The Birdie Song Again

It's interesting how this "next one off the shelf" approach is distorting things slightly. By using it, I have another Messiaen disk already whereas there's a whole host of composers and artists still to feature. This one is Des Canyons Aux Etoiles by the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France conducted by Myung - Whun Chung and featuring Roger Muraro on piano. This piece lasts just over ninety minutes and so has slipped over onto a second disk. It was a commission written to celebrate the bicentennial of the USA and was inspired by the landscape of the Utah desert and, not unexpectedly for Messiaen, bird song. It is sparsely scored with much solo piano and xylophone / glockenspiel touches. The orchestra adds colour only infrequently. The bird song influence is recognisable but it is mysterious how the western desert landscape inspired the sounds produced. I don't suppose those who commissioned it expected a spaghetti western score though.