Jamie Hitel - Sounds Messianic

Friday 9th January 2004
Jamie Hitel - Sounds Messianic
Jamie Hitel - Sounds Messianic

STYLE: Classical
RATING 6 6 6 6 6 6
OUR PRODUCT CODE: 9345-
LABEL: Lammas LAMM145D
FORMAT: CD Album

Reviewed by Steven Whitehead

The title is a pun on the name of the featured composer, Olivier Messiaen, who is not usually associated with industrial Akron. The featured work is “Les Corps Glorieux”, seven brief visions of the life of the resurrected. Written in 1939 on the eve of war, this cycle paints a picture of the life of the risen body. Messiaen is giving us theology as music and moves above and beyond melody, rhythm, tonality and structure. Instead we share in his vision of the indescribable afterlife. This is not music in a recognisable sense but as an aid to contemplation you may find it helpful. Do not try to analyse it, just let it be and, as Hitel leads us through the complex stages of the sequence, we arrive ultimately at “The Mystery Of The Holy Trinity” where, of course, there are no more questions worth asking. The closing piece on this disc is Franck’s “Choral No 1 In E Major”. Franck was a musical influence on Messiaen and this mystical piece sits well with what has gone before.

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