![Olivier Messiaen - Catalogue doiseaux (Book 2) [With score] @DamonJHK](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/AiJr3ZlUnoA/maxresdefault.jpg)
Uploaded October 2022 | Updated September 2026, 3 hours ago
Composer: Olivier Messiaen (10 December 1908 -- 27 April 1992)
Pianist: Yvonne Loriod (Messiaen's wife)
Olivier Messiaen - Catalogue d'oiseaux, written between 1956-1958, Book 2 (Deuxième livre)
IV. Le Traquet Stapazin (Western black-eared wheatear)
The tranquil "Le traquet stapazin" (the black-eared wheatear) comprises the second book; the movement programmatically moves from sunrise to sunset.
Composer: Olivier Messiaen (10 December 1908 -- 27 April 1992)
Pianist: Yvonne Loriod (Messiaen's wife)
Olivier Messiaen - Catalogue d'oiseaux, written between 1956-1958, Book 2 (Deuxième livre)
IV. Le Traquet Stapazin (Western black-eared wheatear)
The tranquil "Le traquet stapazin" (the black-eared wheatear) comprises the second book; the movement programmatically moves from sunrise to sunset.
![Olivier Messiaen - Catalogue doiseaux (Book 2) [With score]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/AiJr3ZlUnoA/mqdefault.jpg "Olivier Messiaen - Catalogue doiseaux (Book 2) [With score]
Composer: Olivier Messiaen (10 December 1908 27 April 1992)
Pianist: Yvonne Loriod (Messiaens wife)
Olivier Messiaen - Catalogue doiseaux, written between 1956-1958, Book 2 (Deuxième livre)
IV. Le Traquet Stapazin (Western black-eared wheatear)
The tranquil Le traquet stapazin (the black-eared wheatear) comprises the second book; the movement programmatically moves from sunrise to sunset.")
![Gabriel Fauré - 9 Préludes [With score]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/BDt8xu29V8U/mqdefault.jpg "Gabriel Fauré - 9 Préludes [With score]
-Composer: Gabriel Urbain Fauré (12 May 1845 – 4 November 1924)
-Performer: Germaine Thyssens-Valentin
9 Preludes for Piano, op. 103, written in 1909-10
00:00 - I. Andante molto moderato
03:27 - II. Allegro
05:34 - III. Andante
09:06 - IV. Allegretto moderato
10:56 - V. Allegro
13:24 - VI. Andante
16:07 - VII. Andante moderato
18:28 - VIII. Allegro
19:32 - IX. Adagio
Composed in 1910, the Préludes are Fauré at his most old-masterly. They are also exactly contemporary with Debussys first book of Préludes; where the latter, for all their exquisiteness, are extroverted public statements, Faurés are a concentrated, inward utterance. The first three Préludes date from January and were performed for the first time by Marguerite Long at a Société Nationale concert on May 17, 1910, before being published by Heugel that year. But over July and into the autumn six more Préludes followed, and it seems that Fauré then intended to work his way through the cycle of major and minor keys a plan which fell by the wayside with the resumption of work on his lyric drama, Pénélope. The remaining six were issued separately by Heugel the following year and eventually published together with the initial Préludes in a single collection in 1923. If their piecemeal appearance and small number helped drop them into obscurity, they are comparable, nevertheless, to Chopins and Debussys contributions to the genre in point of pith and emotional power.
In D flat, the first prélude looks back to the Verlaine settings of the 1890s wistfully and with tendresse, interrupted by a plangent B section which seems to toll the passing hour, rising to a tense climax soothed by the return of the initial strain and rounded with a coda-like a benediction. Likewise, the restless C sharp triplets of the second prélude are met by a carillon-like admonition. The third prélude seems to recall the dreaming, hesitant interludes of the joyous Third Impromptu for piano, of 1883, in a somber G minor rife with nostalgia. In F, the fourth prélude looks forward and backward; it includes a phrase which turns up again in the Menuet of Masques et bergamasques in 1918, and also harks back to the blithe world of the Verlaine settings. The following D minor outburst takes one by surprise anger yielding almost conversationally to resignation. In E flat, the sixth prélude takes the form of a canon at the octave in a severe, obsessive meditation. The anxious flight of the seventh prélude, in A composed in early September is associated with the final illness of Faurés father-in-law, the sculptor, Emmanuel Fremiet. The tiny C minor study in repeated notes suggests a wryly sec serenade; the final prélude in E minor a mere 33 bars calls to mind the meditative compactness of Bach, albeit with an harmonic motility lending its straightforward statement tortuous piquancy. Taken together, the Préludes afford several direct, hence rare, glimpses of Faurés inner being in Wallace Stevens phrase, a self returning mostly memory.
