EIF: Quartet for the End of Time at The Hub
The Hub - 17/08/23
LSO Principals - Roman Simovic, violin | David Cohen, cello | Christopher Richards, clarinet | Alexei Grynyuk, piano
As part of the London Symphony Orchestra’s residency at the Edinburgh International Festival this year, in the spirit of the secondary theme of this year’s festival, “Hope in the face of adversity”, and in advance of two events the following night exploring the genesis of, and performing, Messiaen’s Turangalila Symphony, LSO principals Roman Simovic (violin), David Cohen (cello) and Christopher Richards (clarinet) were joined by pianist Alexei Grynyuk to perform Messiaen’s wartime masterpiece, ‘Quartet for the End of Time’, at The Hub on the night of Thursday 17th August.
Not that access to the event was hassle-free. The promised shuttle minibus was parked, locked and unattended at the foot of Johnston Terrace. Arriving by Shanks’ mare near the top of the hill, the way was blocked by a throng marshalled by stewards with gilets jaunes. I ascertained at length that this was not a demo but the queue for the Tattoo. Following further lengthy negotiation with gilets, I was allowed through to The Hub. Once inside, the venue was most agreeable, with comfortable lounge seating and a relaxed attitude to bringing a drink through from the bar.
No printed programmes were available, but the programme was introduced in person by Festival Director and violinist Nicola Benedetti, who was at school with the cellist, performs regularly with the pianist and is in awe of the violinist, concert-master of the LSO, for reasons that were to become immediately apparent as, before the Messiaen, Roman performed two fiendishly difficult solo Violin Sonatas, Nos. 2 & 3, by Belgian virtuoso Eugène Ysaÿe, respectively dedicated to fellow-virtuosi Jacques Thibaud and George Enescu.
To describe Ysaÿe’s second Sonata as ‘inspired’ by Bach would be an understatement; truer to use the title of the first movement, which quotes heavily from Bach, ‘Obsession’. Mind you, that could equally apply to the Dies Irae chant, which features equally and makes one wonder whether Ysaÿe knew Rachmaninov. Roman’s playing, unfazed by the frankly ludicrous technical demands of the music, was also movingly expressive. The briefer austere Malinconia and somewhat more lyrical Sarabande benefitted from the same blend of technique and expressive insight. The finale, a set of daunting variations representing Les Furies, seemed to reach new superlatives. The Third Sonata, a single movement in two sections, though more condensed, packs as powerful a punch both technically and expressively and was no less mind-blowing.
Messiaen wrote his quartet in 1940 while a prisoner of war in Germany and it was first performed by fellow prisoners with limited instrumental resources (to say the least). Religious and mystic imagery, never far from Messiaen’s mind, combine with natural elements such as birdsong, meditation, mirth, creativity and destructiveness and even Indian melodic fragments. Musical intervals that Debussy might have used sparingly are used in abundance, part of Messiaen’s instantly recognisable vocabulary. The result is a piece that suggest the end of time itself is not to be feared, but welcomed, as what comes next is much better. Messiaen was, of course, a believer. I’m not, but the music carries a message not just of faith, but also (and more sublimely) of hope and love. It received the ultimate advocacy in the hub and was immensely moving.
In 1977, Messiaen travelled to attend the Dublin Festival of 20th Century Music with his wife and sister-in-law, who were performing in his orchestral masterpiece, the Turangalila Symphony. I met him. He was dressed smartly and casually with a spotless open-neck shirt and a permanent beatific smile, a bit like the Dalai Lama without the smugness. One of the kindest, warmest, gentlest human beings I have ever met, yet with a piercing intellect. This performance brought back happy memories.