Messiaen’s Quartet for the End of Time Premieres
At a glance:
- Series: Great Events from History II: Arts and Culture Series
- Categories: Arts, Music
- Subcategories: Entertainment, Entertainers, Composers, Songwriters
- Curriculum: 20th & 21st Century European History, French History
- Geographical Location: Poland, Silesia
- Date: January 15, 1941
Article abstract: Olivier Messiaen’s Quartet for the End of Time was written in a prisoner-of-war camp for the instruments at hand yet serves as an affirmation of the human spirit.
Summary of Event
The circumstances of the composition of Quatuor pour la fin du temps (1941; Quartet for the End of Time) are remarkable; that the work is one of the key musical masterpieces of the twentieth century makes the story even more amazing. Born in Avignon, France, in 1908, Messiaen joined the French army at the outbreak of World War II and served as...
[The entire page is 2245 words long]
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