[allmusic.com]")
![Dmitri Shostakovich - Symphony No. 13 Babi Yar [With score]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/BEyDiOon0jg/mqdefault.jpg "Dmitri Shostakovich - Symphony No. 13 Babi Yar [With score]
-Composer: Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich (25 September 1906 – 9 August 1975)
-Text: Yevgeny Aleksandrovich Yevtushenko
-Bass: Sergei Aleksashkin
-Chorus: Choral Academy Moscow
-Orchestra: WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne
-Conductor: Rudolf Barshai
Symphony No. 13, op. 113 Babi Yar, written in 1962
00:07 - I. Babi Yar (Adagio)
17:11 - II. Humour (Allegretto)
25:33 - III. In the Store (Adagio)
38:18 - IV. Fears (Largo)
50:13 - V. Career (Allegretto)
The death of Josef Stalin on March 5, 1953, ushered in an era of freedom for Soviet artists. But, oddly enough, for nearly a decade following the dictators passing, Shostakovich, one of the chief targets of Soviet censors in the past, wrote nothing of a radical or adventurous nature. In 1962, however, he broke out of his conservative shell and composed his Symphony No. 13, whose expressive language is deeper and more uncompromising than any of his then-recent compositions. Only the unwieldy Symphony No. 4, whose belated premiere took place in 1961, 25 years after its completion, is as challenging and substantive.
Even before the Symphony No. 13s premiere, Shostakovich was in trouble with the Khrushchev regime over it, though not, however, because of his music, but rather because of the texts he chose to set. The work uses five poems by Evgeny Yevtushenko, and it was the first of these in particular, Babi Yar, from which the symphony derives its subtitle, that created the controversy. It tells of oppression of the Jews in Russia, an injustice Soviets felt the need to deny.
Over the objections of government officials, the premiere of the symphony took place in December 1962. It was a success, but pressures mounted to suppress or modify the work and a second performance had to be canceled. Bowing at last to the wishes of authorities, Yevtushenko and Shostakovich allowed the texts to be attenuated. Another performance took place, with the textual changes, after which the work disappeared from Soviet concert halls for nearly three years.
The Symphony No. 13 is made up of five movements, each having a subtitle pertaining to a Yevtushenko poem: Adagio (Babi Yar), Allegretto (Humor), Adagio (In the store), Largo (Fears), and Allegretto (A career). The chorus sings in unison or octaves throughout, except for a passage near the end of the third movement. The orchestral forces are sizeable, but Shostakovichs scoring tends to be sparing throughout, although there are outbursts of considerable power in several places.
The first movement is dark and dramatic, morbid and harsh. This bleak panel, with the bass soloist prominent throughout much of its duration, is an atmospheric and powerful setting of Yevtushenkos texts. The second movement is a Scherzo, and its Humor is often tart and brash.
The last three movements are continuous. The text of In the store praises the ordinary working woman. Shostakovichs music is subdued and dark throughout most of the movement, painting a bleak picture of life (which Soviet officials also could not have found much to their liking). The riveting climax in this section comes when the chorus sings (about women), To shortchange them is shameful.... The austere and dark fourth movement deals with fears, as the chorus starts off whispering the word, effectively summoning a fearful atmosphere. The last movement, which offers text praising those with integrity in their careers, begins with an attractive, slightly sad waltz, although the mood throughout is brighter than in any previous panel. The ending is quiet, with the waltz turning gossamer, almost mystical.
In the last two decades of the twentieth century, this symphony gained considerable popularity both in the concert hall and on recordings. A typical performance of it lasts from about an hour to nearly 70 minutes.
