Turangalîla-Symphonie: Difference between revisions

The[[Leonard premiereBernstein]] wasconducted the premiere in Boston on 2 December 1949, conductedfollowed by [[Leonardthe New York premiere on 10 December.<ref name=bso/><ref>{{cite news | newspaper = The New York Times | access-date = 12 April 2024 | date = 11 December 1949 |title=Bernstein]] Leads Messiaen's work | url = https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1949/12/11/85658829.html| first = Olin | last = Downes | author-link = Olin Downes}}</ref> The December 1949 performances included an intermission after the fifth movement; it was the only work on the program. The commission did not specify the duration, orchestral requirements or style of the piece, leaving the decisions to the composer.<ref>[https://www.naxos.com/MainSite/BlurbsReviews/?itemcode=8.554478-79&catnum=554478&filetype=AboutThisRecording&language=English Program notes] provided with the [[Naxos Records]] recording by the [[Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra]] with [[François Weigel]] (piano), [[Thomas Bloch]] ([[ondes Martenot]]) and [[Antoni Wit]] (conductor).</ref> Koussevitzky was billedscheduled to conduct the premiere, but fell ill, and the task fell to the young Bernstein.,<ref>Thomas Barker, "The Social and Aesthetic Situation of Olivier Messiaen's Religious Music: Turangalîla-Symphonie." ''International Review of the Aesthetics and Sociology of Music''. 43, no. 1 (2012): 53–70; citation on 53</ref>{{efn|Music Bernsteinjournalist has[[Andrew beenFord described(composer)|Andrew asFord]] wrote that Bernstein was "the ideal conductor for it, and it made Messiaen's name more widely known".,<ref>{{cite book|author=Andrew Ford|title=Try Whistling This: Writings about Music|year=2012|publisher=Black Inc.|location=Collingwood, Victoria.|isbn=9781863955713|page=261}}</ref>}} who never conducted the work again.<ref name=bso>{{cite web | url =https://www.bso.org/works/messiaen-turangalila-symphonie | access-date = 12 April 2024 | title = ''Turangalîla-symphonie'' | website = Boston Symphony Orchestra |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240412160001/https://www.bso.org/works/messiaen-turangalila-symphonie | archive-date= 12 April 2024 | url-status=live}}</ref> [[Yvonne Loriod]], who later became Messiaen's second wife, was the piano soloist, and [[Ginette Martenot]] played the [[ondes Martenot]] for the first and several subsequent performances.

From 1953 on, Yvonne's sister [[Jeanne Loriod]] was the ondes Martenot player in many performances and recordings.<ref name="score">Full score, pub, Durand.</ref>

While most of Messiaen's compositions are religious in inspiration, at the time of writing the symphony the composer was fascinated by the myth of [[Tristan and Iseult|Tristan and Isolde]], and the Turangalîla Symphony forms the central work in his trilogy of compositions concerned with the themes of romantic love and death; the other pieces are ''[[Harawi (Tristan Trilogy)|Harawi]]'' for piano with [[soprano]] and ''Cinq rechants'' for unaccompanied choirtrios of soprani, alti, tenors, and basses.<ref name="Hill">{{cite book|title=Messiaen|author=[[Peter Hill (pianist)|Peter Hill]] and Nigel Simeone|place=New Haven and London|publisher=Yale University Press|year=2005|isbn=0-300-10907-5 }}{{Page needed|date=March 2014}}</ref> It is considered aone 20th-centuryof masterpiecethe andgreatest amusical typicalcompositions performanceof runsthe around20th 80century; minutesbeing indescribed length.by Whenits askedcommissioner aboutas 'the meaningmost important piece of theclassical workmusic ever written since [[Igor Stravinsky]]'s duration''[[The inRite itsof tenSpring]]''<nowiki/>'. movementsA andtypical theperformance reasonruns foraround the80 useminutes ofin thelength. ondesMessiaen Martenot,famously Messiaensummarised simplythe replied,entire "It'ssymphony as being "a love song; a hymn to joy."<ref name="Chung CD notes"/>

Although the concept of a rhythmic scale corresponding to the chromatic scale of pitches occurs in Messiaen's work as early as 1944, in the ''[[Vingt regards sur l'enfant-Jésus]]'' (a work Messiaen quotes in the fourth movement), the arrangement of such durations into a fixed series occurs for the first time in the opening episode of the movement "Turangalîla 2" in this work, and is an important historical step toward the concept of [[serialism|integral serialism]].<ref>[[Robert Sherlaw Johnson]], ''Messiaen'', revised and updated edition (Berkeley: University of California Press. 1989): 94, 192.</ref>

