Souvenirs d’oiseaux
English pianist Roderick Chadwick has recorded the second volume in a series which presents Books 2 through 5 of Messiaen’s “Catalogue d’oiseaux” coupled with works which are linked either in style or subject matter. This follows the well-received issue in October 2020 of the first volume, entitled ‘La Mer Bleue’ which included Book 1 of the Catalogue.
This double album is a continuation of Chadwick’s journey through Messiaen’s “Catalogue d’oiseaux”, programming it alongside an array of solo piano works that share its themes, atmospheres and inspirations. The latest issue features Books 2 through 5, including the cycle’s great centrepiece ‘La rousserolle effarvatte’ (The Reed Warbler), which evokes the sights and sounds of the Sologne region across a full day’s span.
Roderick Chadwick, as both soloist and collaborator, has performed some of the most challenging works for piano; his recent Stockhausen disc was highly praised. He is a particular expert on Messiaen and in 2018 co-authored and published a book on the Catalogue d’oiseaux. He lives in South London and is Reader in Music at the Royal Academy of Music.
Track Listing
- Catalogue d'oiseaux, Book 2: Le traquet stapazin (14:12)
- Lunae (Four Nocturnes) - I. Around and a round... (3:07)
- Lunae (Four Nocturnes) - II. Love is the silence in which I remember you and repeat you (3:20)
- Lunae (Four Nocturnes) - III. Of stars and nightingales (2:59)
- Lunae (Four Nocturnes) - IV. Sufficit Lumen in Tenebris (2:17)
- Catalogue d'oiseaux, Book 3: La Chouette Hulotte (7:33)
- Catalogue d'oiseaux, Book 3: L'Alouette Lulu (7:03)
- Sensation - I. She hears (5:03)
- Sensation - II. Toucher (3:18)
- Sensation - III. Sight Lines (1:51)
- Sensation - IV. Nuits (1:05)
- Sensation - V. Alba (9:21)
- Sensation - VI. Coda (2:23)
- Catalogue d'oiseaux, Book 4: La Rousserolle effarvatte (30:25)
- Chanson d'approche (8:37)
- Catalogue d'oiseaux, Book 5: L'Aloutte calandrelle (5:26)
- Catalogue d'oiseaux, Book 5: La Bouscarle (11:35)
- Preludes, Book 1 - No. 4 "les sons et les parfums tournent dans l'air du soir" (2:58)
- Lyric Pieces, Book V, Op. 54 - No. 4 Notturno (3:24)
Olivier Messiaen:
Sadie Harrison:
Olivier Messiaen:
Julian Anderson:
Olivier Messiaen:
Betsy Jolas:
Olivier Messiaen:
Claude Debussy:
Edvard Grieg:
Reviews
“The performances by Roderick Chadwick, a gifted pianist, are lucid, wildly colorful, and a bit understated when need be. One couldn’t ask for a more compelling, authoritative performance… the realistic recording captures every nuance.
” —Jack Sullivan
“This is a superb release, thought-provoking and utterly involving. Roderick Chadwick is a name to remember; his command and understanding of Messiaen’s use of gesture is complete. This is a commanding performance… one of the most perfectly programmed twofers I have ever heard.
” —Colin Clarke
“Highly imaginative and captivating. There are moments of extraordinary delicacy along with moments of enormous power. The qualities that make Chadwick’s performance compelling include its beauty in quiet passages, Chadwick’s accuracy and clarity in the most rapid passagework and repeated notes, and the majesty of the mystical sections. Chadwick’s performance is a model of delicacy and phrase-shaping. The recorded sound is utterly natural. This is an extremely successful recording.
” —Henry Fogel
“English pianist Roderick Chadwick loves nothing more than a musical challenge, and he has consistently found it over the years in the music of Olivier Messiaen. Catalogue d’oiseaux is not so much music for its own sake as it is the application of musical technique, in the way of harmonic progressions and Messiaen’s unique concept of musical time. It seems to embody the essence of all Messiaen was striving for.
” —Phil Muse
“Roderick Chadwick’s 2020 ‘La mer bleue’ set a notable marker for the pianist’s credentials in Messiaen. These are amply consolidated in [this] follow-up. Chadwick projects [virtuosity] with unfailing assurance. An impressive achievement such as warrants urgent investigation.
” —Richard Whitehouse
“Messiaen’s birds provide the linking thread through pieces from books 2 to 5 of Catalogue d’Oiseaux with other piano works. Chadwick’s playing is keenly focused.
” —Andrew Clements
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