An excerpt of the final two songs from Messiaen’s Chants de terre et de ciel.- performed in the recital “For love of earth and sky” with Ruben Piirainen on piano.  The greatest challenge of this recital program lie in Messiaen’s Chants de terre et de ciel. The quiet sustained lines, endless counting, and dissonance between voice and piano make this set one of the greatest musical challenge of my life thus far.

TEXT:

V. Midnight obverse and reverse (for death)

City, stinking eye, devious

midnights, rusty nails stuck in

the corners of oblivion.

Lamb, Lord!

They dance, my sins dance!

Deceitful carnival of the

streets of death.

Great body of the streets

rotten beneath the hard streetlamps.

Cross-road of fear!

Cloak of madness and pride!

Laughter, sharpen yourself,

laughter, swallow yourself:

these torches are mountains

of night.

Knots of anguish pulled taut.

Unknown beast that devours.

That slobbers inside my

chest.

Head, head, what sweat!

And I alone must face the

death that surrounds me?

Father of light, Christ,

Vine of love, Spirit of

compassion, Comforter of

the seven gifts!

The clock chimes, my bones

vibrate, my errors haunt as

the hand circles leftnine,

ten, eleven, twelve.

Oh, to fall asleep a little!

beneath the wide-open air,

In a little bed, my hand

under my ear, with a tiny

little nightshirt.

VI. Resurrection (for Easter day)

Alleluia, alleluia!

He is the first, the Lord

Jesus.

He is the first-born of the

dead.

Seven stars of love to the

transfigured-one, put on your

garment of love.

"I am risen, I am risen.

I sing: for you, my Father,

for you, my God, Alleluia.

I pass from death to life."

An angel. He has alighted on

the stone.

Perfume, portal, pearl,

unleavened bread of Truth.

Alleluia, alleluia.

We have touched him, we

have seen him.

We touched him with our

hands.

A single river of life in his

side, put on your. garment of

light.

"I am risen, I am risen. I rise:

towards you, my Father,

towards you, my God,

alleluia. I pass from earth to

heaven."

Bread. He breaks it and their

eyes are opened.

Perfume, portal, pearl, wash

yourselves in Truth.

Translation by Deborah Jean

Donkin, 1995