Vingt regards sur l'enfant-Jésus
Encyclopedia
Vingt regards sur l'enfant-Jésus is a collection of pieces by the French
composer
Olivier Messiaen
for solo piano
. The French
title translates into English
roughly as "Twenty gazes/contemplations on the infant Jesus". It was composed in 1944 for Yvonne Loriod
.
s, recurring elements that represent certain ideas. They include:
The work's twenty movements last around two hours in performance. The whole piece is a meditation on the childhood of Jesus.
Movement 18, "Regard de l’onction terrible", is an example of how Messiaen used his ideas on form and symmetry in his compositions.
The piece starts with the right hand descending on a chromatic scale and in tritone chords. After the opening semi-quavers the note length starts to elongate first to quavers then to dotted quavers, quavers, crotchets, dotted crotchets, minims, dotted minims and finally a semi breve. While all this is happening in the right hand the left hand is doing the same but in reverse, starting with the semi breve and working towards the semi quavers.
As the main subject of the movement is reached a chorale is heard but in staying within Messiaen’s strict form it is only harmonised with octaves and fifths. After this chorale is repeated the movement continues onto two variations of sections from within the chorale before the chorale is heard again this time up a major 3rd.
This variation and repeat of the chorale in different keys continues until the opening theme is once again returned too, however this time the left hand is playing the slowing descending passage while the right plays the ascending, accelerating passage. The form for this movement can be classified as: X-A-A-B-A-C-A-B-A-A-C-X.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
Olivier Messiaen
Olivier Messiaen
Olivier Messiaen was a French composer, organist and ornithologist, one of the major composers of the 20th century. His music is rhythmically complex ; harmonically and melodically it is based on modes of limited transposition, which he abstracted from his early compositions and improvisations...
for solo piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
. The French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
title translates into English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
roughly as "Twenty gazes/contemplations on the infant Jesus". It was composed in 1944 for Yvonne Loriod
Yvonne Loriod
Yvonne Loriod was a French pianist, teacher, and composer, and the second wife of composer Olivier Messiaen. Her sister was the Ondes Martenot player Jeanne Loriod.-Life:...
.
Movements
It contains twenty movements:- Regard du Père ("Gaze of the Father")
- Regard de l'étoile ("Gaze of the star")
- L'échange ("The exchange")
- Regard de la Vierge ("Gaze of the Virgin")
- Regard du Fils sur le Fils ("Gaze of the Son upon the Son")
- Par Lui tout a été fait ("Through Him everything was made")
- Regard de la Croix ("Gaze of the Cross")
- Regard des hauteurs ("Gaze of the heights")
- Regard du temps ("Gaze of time")
- Regard de l'Esprit de joie ("Gaze of the joyful Spirit")
- Première communion de la Vierge ("The Virgin's first communion")
- La parole toute-puissante ("The all-powerful word")
- Noël ("Christmas")
- Regard des anges ("Gaze of the angels")
- Le baiser de l'enfant-Jésus ("The kiss of the infant Jesus")
- Regard des prophètes, des bergers et des mages ("Gaze of the prophets, the shepherds and the Magi")
- Regard du silence ("Gaze of silence")
- Regard de l'onction terrible ("Gaze of the awesome anointing")
- Je dors, mais mon cœur veille ("I sleep, but my heart keeps watch")
- Regard de l'église d'amour ("Gaze of the Church of love")
Thèmes
Messiaen uses Thèmes or leitmotifLeitmotif
A leitmotif , sometimes written leit-motif, is a musical term , referring to a recurring theme, associated with a particular person, place, or idea. It is closely related to the musical idea of idée fixe...
s, recurring elements that represent certain ideas. They include:
- Thème de Dieu ("Theme of God")
- Thème de l'étoile et de la croix ("Theme of the Star and of the Cross")
- Thème de l'amour mystique ("Theme of Mystical Love")
- Thème d'accords ("Theme of Chords")
- Thème de danse orientale et plain chantesque ("Theme of Oriental Dance and Plainsong")- Prominent in Regard de l'Esprit de joie.
- Thème de joie ("Theme of Joy")
- 1er Thème ("1st Theme", a motif in the final movementMovement (music)A movement is a self-contained part of a musical composition or musical form. While individual or selected movements from a composition are sometimes performed separately, a performance of the complete work requires all the movements to be performed in succession...
highlighted by the composer's analysis)
The work's twenty movements last around two hours in performance. The whole piece is a meditation on the childhood of Jesus.
Movement 18, "Regard de l’onction terrible", is an example of how Messiaen used his ideas on form and symmetry in his compositions.
The piece starts with the right hand descending on a chromatic scale and in tritone chords. After the opening semi-quavers the note length starts to elongate first to quavers then to dotted quavers, quavers, crotchets, dotted crotchets, minims, dotted minims and finally a semi breve. While all this is happening in the right hand the left hand is doing the same but in reverse, starting with the semi breve and working towards the semi quavers.
As the main subject of the movement is reached a chorale is heard but in staying within Messiaen’s strict form it is only harmonised with octaves and fifths. After this chorale is repeated the movement continues onto two variations of sections from within the chorale before the chorale is heard again this time up a major 3rd.
This variation and repeat of the chorale in different keys continues until the opening theme is once again returned too, however this time the left hand is playing the slowing descending passage while the right plays the ascending, accelerating passage. The form for this movement can be classified as: X-A-A-B-A-C-A-B-A-A-C-X.