Messiaen Turangalîla

Imagine an explosion of love on a cosmic scale. Mix in 1940s film score, a pounding rhythmic workout and the sounds of a Javanese gamelan, all washed in blissful impressionist colours. Now add a huge orchestra, a world-class pianist and a vintage electronic instrument straight out of science fiction and you’re still not even halfway to imagining Messiaen’s mind-boggling Turangalîla-Symphonie. 77 years after its premiere, it still sounds like nothing on earth.

‘A love song, a hymn to joy, time, movement, rhythm, life and death’ was how Messiaen himself described this vast, vibrant psychedelic masterpiece, and Vasily Petrenko and a super-sized Royal Philharmonic Orchestra turn the volume up to 11. This is music that contains multitudes: every performance is a special occasion. Don’t miss this one.

This performance is part of the Southbank Centre’s Multitudes festival

On sale autumn 2025