The title of the work, and those of its movements, were a late addition to the project, chosen after Messiaen made a list of the work's movements. He described the name in his letters from 1947–19481947 to 1948.<ref>Hill 2005, 172</ref> He derived the title from two [[Sanskrit]] words, {{transl|sa|turangaturaṅga}} ({{Lang|sa|तुरङ्ग}}) and [[Lila (Hinduism)|{{transl|sa|IAST|līlā}}]] ({{Lang|sa|लीला}}), which he explained thus:<ref name="Chung CD notes">{{Cite AV media notes |title=Turangalîla-Symphonie |title-link= |others=[[Orchestre de l'Opéra Bastille]], [[Myung-whun Chung]], Yvonne Loriod, Jean Loriod |year=2004 |orig-year=1991 |first=Olivier |last=Messiaen |url=https://archive.org/details/cd_messiaen-turangalla-symphonie_olivier-messiaen-orchestre-de-lopra-bastil |page=1 |type=CD liner booklet |publisher=[[Deutsche Grammophon]] |id=DG 431 781–2 |location= }}; {{cite web |last1=Page |first1=Tim |authorlinkauthor-link=Tim Page (music critic) |title=Live Online: Classical Music Forum |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/liveonline/02/music/page022002.htm |work=The Washington Post |accessdateaccess-date=11 July 2020 |date=20 February 2002}}</ref>

:"[[Lila (Hinduism)|Lîla]]" literally means play —– but play in the sense of the divine action upon the cosmos, the play of creation, destruction, reconstruction, the play of life and death. "Lila" is also love. "Turanga": this is the time that runs, like a galloping horse; this is time that flows, like sand in an hourglass. "Turanga" is movement and rhythm. "Turangalîla" therefore means all at once love song, hymn to joy, time, movement, rhythm, life and death.

Messiaen described the joy of Turangalîla as "superhuman, overflowing, blinding, unlimited".<ref name="Chung CD notes"/> He revised the work's orchestration in 1990.<ref name="score"/>

The Turangalîla-Symphonie is scored for [[piccolo]], 2 [[flute]]s, 2 [[oboe]]s, [[cor anglais]], 2 [[clarinet]]s, [[bass clarinet]], 3 [[bassoon]]s, 4 [[French horn|horn]]s, 3 [[trumpets]], 1 [[piccolo trumpet|piccolo trumpet in D]], 1 [[cornet]], 3 [[trombone]]s, 1 [[tuba]], piano solo, [[celesta]], at least 8 and up to 11<ref name="score"/> percussionists (playing [[vibraphone]], keyed and mallet [[glockenspiel]]s, [[triangle (musical instrument)|triangle]], [[wooden fish|temple block]]s and [[Woodblock (instrument)|wood block]], [[cymbal]]s (clash and three types of suspended), [[gong|tam tam]], [[tambourine]], [[maraca]]s, [[snare drum]], [[Provençal tabor]], [[bass drum]], [[tubular bell]]s) and [[string instrument|string]]s (32 [[violin]]s, 14 [[viola]]s, 12 [[cello]]s and 10 [[double bass]]es), as well as an [[ondes Martenot]].<ref name="score" /> The demanding piano part includes several solo [[cadenza]]s.

The piece is scored for a large orchestra with a particularly large percussion section:

'''[[percussion instrument|Percussion]]''' (8 to 1112 percussionists<ref name="score"/>)

[[File:Ondes martenot.jpg|thumb|246x246px|The [[ondes Martenot]], an early electronic instrument, is used in sensuous and dramatic parts of the ''Turangalila'' such as the "love theme"]]

{{listen |image=none |help=no

|Introduction. ''Modéré, un peu vif''<br/>A "curtain raiser" introducing the "statue theme" and the "flower theme", followed by the body of the movement, which superimposes two ''ostinato'' groups with rhythmic punctuations. A reprise of the "statue" theme closes the introduction.

|Chant d’amour (Love song) 1. ''Modéré, lourd''<br/>After an atonal introduction, this movement is built on an alternation of a fast and passionate theme dominated by the trumpets, and a soft and gentle theme for the strings and ondes.

|Turangalîla 1. ''Presque lent, rêveur''<br/> Three themes are stated: one starting with a solo clarinet, the second for low brass and strings, and the third a sinuous theme on the woodwinds. The movement then develops and, later, overlaps the themes, with the addition of a new rhythm in the percussion.

|Chant d’amour 2. ''Bien modéré''<br/> Introduced by a ''scherzo'' for piccolo and bassoon, this movement is in nine sections, some of which recall and develop music heard earlier. A calm coda in A major brings it to a close.

|Joie du sang des étoiles (Joy of the Blood of the Stars). ''Vif, passionné avec joie''<br/> A frenetic dance whose main theme is a fast variant of the "statue theme". For Messiaen, it represented the union of two lovers seen as a transformation on a cosmic scale. The dance is interrupted by a shattering piano cadenza before a brief orchestral coda.

|Jardin du sommeil d’amour (Garden of Love’s Sleep). ''Très modéré, très tendre''<br/> The first full rendition of the "love" theme in the strings and ondes is accompanied by idealized birdsong played by the piano, and by other orchestral coloristic effects. According to Messiaen, "The two lovers are enclosed in love's sleep. A landscape comes out from them..."

|Turangalîla 2. ''Un peu vif, bien modéré''<br/> A completely atonal movement that is intended to invoke terror, with a predominant role for the percussion ensemble.

|Développement d’amour (Development of Love). ''Bien modéré''<br/> For Messiaen, the title can be considered in two ways. For the lovers, it is terrible: united by the love potion, they are trapped in a passion growing to the infinite. Musically, this is the work's [[musical development|development]] section.

