La BM du Seigneur The Lord's Ride (2010)

Présentation des traditions tantriques dans lesquelles l'intellect est l'instrument privilégié de la vie spirituelle, un principe unanimement adopté par les hindous et les bouddhistes. Une conception affirmant que la pensée peut mener au-delà de la pensée, et que l'on peut se libérer du mal par le mal lui-même. …

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: not only is Messiaen’s epic meditation on the birth of Christ one of his most astonishing creations, it’s also one of the greatest solo organ pieces ever written. As with so much of his oeuvre, which spans all genres, the composer’s Catholicism is an unequivocal and indivisible part of his unique, instantly recognisable aesthetic. Indeed, it would be impossible to attribute, say, the Turangalîla-Symphonie, Catalogue d'oiseaux or Des Canyons aux étoiles to anyone else. And working my way through Sylvain Cambreling’s Hänssler box of the orchestral music for a future review, I was struck anew by the sheer range and consistency of Messiaen’s craft.

Johann Sebastian Bach's profound faith led him to construct a veritable cathedral in which the listener is overwhelmed with feeling. The Saint Matthew Passion is one of the greatest monuments of polychoral composition. The two ensembles respond to and complement one another, adding further emotional weight to the work. It must not be forgotten that throughout Bach's life, while he was writing compositions that corresponded to his professional obligations and his wish to glorify musical instruments, he had been carrying this Passion within himself, thinking about it - and with all his incredible humility - as his greatest work, written at the height of his maturity. It should also be remembered that it was Mendelssohn who resurrected this monumental work almost a century after it was written. Since then it has had an enormous impact throughout the world, including in countries such as Japan, which were not in principle receptive to its strong spiritual message.