With his Turangalîla Symphony, Messiaen offers us a masterful work, inspired by the myth of Tristan and Isolde. The symphony consists of ten movements, all equally richly orchestrated. The key role played by the percussion, a flamboyant piano solo and the use of the ‘ondes Martenot’ - a precursor of the electronic keyboard – confer on the work a supernatural aura and intense fervour. This unusual symphony is a triumphant, dazzling and passionate work in which the composer broke free of every boundary to express his faith in the all-surpassing power of erotic love.

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The term ‘turangalîla’ is a blend of two words in Sanskrit, which express two key concepts in Messiaen’s aesthetics. ‘Turanga’ refers to time, movement and rhythm; ‘lila’ evokes games – the divine ‘game’ of life and death, of creation and destruction. This sums up the two poles of the Turangalîla Symphony: strict time structures and complex combinations of several apparently irreconcilable rhythms evolve hand in hand with an auditory delirium brought about by the scope of the orchestral apparatus, Messiaen’s simple and charming melodies and rich musical symbolism.