The more Messiaen, the better.

Alex Ross has a great summary of Messiaen centenary events around the country.

I'd like to add the six concerts in Houston that Rice University's Shepherd School of Music is presenting under the title "Music of Heaven and Earth".  All concerts are free.

• October 15 - pianist Brian Connelly performs Vingt Regards sur l'Enfant-Jésus
• October 20 - soprano Carmen Pelton joins Connelly in a concert featuring Poèmes pour Mi, Trois mélodies, and Chants de terre et de ciel
• October 25 - students of the Shepherd School are led by Larry Rachleff in Et exspecto resurrectionem mortuorum; Connelly and Jason Hardink in Visions de l'Amen
• October 29 - John Meier plays Les corps glorieux
• November 16 - mezzo-soprano Susanne Mentzer and Connelly perform Harawi: Chants d'amour et de mort
• November 23 - Connelly performs selections from Catalogue d'oiseaux

Not officially part of the festival is organist Naji Hakim's two-day visit (October 7-8), with two recitals that will include Messiaen's works alongside Bach, Franck and the performer himself.

UPDATE: Steve Smith found the page at the Shepherd website detailing the events, which even I couldn't - thanks Steve!

Comments

[Steve Smith]

My pleasure, Marcus. It was a complete "Hail Mary" find -- after exhausting every logical approach (the site's calendar and news page, mainly), I ran a search for "Messiaen" on the site and it was the top result. Not the best way to draw traffic to a special event... but at least it's there.

[Leo Boucher]

Hello from Da Camera of Houston. I'd like to add our Messiaen event. Da Camera joins the celebration with a performance of the great religious piano cycle Visions de l’Amen. The work was first performed by the composer and his student and future wife Yvonne Loriod in a semi-secret art gallery concert in Nazi-occupied Paris. Artistic Director Sarah Rothenberg, who studied the music of Messiaen with Loriod in Paris, is joined by Marilyn Nonken, the contemporary music virtuoso who made an outstanding Da Camera debut in 2007. Messiaen Centennial Concert: Visions de l’Amen is presented at The Rothko Chapel on Tuesday, December 9, 2008 at 7:30 PM.