OLIVIER MESSIAEN (1908-1992): Le tombeau resplendissant, Hymne, Et exspecto resurrectionem mortuorum.

Description: This is only the second recording of the early (1931) Tombeau, an 18-minute work in fast-slow-fast-slow order which shows the young composer finding his own voice (it opens with bird calls) in what is mostly a late Romantic sound-world. Sections of taut rhythmic impetus alternate with segments of rest and meditation in a rather compelling manner. This is the only available recording on a single disc. The Hymne (1932) is usually titled Hymne au Saint-Sacrement, the latter being a lost work restored some years later by the brilliant memory of the composer, who subsequently dropped the rest of the original title. Orchestre National de Lyon; Jun Märkl.