If you have followed this site at all, then you know that I have not posted any comments or ratings on any new pieces in the past few weeks because I'd been on a road trip. My wife is a Board member of a local Lewis & Clark Exploratory Center, so we traveled much of the path of the Lewis and Clark expedition through the Dakotas, Montana, Idaho, Washington and Oregon. Upon reaching the Pacific coast, we returned via Yellowstone National Park and the Badlands before returning home. In tribute to our 4000-plus mile road trip, I thought I would listen to a piece of classical music about traveling, and I found “Des canyons aux étoiles...” by Olivier Messiaen, a twelve-movement orchestral work commissioned in 1971 to celebrate the bicentennial of the United States. From an article in Wikipedia (HERE): “In 1972, while preparing the work, Messiaen visited Utah, where he was inspired by the birds and the landscape, particularly at colorful Bryce Canyon (Messiaen had sound-color synaesthesia). It received its premiere in 1974.” Before I give my rating, let me say a couple of things. First, the various movements of Messiaen’s work have individual names like “The Desert,” “The Orioles,” “What is written in the stars,” and so forth. The first time I listened to “Des canyons aux étoiles…” I did so without knowing the names of each piece. In the past, I feel my opinion has been swayed by a composition’s title (for example, with Missy Mazzoli's "Sinfonia (For Orbiting Spheres)” – HERE), so I didn’t want that to happen with my initial experience with this work. Later, I listened again, and this time I did so knowing which movement was named what, and I do think that in some cases Messiaen’s melodies, harmonies, rhythms and dynamics were more effective in evoking a title’s theme than others. To be honest, the movements have such similar tones and sporadic rhythms – so that “The Orioles” sounds as cryptic as “The Wood Thrush” and the “Interstellar Call,” etc. – that one can get lost in which movement one is listening too. There’s not an extensive variety of moods in these compositions. Second, while my wife and I were on our road trip, we occasionally used classical music as a soundtrack to augment the landscapes we were viewing. For example, we played Ottorino Respighi’s majestic “Pines of Rome'' while driving through lush areas of Montana and Yellowstone National Park, and we played John Barry’s original score for the movie “Dances with Wolves'' in much of the nation’s grasslands and the Badlands National Park. Therefore, as I listened to Messiaen’s composition, I asked myself if this work would have been as effective at amplifying any of the scenic wonders we had observed (or even Bryce Canyon which I have seen before) – and the unmistakable answer is “no.” Portions of the work do come close, but overall it’s too fitful and sporadic. It’s not vast enough. It’s not grand enough. It’s not breath-taking enough. Take a listen for yourself, and if you disagree, try this experiment: Drive through a majestic national park, and play Respighi’s “Pines of Rome,” and then re-drive the same route listening to ““Des canyons aux étoiles...” – then ask yourself which piece underscored and enhanced the awe-inspiring scenery you just observed. I suspect I know the answer. Oh, there were bits of Messian’s work I enjoyed, and I did find it to be an interesting work; however, overall, it’s low on my scale. It rated Blue. Below are some pictures from my recent trip. Far left: At Trillium Lake near Mt. Hood in Oregon. Left: At the Porcelain Basin of the Norris Geyser Basin in Yellowstone National Park. Right: At the base of Devil's Tower. Far right: Climbing the ladder on the Notch Trail at the Badlands National Park.
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A New Hope:As the header above says, each week I will listen to a piece of classical music that I've never heard before, and then I will report out what I thought about it. Archives
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