[allmusic.com]")
![Sul C and beyond, 1st movement [My composition]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/BlmuTolk18M/mqdefault.jpg "Sul C and beyond, 1st movement [My composition]
Sul C and beyond (...with some approximations) for 2 pianos, I - Prelude
Written in December 2019
+++Sorry for the bad sound quality and messy score
*** Please notice that I dont study composition, I compose only for fun.")
![John Ireland - Phantasie for Piano Trio [With score]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/C6Dqe-bCvP8/mqdefault.jpg "John Ireland - Phantasie for Piano Trio [With score]
Composer: John Ireland (13 August 1879 - 12 June 1962)
Performers: Holywell Ensemble [Kate Bailey (violin), Spike Wilson (cello), Margaret Ozanne (piano)]
Phantasie for Piano Trio [Piano Trio No. 1], written in 1906
John Ireland (1879-1962) was born in the English village of Bowdon near the city of Manchester. After studying at the Royal College of Music in London with Charles Villiers Stanford, he pursued a career as a composer and teacher eventually obtaining a position at the College. Among his students were Ernest Moeran and Benjamin Britten. Primarily a composer of songs, during the early part of his career, Ireland did write chamber music and won the first prize in the 1908 Cobbett Competition for chamber music with his First Violin Sonata.
His Phantasie for Piano Trio in a minor dates from 1906 and was composed for an earlier Cobbett Competition. The Cobbett Competitions were designed to encourage the younger generation of British composers to write chamber music. Its founder and benefactor was the chamber music aficionado William Wilson Cobbett. The rules of the competition provided an alternate format, the old English Fancy for Fantasia from the time of Purcell, to the traditional four movement work which had developed from Haydn onwards. There was to be only a single movement of around 15 minutes duration embracing a variety of moods, tone colors and tempi while at the same time retaining an inner unity.
Ireland’s Phantasie for Piano Trio, in keeping with the rules of the competition, is in one movement but has three sections. The trio begins in dramatic and full of passion, but there are also reflective and brooding interludes characterized by chromaticism as well as beautifully melodic and jovial episodes.
Original Audio: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNSe4NRv-IU")
![Edvard Grieg - String Quartet No. 2 in F Major, EG 117 [With score]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/CSJGXFm5y70/mqdefault.jpg "Edvard Grieg - String Quartet No. 2 in F Major, EG 117 [With score]
Composer: Edvard Hagerup Grieg (15 June 1843 4 September 1907)
Performers: Raphael Quartet [Ronald Hoogeveen (violin), Ramy Koch (violin), Zoltan Benyacz (viola), Henk Lambooij (cello)]
String Quartet No. 2 in F Major, EG 117, written in 1890(1)- [Fragment]
00:00 - I. Sostenuto – Allegro vivace e grazioso
09:26 - II. Allegro scherzando*
*Third and fourth movements are incomplete -only sketches left-, but there is a complete version with all movements by Julius Röntgen, Griegs friend. For Röntgens version, see below the description.
After leaving Copenhagen Grieg never again had the time or the peace necessary to finish this work, the String Quartet No 2 in F major. For the rest of his life we can see that his conscience was troubled by this unfinished music—‘that accursed string quartet which constantly lies there like an old Norwegian cheese’ (letter to Brodsky, 1895).
In 1903 Grieg wrote to the Leipzig publishers Peters: ‘You probably remember me mentioning an unfinished string quartet? I had intended to finish it, but these last years have brought so much, both physically and spiritually, that I wasn’t motivated to proceed with this cheerful work—quite the opposite of opus 27. But I hope to find the long-sought tranquility and inclination this summer.’ Then in 1906, just a year before his death, he wrote to Brodsky: ‘If only I could at least finish the string quartet for you!’ In 1907, at the time of his death, there were still only two movements and some sketches for the rest. The following year Grieg’s Dutch friend, Julius Röntgen, acquired the manuscripts from Grieg’s wife, Nina, and edited the first two movements for Peters.
Röntgen also arranged a special ‘premiere’ of the String Quartet in F major in his home. In a letter to Nina Grieg, dated November 1907, he wrote: ‘You should have been with us last evening! We played the quartet. It was strange to sit there and realize that now it was being heard for the first time, and that Edvard himself never got to hear it. But now you must hear who made up the quartet. It was unusual. Harold Bauer, the great pianist, played first violin and really did a fine job. Pablo Casals played second violin and held the violin between his legs just like a cello. I played the viola, and Mrs Casals played the cello in a remarkable way. All four of us were filled with the greatest excitement—with my wife as the only audience!’
