Steve's Music This Week

I like music, too. Lately I've been listening a lot to Morton Feldman, Olivier Messiaen, and Johannes Ockeghem. The first clip is the end of Feldman's "Rothko Chapel," composed in 1971 to honor the chapel decorated by the artist Mark Rothko (the video shows some of Rothko's paintings). It is beautiful and elegaic.
The second clip is from Messiaen's final work, "Illuminations of the Beyond (Eclairs sur l'au d'ela)," which he composed shortly before his death in 1992. Messiaen was obsessed with birds as spontaneous singers of God's praise, and this work contains some of his signature bird-music. This performance is conducted by the impeccably-permed Sir Simon Rattle. Messiaen is one of my very favorite musicians.
The third clip is Ockeghem's "Deo gratias," a radiant choral work from the 15th century. I love the way it builds up slowly, like a sunrise.