Post by erik on Mar 9, 2024 18:42:29 GMT -5
The great 20th century French composer Olivier Messiaen is in this week's Classical Albums Spotlight with a massive oratorio of his that was recorded in America's capital in 1972.
Messiaen: LA TRANSFIGURATION DE NOTRE SEIGNUR JESUS CHRIST
Marimba: FRANK AMES
Cello: JANOS STARKER
Xylorimba: JOHN A. KANE
Clarinet: LOREN KITT
Vibraphone: RONALD BARNETT
Flute: WALLACE MANN
Piano: YVONNE LORIOD
Westminster Symphonic Choir
National Symphony Orchestra of Washington D.C./ANTAL DORATI (London/Decca)
The life, death, and rebirth of Jesus has inspired some of Mankind's greatest artistic achievements, when it has not given ammunition to religious fanatics who try to distort Jesus' message to suite their own ends. George Frideric Handel's oratorio "Messiah" is arguably the best known work of classical music related to this timeless story, but the 20th century French composer Olivier Messiaen took it upon himself to interpret the story in "La Transfiguration de Notre Seigneur Jesus-Christ." It took four years (1965-1969) to complete, and for good reason. Setting aside its always-imposing subject matter (its text being drawn primarily from the Holy Bible itself, plus Thomas Aquinas's "Summa Theologica"), it is part oratorio/opera (requiring a 10-part chorus and vocal soloists), part large-scale concerto for orchestra (seven instrumental soloists), and it also requires a very large orchestra. Messiaen went into the territory once occupied by the super-giant symphonies of Mahler, and Arnold Schoenberg's "Gurrelieder", when the work had its premiere in Lisbon in June 1969. Its huge scale and its 93-minute running time have only permitted a smattering of performances during its 40 years of existence.
As always, however, a radical work will inevitably have its champions, particularly in the U.S.; and in the case of this work, that champion was Antal Dorati, who led the American premiere of "La Transfiguration" in this live recording with the National Symphony Orchestra of Washington D.C. in April 1972. Featuring the talents of Messiaen's wife Yvonne Loriod on piano, the great cellist Janos Starker, and the Westminster Symphonic Choir, this staggering work is pulled off extremely well by Dorati and the National Symphony, an orchestra generally regarded to be overshadowed by its brethren in nearby Philadelphia and New York. Under Dorati's seven-year run as Music Director from 1970 to 1977, however, the orchestra began to catch fire; and this recording is proof of where they would go under Dorati, then under Mstislav Rostropovich and Leonard Slatkin.
Messiaen: LA TRANSFIGURATION DE NOTRE SEIGNUR JESUS CHRIST
Marimba: FRANK AMES
Cello: JANOS STARKER
Xylorimba: JOHN A. KANE
Clarinet: LOREN KITT
Vibraphone: RONALD BARNETT
Flute: WALLACE MANN
Piano: YVONNE LORIOD
Westminster Symphonic Choir
National Symphony Orchestra of Washington D.C./ANTAL DORATI (London/Decca)
The life, death, and rebirth of Jesus has inspired some of Mankind's greatest artistic achievements, when it has not given ammunition to religious fanatics who try to distort Jesus' message to suite their own ends. George Frideric Handel's oratorio "Messiah" is arguably the best known work of classical music related to this timeless story, but the 20th century French composer Olivier Messiaen took it upon himself to interpret the story in "La Transfiguration de Notre Seigneur Jesus-Christ." It took four years (1965-1969) to complete, and for good reason. Setting aside its always-imposing subject matter (its text being drawn primarily from the Holy Bible itself, plus Thomas Aquinas's "Summa Theologica"), it is part oratorio/opera (requiring a 10-part chorus and vocal soloists), part large-scale concerto for orchestra (seven instrumental soloists), and it also requires a very large orchestra. Messiaen went into the territory once occupied by the super-giant symphonies of Mahler, and Arnold Schoenberg's "Gurrelieder", when the work had its premiere in Lisbon in June 1969. Its huge scale and its 93-minute running time have only permitted a smattering of performances during its 40 years of existence.
As always, however, a radical work will inevitably have its champions, particularly in the U.S.; and in the case of this work, that champion was Antal Dorati, who led the American premiere of "La Transfiguration" in this live recording with the National Symphony Orchestra of Washington D.C. in April 1972. Featuring the talents of Messiaen's wife Yvonne Loriod on piano, the great cellist Janos Starker, and the Westminster Symphonic Choir, this staggering work is pulled off extremely well by Dorati and the National Symphony, an orchestra generally regarded to be overshadowed by its brethren in nearby Philadelphia and New York. Under Dorati's seven-year run as Music Director from 1970 to 1977, however, the orchestra began to catch fire; and this recording is proof of where they would go under Dorati, then under Mstislav Rostropovich and Leonard Slatkin.