The French composer-organist Olivier Messiaen (1908-1992) was fascinated by birdsong. His field collection of the songs of hundreds of bird species, meticulously transcribed into musical notation, would become a vital musical source for Messiaen. For the Birds explores two of Messiaen’s works most deeply influenced by birdsong: Quartet for the End of Time, where birds symbolize nature free and unfettered, and Selections from the Catalogue d’oiseaux, where they evoke rich non-human ecologies within their natural habitats.

The program is repeated on both evenings.