[http://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/dw.asp?dc=W8100_67117]
Original Audio: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_VJfxec1fw")
![Edvard Grieg - Song Transcriptions (Volume I), op. 41 [With score]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/DMoRfTWmv4A/mqdefault.jpg "Edvard Grieg - Song Transcriptions (Volume I), op. 41 [With score]
-Composer: Edvard Hagerup Grieg (15 June 1843 – 4 September 1907)
-Performer: Gerhard Oppitz
Piano Transcriptions of Songs (Volume I), op. 41, written in 1884
00:00 - I. Vuggesang {Cradle Song} (From op. 9/2)
03:18 - II. Lille Haakon {Little Haakon} (From op. 15/1)
06:41 - III. Jeg elsker dig {I love thee} (From op. 5/3)
10:02 - IV. Hun er så hvid {She is so white} (From op. 18/2)
11:44 - V. Prinsessen {The Princess} (From EG 133)
16:59 - VI. Til våren {To Spring} (From op. 21/3)
Each of these six short pieces is a beautiful miniature exemplifying the composers unique late-Romantic style. The words of the original songs are written above the treble or below the bass, nearest whichever hand is currently playing the melody. The imagery of the texts is a great aid to interpretation as they reveal frequently unexpected meaning and narrative turns.
The Wiegenlied (Cradle Song) opens in the harmonically rich key of G sharp minor in an Allegretto doloroso tempo. The simple modal melody is in the left hand, while the harmonies that float above it gradually move from plaintive chords within the scale to chromatic modifications which create tensions that follow the revelations of the text: Sleep, my boy...laying so gently in your little bed; alas, she who once gave you life, lies peacefully in the cold, dark grave. She cannot now...cover you with love, sing to you in sweet calmness (translations by this writer). The repetition of the theme begins with a male chorus-like four-voice harmonization in the bass. This is followed by concerto-like declamations before diminishing to a gentle coda.
Klein Haakon (Little Haakon) is another tune about a child and his mother. Little Haakon had barely closed his eyes...then he saw...the most beautiful dream. A staircase rose to the vault of heaven on which Gods angels descended....They watch over his slumber faithful throughout the night...your mother also watches. The lovely melody, in ABA form, remains in the major with touching substitute harmonies for the lines surrounding the dream, but modulates into F minor for the sleep imagery. Grieg then lets loose with romantic pianisms: rolling basses, three-against-two and three-against-four rhythms, and a splendid coda of warm chromaticisms and a wash of sparkling harp-like arpeggios in the high register.
Ich liebe dich (I love you) is a ballad with surprisingly modern harmonies, especially the minor seconds in the introduction. A melody in the baritone range expresses the barely restrained passion of the work: ...You of my hearts first salvation! I love you like nothing else in this world, I love you in time and eternity! Similar to the other pieces, the melody is developed with fuller chords and emotional pulsations.
Wenn einst sie lag an meiner Brust (Sie ist so weiss) (When first she lay on my breast [she was so pure]) is the briefest work of this cycle. The text concerns a deceased lover, and the altered harmonies add a strange shadow to an almost waltzing melody.
Die Prinzessin (The Princess) is a small tone poem with many, moderately difficult coloristic effects about a princess who asks the boy in the valley who blows on the schawm to be quiet so that her thoughts may roam freely when the sun sinks.
Dem Lenz soll mein Lied erklingen (My song resounds to the springtime) contrasts a lyrical, pastoral melody with sprightly, dance figures (against a rhythmic drone).
[allmusic.com]")
![Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute), K. 620 {Overture, Act I} [With score]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Do-pI-7xq20/mqdefault.jpg "Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart – Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute), K. 620 {Overture, Act I} [With score]
-Composer: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791)
-Libretto: Emanuel Schikaneder
-Orchestra: Berliner Philharmoniker
-Choir: RIAS Kammerchor
-Vocal Soloists: Fritz Wunderlich (Tamino), Evelyn Lear (Pamina), Dietrich Fischer-Diskau (Papageno), Lisa Otto (Papagena), Roberta Peters (Königin der Nacht), Friedrich Lenz (Monostatos), Franz Crass (Sarastro), Hildegard Hillebrecht (1. Dame), Cvetka Ahlin (2. Dame), Sieglinde Wagner (3. Dame), Rosl Schwaiger (1. Knabe), Antonia Fahberg (2. Knabe), Raili Kostia (3. Knabe), Hubert Hilten (1. Priester), Martin Vantin (2. Priester), Manfred Röhrl (3. Priester), Hans Hotter (Sprecher)
-Conductor: Karl Böhm
Die Zauberflöte [The Magic Flute], Opera, K. 620, written in 1791
00:00 – xxx. Overture
Act I
07:19 – I. Zu Hilfe! zu Hilfe!
