Murail: Cloches d'adieu, et un sourire...

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Cloches d'Adieu, et un sourire... ("Bells of Farewell, and a Smile...")

This unpretentious little piece was written at the request of the German Radio, Deutschlandfunk, in memory of Olivier Messiaen.

It borrows several aspects (the conducting of the discourse, and the three final notes, the adieu) of one of Olivier Messiaen's earliest works, his piano prelude Cloches d'angoisse et larmes d'adieu (1929). I tried to mix in, amongst other allusions, a few ethos of bells which are featured in many of my own works. These are answered by luminous echoes and clusters of chords in cheerful keys, as the "smile" of Messiaen's last works managed to triumph for good over the "anguishes" and "tears" of the past-for there is no final farewell.

Tristan Murail