Messiaen and lyricism

“Saint François d’Assise” should be Messiaen's only opera, one of his last compositions.

http://it.wikipedia....'Assisi_(opera)

I don't own it yet, but I know there is a good text by Silvia Corbetta on the subject

http://musicaliaorga...iaen-saint.html

it is among those that I think I will try to get shortly, also because I know little to nothing about this opera

For those interested, a nice documentary:

Messiaen's Saint François d'Assise in Salzburg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kqskIzye5w

Open content (youtube)

I listened to it once. My first impression is that it is an absolute, incredible and almost unknown masterpiece. It's a bit long, 5 acts, staging it is a considerable effort, which is also why it isn't often seen in the theater... alas I know little else about it, never truly studied

thallo wrote:

io l'ho ascoltata una volta.

How lucky

I downloaded it a while ago, and practically lost it right after....

thallo wrote:

i downloaded it a while ago, and practically lost it right after....

...and I thought live

maybe, but I am also human; 5 acts of a modern opera that I don't know could destroy me. If I go to the theater for something like that, I desperately try to prepare myself.

It's a pity that on YouTube there isn't all of it... like everything by Messiaen, anyway, it is deathly complicated, full of internal references to other works, to the catalogue of birds, to rhythmic modes, and with a vocal charm that reminds one of Fauré and Debussy

I saw the posted video; I have never seen this opera, but it seems to me of great depth. In certain aspects, much deeper than some 19th-century works (I know I'm blaspheming), but perhaps because the intentions are different. The director explains it well when he tells us that Messiaen does not want to aim for an opera for the purpose of documenting the life of Saint Francis, but rather for the Meaning of the life of Saint Francis. Descending into something ethereal and making it understood through the opera could, in some ways, even make its comprehension easier. Here, we are not talking about discussing and suggesting a man's life through text, but rather through music and body language. In this, it seems to me that Messiaen (from the clips I was able to see in this video) has succeeded perfectly. I would truly enjoy seeing the complete opera and perhaps receiving, above all, some more information about the work itself to better understand the passages, and to prepare myself before viewing so that I can enjoy all the acts. I will start searching; if anyone else finds it... Please, share.

If it's from YouTube, that's fine. However, we must respect copyright, therefore do not post links to copyrighted materials.

I realize how much I (and generally people) neglect this musician

the musical theater of the 1900s, then, is always little known. We have all listened to The Rite of Spring, but how many have listened to The Rake's Progress? Just to give an example

Nice documentary, really 90s... How hyped up is Sellars??

For those interested, I found this brief summary

http://www.operamanager.com/cgi-bin/process.cgi?azione=ricerca&tipo=OP&id=459

Only 2,000 pages of score for 120 instrumentalists… come on … a quiet thing

jack wrote:

For those interested, I found this brief summary

http://www.operamana...&tipo=OP&id=459

Music of Olivier Messiaen 1908-1996

But didn't Messiaen die in 1992?

Perhaps I am remembering incorrectly

Tenore wrote:

Music of Olivier Messiaen 1908-1996

But didn't Messiaen die in 1992?

Perhaps I am remembering incorrectly

In effect