Album Notes

OLIVIER MESSIAEN (December 10, 1908 - April 28, 1992) Vingt Regards sur l'Enfant-Jesus Twenty Contemplations of the Infant Jesus Contemplation of the child-God of the manger and (others) contemplating Him: from the inexpressible contemplation of God the Father to the manifold contemplations of the Church of Love, passing through the unbelievable contemplation of the Spirit of Joy, through the tender contemplation of the Virgin, then the Angels, the Wise Men, and of the incorporeal or symbolic creatures (time, heights, silence, the star, the cross). The star and the cross have the same theme because one opens Jesus' life on earth and the other closes it. The Theme of God clearly returns in the Contemplation of the Father, the Contemplation of the Son Upon the Son, and the Contemplation of the Spirit of Joy, in By Him All Has Been Made, in The Kiss of the Infant Jesus; it is present in The First Communion of the Virgin (she carried Jesus in her body), it is rendered glorious in The Contemplation of the Church of Love, which is the body of Christ. This is aside from the songs of birds, carillons, spirals, stalactites, galaxies, photons, and texts by Dom Columba Marmion, Saint Thomas, Saint John of the Cross, Saint Theresa of Lisieux, and the Gospels and Missal that influenced me. A Theme of Chords circles from one piece to another, fragmented or concentrated into a rainbow; one also sees rhythmic canons, polymodalities, non-retrogradable rhythms amplified in both senses, rhythms progressively accelerated or slowed, asymmetrical enlargements, shifts of register, etc. The writing for piano is quite eclectic: inverted arpeggios, resonances, contrasting features. Dom Columba Marmion (The Christ in His Mysteries) and, after him, Maurice Toesca (The Twelve Contemplations) spoke of the contemplation of the shepherds, the angels, the Virgin, and of the Heavenly Father; I brought back the same idea in a slightly different manner, adding sixteen new contemplations. More than in any of my previous works, I sought a language of mystical love, at once varied, powerful, and tender, sometimes brutal, in multicolored arrangements. Notes by the Composer I Regard du Père Contemplation of the Father And God said: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." II Regard de l'Étoile Contemplation of the Star Theme of the star and the cross. Impact of the grace... the star shines with naïveté, surmounted by a cross. III L'Échange The Exchange Descending shower, ascending spiral; the awesome exchange of the human and the divine; God becomes man so man can become God-like. IV Regard de la Vierge Contemplation of the Virgin Innocence and tenderness ... the woman of purity, the woman of the Magnificat, the Virgin contemplates her Child. I wanted to express purity in music; there had to be a certain energy - and especially much innocence and childlike tenderness. V Regard du Fils sur le Fils Contemplation of the Son Upon the Son Mystery, rays of light in the night - refraction of joy, the birds of silence - the person of the Word in a human nature - marriage of the human and divine natures of Jesus Christ. This is the Son-Word contemplating the Son-infant Jesus ... Joy symbolized by the songs of birds. VI Par Lui Tout a Étè Fait By Him All Has Been Made Abundance of space and time; galaxies, photons, reversed spirals, inverted thunderbolts; by "him" (the Word) all has been made ... for a moment, the creation has revealed to us the luminous shadow of his voice. VII Regard de la Croix Contemplation of the Cross Theme of the star and the cross. The Cross says to him: "You will be a priest in my embrace." V111 Regard des Hauteurs Contemplation of the Heights Glory in the heights… the heights descend to the manger like the song of a lark. Songs of birds; nightingale, blackbird. warbler, finch, goldfinch. Cetti's warbler and above all, the lark