|Turangalîla 3. ''Bien modéré''<br/> A theme is introduced by the woodwind. A five-part percussion ensemble introduces a rhythmic [[Serialism|series]] that then sustains a set of superimposed variations on the woodwind theme.

|Final. ''Modéré, presque vif, avec une grande joie''<br/> The movement is in sonata form: A brass fanfare, coupled with a fast variation of the "love theme", is developed and leads to a long coda, a final version of the "love" theme played ''fortissimo'' by the entire orchestra. The work ends on an enormous F{{Music|sharp}} major chord. In Messiaen's words, "glory and joy are without end".

|data-sort-value="Désormière"| [[Roger Désormière]] || [[Orchestre National de la RTF]] ||data-sort-value="Loriod"| [[Yvonne Loriod]] ||data-sort-value="Martenot"| [[Ginette Martenot]] || [[Institut national de l'audiovisuel|INA]] || {{Full citation needed|date=October 2012}} || 1950 || || Live recording on 25 July 1950, of the European premiere at the [[Aix-en-Provence Festival]]

|data-sort-value="Rosbaud"| [[Hans Rosbaud]] || [[SWF-Sinfonieorchester Baden-Baden]] ||data-sort-value="Loriod"| Yvonne Loriod ||data-sort-value="Martenot"| Ginette Martenot || [[Wergo]]<!--? how Wergo, which was only founded in 1962, could have released this in 1951.--> || {{Full|date=OctoberWER 2012}}6401-2 || 19511992 || || Recorded 23/24 December, 1951

|data-sort-value="Fournet"| [[Jean Fournet]] || [[Netherlands Radio Philharmonic]] ||data-sort-value="Loriod"| Yvonne Loriod ||data-sort-value="Loriod"| Jeanne Loriod || Q Disc || {{Full citation needed|date=October 2012}} || 1967 || || Live

|data-sort-value="Ozawa"| [[Seiji Ozawa]] || [[Toronto Symphony Orchestra]] ||data-sort-value="Loriod"| Yvonne Loriod ||data-sort-value="Loriod"| Jeanne Loriod || [[RCA]] || <ref>{{Fullcite web |date=October5 November 2004 |id=Messiaen Turangalila Symphony |title=Messiaen: Turangalila/Ozawa |last=Hurwitz |first=David|url=https://www.classicstoday.com/review/review-10361/ |access-date=February 14, 2024 |website=Classics Today |language=en-US 2012}}</ref> || 1967 || ||

|data-sort-value="Defroment"| [[Louis de Froment]] || Orchestre Symphonique de [[RTL Group|RTL]] ||data-sort-value="Loriod"| Yvonne Loriod ||data-sort-value="Loriod"| Jeanne Loriod || [[Forlane (record label)|Forlane]] || {{Full citation needed|date=October 2012}} || 1982 || || Live

* {{Full citation needed|date=October 2012}}

* London 436 626-2626–2

|data-sort-value="Janowski"| [[Marek Janowski]] || [[Orchestre philharmonique de Radio France]] ||data-sort-value="Muraro"| [[Roger Muraro]] ||data-sort-value="Hartmann-Claverie"| Valérie Hartmann-Claverie || RCA || {{Full|date=October09026 2012}}61520 2 || 1992 || ||

|data-sort-value="Vonk"| [[Hans Vonk (conductor)|Hans Vonk]] || Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra ||data-sort-value="Ohlsson"| [[Garrick Ohlsson]] ||data-sort-value="Laurendeau"| Jean Laurendeau || [[Pentatone (record label)|Pentatone]] || {{Full citation needed|date=October 2012}} || 1999 || || Live

|data-sort-value="Iimori"| [[Norichika Iimori]] || [[Tokyo Symphony Orchestra]] ||data-sort-value="Fujii"| Kazuoki Fujii ||data-sort-value="Harada"| Takashi Harada || [[Canyon Records (Japan)|Canyon]] || {{Full citation needed|date=October 2012}} || 2001 || ||

|data-sort-value="Numajiri"| [[Ryusuke Numajiri]] || [[Japan Philharmonic Orchestra]] ||data-sort-value="Nodaira"| Ichiro Nodaira ||data-sort-value="Harada"| Takashi Harada || Exton || {{Full citation needed|date=October 2012}} || 2002 || || Live

|data-sort-value="Fischer"| [[Thierry Fischer]] || [[BBC National Orchestra of Wales]] ||data-sort-value="Muraro"| Roger Muraro ||data-sort-value="Tchamkerten"| Jacques Tchamkerten || [[BBC Music]] || {{Full citation needed|date=October 2012}} || 2006 || || Live

*[[Leela (Futurama)]] (character named forafter the Turangalila-Symphonie)

{{notelistNotelist}}

*[httphttps://wwwarchive.lukeberryman.comorg/details/bostonsymphony990002bost/page/#n1006/messiaenmode/45673258681up?view=theater Programme notes for the Turangalîla-Symphonie] by LukeRonald BerrymanGallman

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[[Category:CompositionsOrchestral compositions by Olivier Messiaen]]