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Three generations of French composers, and a century-long revolution in the way that we hear the world. ‘The listener must be gripped and –whether or not they like it – drawn into the flight path of the sounds, without special training being necessary,’ said Iannis Xenakis. And from the exquisitely realised miniature worlds of Maurice Ravel, to the sacred ecstasies of Olivier Messiaen and the bold, sonic architecture of his pupil Iannis Xenakis (who would have been 100 this year), these are sounds to ravish the ear and set the synapses sparking. The Hebrides Ensemble is a virtuoso chamber ensemble created specially to play music like this – up close and personal in Belfast’s Waterfront Hall Studio.

Image: Hebrides Ensemble © Sussie Ahlburg