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Messiaen: Quartet for the End of Time

Ivan Hewett tells the extraordinary story of Olivier Messiaen's Quartet for the End of Time and unravels its mathematical mysticism with the help of musical examples from the Le Huray Ensemble.

Olivier Messiaen's Quartet for the End of Time was written and first performed in Stalag 8A, a prisoner of war camp in Silesia, in 1941. Ivan Hewett tells the extraordinary story of this staggering music and unravels its mathematical mysticism with the help of specially recorded musical examples from the Le Huray Ensemble.

45 minutes

Music Played

  • Olivier Messiaen

    Quartet for the End of Time

    Performers: Le Huray Ensemble

Broadcast

  • Sun 29 Sep 2002 17:00