Quartet for the End of Time - Carousel Chamber Music Ensemble
Wednesday 23 September 2026, 19:30
Concert
Messiaen's vision of the passing of time.
Olivier Messiaen wrote his Quatuor pour la fin du temps when, shortly after the beginning of World War II, he was a French prisoner of war in a German camp. In that camp, Stalag VIII A in Görlitz, the first performance also took place. For this poignant work, laden by its special history of creation, the composer found inspiration in the small pocket Bible that the Germans allowed him to keep. Messiaen read in particular the Book of Revelation. The 'end of time' does not refer to the end of the world, but to the disappearance of the dimension of time, as announced in the text of John by an angel: "There will be no more time". There was perhaps no composer who could translate 'timelessness' into sound better than Olivier Messiaen. The Quatuor grew into one of the most iconic compositions of the turbulent 20th century. For Annelien Van Wauwe, it is a deeply impressive work that never leaves either the performers or the audience unmoved. - Jan Van den Bossche, Gent Festival van Vlaanderen
Programme
19:00 DEUREN 19:30 LEZING Voorafgaand aan het concert geeft Tomas Baum, directeur van Kazerne Dossin, een inleiding over Messiaen en de filosoof Emmanuel, beiden gevormd door WOII - gevangenschap. Levinas’ denken over verantwoordelijkheid voor de Ander verbindt muziek met ethiek en opent nieuwe manieren van luisteren en reflectie. 20:15 CONCERT Programma Vsevolod Zaderatsky – Selectie uit 24 Preludes en fuga's Lori Laitman – Uit I Never Saw Another Butterfly: I. The Butterfly II. Birdsong Olivier Messiaen – Quatuor pour la fin du temps Uitvoerders Carousel Chamber Music Ensemble Annelien Van Wauwe, klarinet Alexandra Soumm, viool Louis Rodde, cello Paloma Kouider, piano Ook te horen: 24.09 20:00 Festival van Vlaanderen Gent - Miry Zaal CAROUSEL - Erkende Cultuurvereniging Mechelen
