Research on Olivier Messiaen
Vincent Pérez Benítez, PhD, DMA
Professor of Music (Theory), The Pennsylvania State University
Olivier Messiaen’s Opera, Saint François d’Assise. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 2019.
In this comprehensive study of Olivier Messiaen’s magnum opus, Saint François d’Assise, Vincent Perez Benitez examines the opera from both theological and musical-analytical perspectives to ask how Messiaen expresses his Catholic theology through his work. Benitez combines a close reading of the opera score with accounts from Messiaen’s associates, studies of Messiaen’s birdsong notebooks and other primary documents, and an examination of the religious, musical, poetic, and visual arts literature with which the composer was familiar to explore how the opera’s harmonic language and sound-color relationships motivate its musical meaning and expression. Through his analysis of these diverse sources and comparisons of Saint François d’Assise with other works such as Berg’s Wozzeck and Wagner’s Parsifal, Benitez places Messiaen’s compositional practice within larger musical perspectives and historical contexts.
“This well-researched book is wonderfully written with great clarity and organization, and provides a remarkable and original perspective on the work of the great French composer.”—Christopher E. Mehrens (2020) Olivier Messiaen’s Opera, Saint François d’Assise, Music Reference Services Quarterly.
“Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty.”—Choice Reviews Online (September 2020)
“. . . a captivating narrative that illuminates the inner workings not only of Messiaen's magnum opus but of his musical language altogether.” —Christoph Neidhöfer, Schulich School of Music, McGill University
Olivier Messiaen: A Research and Information Guide, 2nd ed. Routledge Music Bibliographies. New York and London: Routledge, 2018.
Expanded edition includes listings of numerous primary source documents with commentary (especially all of the composer’s birdsong notebooks) from the Fonds Olivier Messiaen (as of April 2017), located at the BnF, Département de la Musique, Paris
Olivier Messiaen: A Research and Information Guide. Routledge Music Bibliographies. New York and London: Routledge, 2008.
“An exhaustive guide to primary sources (including Messiaen’s articles and reviews, pedagogical writings, lectures, prefaces, interviews, and correspondence) and secondary literature (biographies, style studies, and discussions of individual works). The author provides concise and helpful summaries of some nine hundred items as pointers to further research and includes a detailed list of Messiaen’s musical works as an appendix.” —Nigel Simeone, “Messiaen,” Oxford Bibliographies, 2017, DOI: 10.1093/obo/9780199757824-0057
“Benitez displays an impressive command of the literature on Messiaen. . . . Far more than a compendium of research sources on Messiaen, this book offers an essential guide that will prove beneficial both for the specialist—who will discover a wealth of helpful new sources to examine—and for the person who is beginning to explore the fascinating and captivating music of this modern master.” —Brian Hart (2009) Olivier Messiaen: A Research and Information Guide. (Routledge Music Bibliographies), Music Reference Services Quarterly, 12:1-2, 61-63, DOI: 10.1080/10588160902963546
“. . . invaluable resource for Messiaen scholars. . . gives about as comprehensive a bibliography of the literature on Messiaen as it is possible to imagine . . . provides . . . numerous insightful comments . . . a treasure trove of information.” —Christopher Dingle (Tempo 62, no. 246 [October 2008]: 71–72):
“Reconsidering Messiaen as Serialist.” Music Analysis 28, nos. 2–3 (2009): 267–99 [First published: 21 April 2011].
The present study challenges prevailing interpretations of Messiaen’s serial practice by arguing that it not only focused on rhythm but also was ongoing, extending far beyond the years (1949–52) in which he supposedly used and then abandoned serial techniques. Messiaen’s serial practice emerged from his theological preoccupation with time and eternity and his fascination with number. His temporal ideas and efforts to express them in his music are indebted to the philosophies of Henri Bergson (1859–1941) and Gaston Bachelard (1884–1962). These precepts are examined in the context of several works dating from the 1960s to the 1990s.