I’ve recently been enjoying the sheer widescreen barminess of Tippett’s The Mask of Time (is Tippett the closest thing the British have to Messiaen, despite his never adhered to any particular faith? Discuss.), so it sounds like I need track down a recording of this, which has so far escaped previous bouts of Messiaen-listening…
Ahh, The Mask of Time, wonderful stuff! I really need to spend more time with it, thanks for the reminder…
In some ways I would say that Birtwistle is the nearest thing the British have had to Messiaen. I’ve been spending a lot of time with Birtwistle’s music in recent years – it’s obviously deeply ritualistic and ceremonial music, but (dare I say?) it has a profound spirituality beneath the abrasive exterior.
There’s an interview on YouTube somewhere where Martyn Brabbins asks him about religion, it goes something like this:
MB: How does religion relate to your life and work, or is that too much to ask?
HB: No… it’s not too much to ask… but it’s too much to answer!
In any case, I still think that The Mask of Orpheus (a deeply religious work imo) is the greatest thing any British composer has ever created, and probably one of the greatest operas ever written. Now, if only Birtwistle had written some organ music too, that really would be something!
Did you just slip sideways from The Mask of Time to The Mask of Orpheus, Dan? In any case, i’m going to ‘fess up and admit that (unless i’ve forgotten) i’ve never spent meaningful time with either of those pieces, though i’m on a bit of a Tippett journey at the moment (in conjunction with reading Oliver Soden’s biography) so it’ll likely come along soon.
In other news, Dan, on my recent trip to Austria i was inadvertently (long story) taken via Paris, where i had time to go and visit St-Sulpice, just as mass was finishing, and the organ sounded truly amazing!
Apologies for the confusion! I love both pieces but definitely meant Orpheus – it’s in a different league entirely. It really is HB’s masterpiece if you haven’t heard it before.
I also read the Soden book and really enjoyed it! I wish someone would record his final opera at some point – it sounds absolutely bonkers but I’d still love to experience it.
Glad you made it to St-Sulpice, I was there myself a few years ago – it really is a stunning place! Is Daniel Roth still playing there? Another one of my organist heroes…
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I’ve recently been enjoying the sheer widescreen barminess of Tippett’s The Mask of Time (is Tippett the closest thing the British have to Messiaen, despite his never adhered to any particular faith? Discuss.), so it sounds like I need track down a recording of this, which has so far escaped previous bouts of Messiaen-listening…
Ahh, The Mask of Time, wonderful stuff! I really need to spend more time with it, thanks for the reminder…
In some ways I would say that Birtwistle is the nearest thing the British have had to Messiaen. I’ve been spending a lot of time with Birtwistle’s music in recent years – it’s obviously deeply ritualistic and ceremonial music, but (dare I say?) it has a profound spirituality beneath the abrasive exterior.
There’s an interview on YouTube somewhere where Martyn Brabbins asks him about religion, it goes something like this:
MB: How does religion relate to your life and work, or is that too much to ask?
HB: No… it’s not too much to ask… but it’s too much to answer!
In any case, I still think that The Mask of Orpheus (a deeply religious work imo) is the greatest thing any British composer has ever created, and probably one of the greatest operas ever written. Now, if only Birtwistle had written some organ music too, that really would be something!
Did you just slip sideways from The Mask of Time to The Mask of Orpheus, Dan? In any case, i’m going to ‘fess up and admit that (unless i’ve forgotten) i’ve never spent meaningful time with either of those pieces, though i’m on a bit of a Tippett journey at the moment (in conjunction with reading Oliver Soden’s biography) so it’ll likely come along soon.
In other news, Dan, on my recent trip to Austria i was inadvertently (long story) taken via Paris, where i had time to go and visit St-Sulpice, just as mass was finishing, and the organ sounded truly amazing!
Apologies for the confusion! I love both pieces but definitely meant Orpheus – it’s in a different league entirely. It really is HB’s masterpiece if you haven’t heard it before.
I also read the Soden book and really enjoyed it! I wish someone would record his final opera at some point – it sounds absolutely bonkers but I’d still love to experience it.
Glad you made it to St-Sulpice, I was there myself a few years ago – it really is a stunning place! Is Daniel Roth still playing there? Another one of my organist heroes…