Catalogue d'oiseaux

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Catalogue d'oiseaux ("Catalogue of birds") is a work for piano solo by Olivier Messiaen consisting of thirteen pieces, written between October 1956 and September 1958. It is devoted to birds and dedicated to his second wife Yvonne Loriod.

Contents

Premiere

The work was premiered by Yvonne Loriod on 15 April 1959 in Paris, Salle Gaveau, for the concerts of the "Domaine musical" organized by Pierre Boulez.

Aim of the work

For these pieces, Messiaen did not want to be limited to the evocation of the bird of which each of it bears the title.

Each piece is written in honor of a French province. It bears the title of the bird-type of the chosen region. It is not alone: its habitat neighbors surround it and also sing (...) - its landscape, the hours of day and night that change this landscape, are also present, with their colors, their temperatures, the magic of their perfumes

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Title of the pieces

Pyrrhocorax-graculus-0016-a.jpg

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Oriole 2.jpg

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Monticola solitarius philippensis.JPG

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Black-eared Wheatear - Cres - Croatia 0003 (1) (18786212513).jpg

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Tawny wiki.jpg

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Lullula arborea3.jpg

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Acrocephalus scirpaceus (cropped).jpg

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Greater Short-Toed Lark (Calandrella brachydactyla) I IMG 4695.jpg

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37-090505-cettis-warbler-at-Kalloni-east-river.jpg

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Monticola saxatilis NAUMANN.jpg

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Buteo buteo 5 (Marek Szczepanek).jpg

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Black Wheatear - Merzouga Marocco 07 3429 (19400616192).jpg

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Numenius arquata.jpg

Recordings

See also

List of compositions by Olivier Messiaen

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References

  1. ↑ Booklet of the above referenced CD
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