14:22 – II. Der Vogelfänger bin ich ja
20:10 – III. Dies Bildnis ist bezaubernd schön
25:32 – IV. O zittre nicht, mein lieber Sohn!
30:57 – V. Hm! Hm! Hm! Hm! Hm! [...]
37:24 – VI. Du feines Täubchen, nur herein!
40:34 – VII. Bei Männern, welche Liebe fühlen
43:51 – VIII. Finale : Zum Ziele führt dich diese Bahn
54:16 – Wie stark ist nicht dein Zauberton
57:35 – Schnelle Füße, rascher Mut
01:01:42 – Es lebe Sarastro, Sarastro soll leben!
Despite its whimsical libretto and obviously emblematic characters, Mozarts singspiel The Magic Flute is regarded as one of the greatest operas of the entire repertoire. In fact, as music historian Philip Downs has noted, many holds that The Magic Flute is among the greatest human documents, worthy to stand beside Bachs St. Matthews Passion. In this story about good and evil, Sarastro, the high priest of an enlightened brotherhood, abducts Pamina, whose mother is the evil Queen of the NIght. The Queen sends Prince Tamino to save Pamina. Tamino not only falls in love with Pamina, but also accepts Sarastro as the incarnation of truth and goodness. Taminos counterpart is Papageno, the Queens bird catcher, whose earthiness counterbalances Taminos idealism. Predictably, love and goodness triumph, Sarastro overcomes the Queen of the Night, Tamino and Pamina are united after many trials, and Papageno finds Papagena, a female version of himself. The possible sources of Emanuel Schikaneders libretto include Jakob August Libeskinds story Lulu or the Magic Flute, published in Wielands Dschinnistan, a collection of fairy tales.
The Magic Flute was written in 1791, the year of Mozarts death. Although overwhelmed by many adversities, Mozart found great joy in working on an opera for Schikaneders Theater auf der Wieden, in the suburbs of Vienna, which catered to unsophisticated audiences. The Magic Flute has been called a Masonic opera: both librettist and composer were Masons, and the opera abounds with Masonic symbolism, culminating in the triumph over light over darkness. Although the Masonic flavor of The Magic Flute is undeniable, what makes it a great work of art is Mozarts unique ability to translate his humanistic ideals into music of extraordinary beauty and evocativeness. The fundamental theme of this opera is love, a theme to which Mozart fully dedicates his entire genius. To the listener, Mozarts ode to love brings eighteenth century opera in its full splendor. Not only is the music, which includes sparkling arias, charming buffo scenes, and ensembles of transcendent beauty, enchanting and invigorating, but it also effectively coalesces with the story to create a powerful, convincing work of art.
[allmusic.com]")
![Hyunwoo Jung - Variational Fantasy on a Theme of Bartók (2017) [With score]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/EEXl8pu7wnM/mqdefault.jpg "Hyunwoo Jung - Variational Fantasy on a Theme of Bartók (2017) [With score]
Composer: Hyunwoo Jung (b. 2000~)
Performers: Wookyeong Lee (Clarinet), Dongsoo Kim (Piano)
Variational Fantasy on a Theme of Bartók {바르톡 주제에 의한 변주적 환상곡}, written in 2017")
![Igor Stravinsky - Symphony in 3 Movements [With score]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/FB-NzpYwC3Y/mqdefault.jpg "Igor Stravinsky - Symphony in 3 Movements [With score]
Composer: Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (17 June 1882 – 6 April 1971)
Orchestra: Berliner Philharmoniker
Conductor: Pierre Boulez
Recorded in: Berlin, 1996
Symphony in Three Movements, written between 1942 and 1945
00:00 - I. [♩=160]
09:54 - II. Andante [♪=76]
16:30 - III. Con moto [♩=108]
Igor Stravinsky completed his Symphony in Three Movements in 1945. The first movement was begun in April 1942, and the final work was completed a few months after the end of World War II. During this time the composer was engaged in contract negotiations to write film scores. Among the film moguls interested in commissioning Stravinsky was Louis B. Mayer, then president of MGM. Stravinsky had already written music before the projects were scrapped, and much of it found its way into Symphony in Three Movements. The outer movements involved wartime news footage, and the central movement was written for the appearance of the Virgin Mary in the film The Song of Bernadette, based on the Franz Werfel novel.
