Concert Caroline Melzer & Cédric Pescia

In his early years, in addition to his great mystic works for orchestra and organ, Olivier Messiaen also wrote Lieder as a lyrical expression of his emotional life. His 1945 song cycle ‘Harawi’ is a masterpiece of the genre. ‘Harawi’ is an ancient song from the Andes about an irresistible love that leads to death; ‘Tristan und Isolde’ avant la lettre. In his own surrealistic lyrics, Messiaen describes the lovers’ journey to the other side of the world, which is sometimes ecstatic, sometimes cruel. The intimate and the grand scale, the idyllic and the tragic, the earthly and the heavenly stand side by side. The expressive soprano Caroline Melzer is the ideal performer for these songs with their long, spun-out melodies, recitatives and dramatic outbursts. Cédric Pescia makes the piano glow and simmer, while Clara Pons provides a beautiful visual counterpoint to the texts and the music.

AT 6 PM THE PIANIST CÉDRIC PESCIA WILL DELIVER A LECTURE on Messiaen’s ‘Harawi’ (lasts about an hour, in English). This lecture is INCLUDED in your concert ticket.