Opening concert

Esa-Pekka Salonen

& Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra

with Bertrand Chamayou

The New York Times describes Esa-Pekka Salonen as a conductor at the pinnacle of his career, capable of doing anything, anywhere. Now, he comes to Bergen to conduct the Festival’s opening concert, featuring Olivier Messiaen’s Turangalîla-Symphonie and Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra. 

‘Esa-Pekka Salonen has been a superstar on the classical music scene for decades, with a deep and lasting influence as both composer and conductor,’ says Festival Director Lars Petter Hagen. 

Salonen is celebrated for his profound musical insight and for bringing out the very best in the orchestras he collaborates with, including the Philharmonia Orchestra in London, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and the San Francisco Symphony. 

‘He is passionately committed to classical music’s role in society - how it can evolve, be renewed, and reach new audiences. A thinker, a visionary and a musical powerhouse of our time,’ Hagen adds. 

Salonen has lived with Turangalîla since he first encountered it as a child in Finland. The French composer Olivier Messiaen composed the work in 1948 as a tribute to life, joy, and love, drawing inspiration from the medieval tale of Tristan and Isolde. 

The title Turangalîla is a blend of Sanskrit words: Lîla means both play and love, but also suggests a sense of divine intervention in the universe. Turanga stands for movement and rhythm, but also the passage of time. Messiaen wrote that Turangalîla means everything at once: a love song, a hymn to joy, time, movement, rhythm, life and death. 

The colours, textures, rhythms, melodies and surprises of Turangalîla unfold with every phrase. Across ten movements, the piece breaks many of the conventions typically associated with the symphonic form.

The concert features two solo instruments: the piano, and the distinctive ondes Martenot, an early electronic keyboard instrument invented in 1928. More than 100 musicians will take to the stage for this spectacular musical experience. 

Image on top: Esa-Pekka Salonen. Photo: Mika Ranta

Supported by

Contributors

• Esa-Pekka Salonen conductor

• Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra

• Musicians from Bergen Philharmonic Youth Orchestra

• Bertrand Chamayou piano

• Cécile Lartigau martenot

• More contributors to be announced

Works

• Olivier Messiaen (1908-1992)
  Turangalîla-Symphonie

• More works to be announced