To integrate the different groups of material, Stravinsky chose to feature the piano and harp in separate, concertante roles in the first two movements, and then combined them in the third movement in an extended fugal arrangement. The symphony is a great balancing act, weaving together disparate musical ideas. The outer movements are explosive, indicative of the film score style common to American war footage. Ironic artifice, a signature sound in his music, is particularly understated in this symphony. Likewise, the middle movement, originally intended for the Virgin apparition, is suitably wrought with veneration, though perhaps not to the extent that would have please the films producers. Stravinsky was not the sort of composer who gushed excessively, if at all. His Symphonies of Wind Instruments was an elegy of Debussys passing, a composer and friend of enormous importance to Stravinsky, but any lamentations in the work are under total control. It was not in his character to express his feelings musically, and in fact, felt that musical was incapable of expressing anything. That being the case, for him to depict Bernadettes shock and amazement at encountering the Mother of Christ would have sounded unnatural. The central movement is not rhapsodic or indicative of a human soul overwhelmed in the presence of a divine being. It is contemplative music, subtle and understated, and free of amazement. The outer movements are somewhat more successful in capturing the intended spirit of war footage. They feature tumultuous blasts of brass and driving rhythms but again the composer seems removed from the excitement and concern the music is supposed to convey, instead sounding rather bizarre and exotic. The focused intensity of a believer in either war or religion was too singular a nuance for Stravinsky to sustain for an entire film score. Ultimately, the result of this forgivable failing was an excellent and memorable symphony.
[allmusic.com]")
![Paul Hindemith - Concerto for Woodwinds, Harp and Orchestra [With score]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/G5EoRR3-YRc/mqdefault.jpg "Paul Hindemith - Concerto for Woodwinds, Harp and Orchestra [With score]
-Composer: Paul Hindemith (16 November 1895 – 28 December 1963)
-Orchestra: Radio-Sinfonie-Orchester Frankfurt
-Conductor: Werner Andreas Albert
-Soloists: Walter Büchsel (Flute), Liviu Varcol (Oboe), Ulrich Mehlhart (Clarinet), Carsten Wilkening (Bassoon), Charlotte Cassedanne (Harp)
Concerto for flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, harp and orchestra, written in 1949
00:00 - I. Moderately fast
07:50 - II. Grazioso
10:49 - III. Rondo. Rather fast
The Concerto for Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Bassoon, Harp, and Strings is Hindemiths reflection upon the concerto grosso. As in Baroque examples, the soloists (concertino) and the accompanying body (ripieno) are generally cast as cooperative elements rather than as antagonists. The only exception in the present work appears in the first movement, where a cadenza, more characteristic of Classical and later concerti, appears: the soloists here unite as a single virtuosic body.
The now-American Hindemith was commissioned to write the Concerto for the fifth Festival of Contemporary American Music in 1949. As the festival was scheduled for May 9 - 15 of that year, Hindemith requested that his work be premiered on the 15th, the date of his silver wedding anniversary. Indeed, he surprised his wife, Gertrude, at the premiere by incorporating into the work quotations of the Wedding March from Mendelssohns music to A Midsummer Nights Dream.
[allmusic.com]")
![Olivier Messiaen - Catalogue doiseaux (Book 1) [With score]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/G6Izpdkjrhk/mqdefault.jpg "Olivier Messiaen - Catalogue doiseaux (Book 1) [With score]
Composer: Olivier Messiaen (10 December 1908 27 April 1992)
Pianist: Yvonne Loriod (Messiaens wife)
Olivier Messiaen - Catalogue doiseaux, written between 1956-1958, Book 1 (Premier livre)
00:15 - I. Le Chocard des Alpes (Alpine chough)
10:38 - II. Le Loriot (Eurasian golden oriole)
19:57 - III. Le Merle bleu (Blue rock thrush)
Catalogue doiseaux begins with Le chocard des alpes (the Alpine chough), not only depicting the bird, but also its mountainous surrounding, in several lengthy sections of colorfully dissonant chords. The call of the raven is juxtaposed with the chough, and long silences, a favorite tool of Messiaen, abound. Le loriot (the golden oriole) follows with a marked contrast to Le chocard; indeed, contrast characterizes the succession of movements throughout the work. The orioles repetitive song takes on virtuosic extremes, homage (along with the title pun) to the works premiere performer, Messiaens second wife, Yvonne Loriod. The homage is one of love as Messiaens harmonies recall harmonies from his earlier Cinq Rechants. The final piece of the book, Le merle bleu (the blue rock thrush), is a forceful and jubilant setting.
Original Audio: https://youtu.be/1qWhpSCHCxg")
