Olivier Messiaen: Quartet for the End of Time

This all-star chamber ensemble was specifically formed to play Messiaen's masterpiece. Two decades after this recording was made, it still shows the effects of their intense identification with the music. Some listeners find Messiaen's music longwinded and difficult, and my own opinion varies depending on the work and my mood. But this piece, written in a German concentration camp during the early years of World War II, is truly one of the greatest works of music of the 20th century. Although it lasts nearly an hour, its variety of color and its powerful expressiveness will engross any responsive listener, especially in this performance. --Leslie Gerber more

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ProductReviews99/100 (16 Reviews)

Recent Reviews

5/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Sep-28-2008; Beyond Time; Not long ago, I listened to Olivier Messiaen's *Quartet for the End of Time* for the first time. I did not know what to make of it when it started, but by the time it ended it had made a deep impression. Since then I have listened to it...; read full review | report as inappropriate

5/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Jul-18-2007; Fin; I gave my copy of this (favorite) album to my favorite music professor -- now I have to replace it! Other reviewers have stressed the history behind the composition and its premiere in a Nazi POW camp, so I won't go into that,...; read full review | report as inappropriate

5/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Feb-17-2007; A great work, a Catholic work; This recording of the "Quartet for the End of Time," one of the greatest musical works of the 20th century, is precious to me. Performers Peter Serkin (piano), Ida Kavafian (violin), Fred Sherry (cello), and Richard Stoltzman (clarinet)...; read full review | report as inappropriate

5/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Feb-07-2007; Imagining the end...; I wonder how many other masterpieces were in fact lost in the concentration camps. I wonder how many other Messiaens and potential Messiaens and future Messiaens perished in the gas chambers. We shouldn't be listening to this work...; read full review | report as inappropriate

Selected Reviews

5/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Sep-28-2008; Beyond Time; Not long ago, I listened to Olivier Messiaen's *Quartet for the End of Time* for the first time. I did not know what to make of it when it started, but by the time it ended it had made a deep impression. Since then I have listened to it...; read full review | report as inappropriate

3/5: From: Amazon; Posted: Jul-08-2004; Not overly impressed; I bought this CD expecting to be transported the way I was with an old LP recording (by whom I do not remember) in student days. I wish I could name what I don't like about the current CD and performers. There's a lack of passion, but...; read full review | report as inappropriate