
The synaesthesia experienced and described by Messiaen was intensely personal, yet the colour-chords he devised embrace works from the 1930s until his final masterpieces: works which are often prefaced with biblical quotations. Does this harmonic language intersect with the theological message of his music, and when identical colour-chords are heard in different pieces, does this intertextuality create new theological insights?
The complete performance of Messiaen's cycles can be immensely satisfying and rewarding, but what new perspectives may be gained from this spiritual music by devising a sequence of linked pieces which surveys not just his entire creative output, but develops a means of communicating fresh ideas about divine truths?
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