sholl
31. Messiaen and Boulez Arnold Whittall
32. Messiaen and spectralism Marilyn Nonken
33. Olivier Messiaen and Jean-Louis Florentz: a filiation? Michel Bourcier
34. Messiaen in France today Jacques Amblard.

Subject Areas: Individual composers & musicians, specific bands & groups [AVH], 20th century & contemporary classical music [AVGC6]