Oraison, composed by Olivier Messiaen in 1937 for six Ondes Martenot, transcribed for Buchla 200e synthesizer and Haken Continuum Fingerboard controller and performed by Richard Lainhart in 2009.
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Oraison, composed by Olivier Messiaen in 1937 for six Ondes Martenot, transcribed for Buchla 200e synthesizer and Haken Continuum Fingerboard controller and performed by Richard Lainhart in 2009.
From the time I first touched the Haken Continuum, I'd wanted to use it to play a composition by Olivier Messiaen called "Oraison". I first heard "Oraison" years ago as a student of electronic music, and had fallen in love with its simple, beautiful harmonies and profound sense of mystery.
"Oraison" is not only a lovely piece of music, but has historical interest too - it may be the first piece of purely electronic music written expressly for live performance. Also of note is that Messiaen re-arranged "Oraison" for cello and piano and used it for the fifth movement of "Quartet for the End of Time", which he composed in a German prisoner-of-war camp in 1941; the "Quartet" is one of the great classics of 20th-century music.
"Oraison" ("prayer") is from a suite of pieces for six Ondes Martenot called "Fete des Belles Eaux" ("Celebration of the Beautiful Waters"), composed for the Paris International Exposition in 1937. The Ondes Martenot was among the first electronic instruments, and is still among the most expressive. The Continuum's own expressive qualities seemed at least the equal of the Ondes Martenot's, while allowing for polyphony and the possibility of performance of the work by a single player. I transcribed "Oraison" for my Buchla 200e/Continuum system, programmed the modern system in homage to the sound of the Ondes Martenot, and now offer this performance to you.
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You've reminded me how good the Haken Continuum is Richard. Of course the Buchla must be making a substantial contribution too. Very nice playing and very nice tones. Thanks for sharing. Andris
very nice! I was wondering, can the buchla maintain the 1 cent tuning accuracy of the continuum fingerboard? I interested in making some just intonation music..
Thanks! I haven't tried it myself, so I can't say, but I think it's possible the 200e would be able to maintain 1 cent accuracy. The biggest issue in tuning the oscillators to the Continuum is getting the CV In range settings correct, for which I've found the StroboSoft software tuner invaluable. If you can get the right ranges, you should be able to get the necessary tuning precision. But it would take a lot of tweaking, based on my experience.
great, my fav 20th century piece, with a new timbre, unknown for me. Extremely well played. Do you know if the score can be found for free on the interwebs?
Thank you! As for the score, there's no free version I know of, and this particular transcription is my own, from the version in the Quartet for the End of Time.
The 200e is polyphonic? That's incredible! The Continuum/200e combo is a match made in heaven, in my opinion. Maybe add a Moog Etherwave, but other than that, prefect. This is terrific!
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Andris