This is a list of compositions by Olivier Messiaen. Works are listed initially by genre and can be sorted chronologically by clicking on the "Date" header.
Messiaen's compositions include works for chamber ensemble, orchestra, vocal music, music for piano and organ, as well as some of the earliest electronic music, with his use of the ondes Martenot in several of his compositions. Messiaen's work is characterised by rhythmic complexity, his interest in ornithology and birdcalls, and his system of modes of limited transposition.
| Title | Scoring | Date | Notes[1] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Stage | ||||
| Saint François d'Assise (Saint Francis of Assisi) opera in 3 acts | soprano, 3 tenors, 4 baritones, and bass soloists, chorus, and orchestra | data-sort-value="1983" | 1975–83 | libretto by Messiaen |
Orchestral | ||||
| Fugue en ré mineur (Fugue in D minor) | orchestra | 1928 | lost | |
| Le Banquet eucharistique (The Eucharistic Banquet) | orchestra | 1928 | premiere Jan. 1930; unpublished; portions recomposed for organ as Le banquet céleste in 1928 and Offrande au Saint-Sacrement in 1929 | |
| Jésus – Poème symphonique (Jesus – symphonic poem) | orchestra | 1928 | lost | |
| Simple chant d'une âme (Simple Song of a Soul) | orchestra | 1930 | lost | |
| – Méditation symphonique (The Forgotten Offerings – Symphonic Meditation) | orchestra | 1930 | premiere 1931; arr. for piano solo in 1931 | |
| Le Tombeau resplendissant (The Resplendent Tomb) | orchestra | 1931 | published 1997 | |
(Hymn to the Holy Sacrament) | orchestra | 1932 | lost in 1942, Messiaen reconstructed it from memory in 1946, published as Hymn | |
| L'Ascension – quatre méditations symphoniques pour orchestre (The Ascension – four symphonic meditations for orchestra) | orchestra | data-sort-value="1933b" | 1932–33 | mvts 1, 2, and 4 arr. for organ with a new 3rd mvt in 1933–34 |
| Chronochromie (Time-Color) | orchestra | data-sort-value="1960a" | 1959–60 | premiere 1960 |
| Et exspecto resurrectionem mortuorum (And I Await the Resurrection of the Dead) | 34 winds & brass, 3 percussion | 1964 | premiere 1965 | |
| Un sourire (A Smile) | orchestra | 1989 | commissioned for the bicentenary of the death of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart; premiere 1990 | |
| Éclairs sur l'Au-Delà... (Lightning over the Beyond...) | orchestra | data-sort-value="1991a" | 1987–91 | flute solo in 7th mvt from Sigle; premiered by the New York Philharmonic, Zubin Mehta conducting, in November 1992 |
| Un oiseau des arbres de vie (Oiseau tui) (A Bird of the Trees of Life (Tūī Bird)) | orchestra | data-sort-value="1991b" | 1987–91 | discarded 3rd mvt from Éclairs sur l'au-delà (in between the existing 2nd & 3rd mvts); manuscript in piano sketch with orchestration annotations discovered among Messiaen's papers; orchestrated by Christopher Dingle and first performed at the BBC Proms in August 2015[2] |
Concertante | ||||
| Trois Tâla ("Three Tâla") | piano and orchestra | data-sort-value="1948a" | 1946–48 | used in Turangalîla-Symphonie (movements 3-5) |
| Turangalîla-Symphonie("Turangalîla Symphony") | piano and ondes Martenot soloists, and orchestra | data-sort-value="1948b" | 1946–48 | revised 1990 (published 1994);premiere 1949 |
| Réveil des oiseaux (Awakening of the Birds) | solo piano and orchestra | 1953 | revised 1988 (published 1999); premiere 1953 | |
| Oiseaux exotiques ("Exotic Birds") | solo piano, and 11 winds, 7 percussion | data-sort-value="1956" | 1955–56 | revised 1985 (published 1995);premiere 1956 |
| Concert des garrigues – sur les oiseaux de l'Hérault ("Garrigues Concerto – on the birds of Hérault") | piano and orchestra | data-sort-value="1962a" | 1958–62 | written as an homage to Debussy;ms in piano score, complete but without orchestration, ms discarded and music rewritten as Sept haïkaï after the composer's visit to Japan; ms reconstructed and edited as a solo piano piece as Fauvettes de l'Hérault – Concert des garrigues ("Warblers of Herault – Garrigues Concerto") by Roger Muraro, and first performed by him in Tokyo June 2017[3] |
| Sept haïkaï – Esquisses japonaisses ("Seven Haikus – Japanese Sketches") | solo piano, and 8 violins, 13 winds, 6 percussion | 1962 | ||
("Colours of the Celestial City") | solo piano, and 3 clarinets, 10 brass, 6 percussion | 1963 | ||
| Des Canyons aux étoiles... (From the Canyons to the Stars...) | piano, horn, glockenspiel, and xylorimba soloists, and small orchestra with 13 string players | data-sort-value="1974" | 1971–74 | 6th mvt is horn piece Le tombeau de Jean-Pierre Guezec |
("A Stained-Glass Window and Birds") | piano solo, and 17 winds & brass, 8 percussion | 1987 | ||
| La Ville d'En-Haut ("The City on High") | piano solo, and 31 winds & brass, 8 percussion | 1987 | ||
| Concert à quatre ("Quadruple Concerto") | piano, cello, flute, and oboe soloists, and orchestra | data-sort-value="1992" | 1991–92 | 2nd mvt is arr. of soprano & piano piece Vocalise-Étude;5th mvt (a five-voice fugue) never written and portions of orchestration not completed due to the composer's declining health; 2nd half of 1st mvt and all of 4th mvt orchestrated by Yvonne Loriod, George Benjamin, and Heinz Holliger, premiered in 1994, published in 2003 |
Choral | ||||
| La Sainte-Bohème (The Holy Bohemian) Text: Théodore de Banville from Odes funambulesques | mixed chorus and orchestra | 1930 | composed for the Prix de Rome; unpublished | |
| L'Ensorceleuse (The Sorceress) cantata | soprano, tenor, bass, and piano or orchestra | 1931 | premiere 1931; unpublished | |
| La Jeunesse des vieux (The Youth of the Old) Poem: Catulle Mendés | chorus and orchestra | 1931 | composed for the Prix de Rome; unpublished | |
| Messe(Mass) | 8 sopranos, and 4 violins | data-sort-value="1934a" | 1933–34 | unpublished; copyrighted in 1953 |
| Poèmes pour Mi (Poems for Mi) song cycle | soprano and orchestra | 1937 | arr. of soprano and piano work | |
| O sacrum convivium! ("Oh Sacred Banquet!") motet | SATB chorus and organ | 1937 | organ accomp. optional | |
| Choeurs pour une Jeanne d'Arc ("Chorales for Joan of Arc")
| chorus | 1941 | premiere 1941;unpublished, | |
| Trois petites liturgies de la présence divine (Three Small Liturgies of the Divine Presence) | 36 women's voices, piano solo, ondes Martenot solo, and strings, percussion | data-sort-value="1944a" | 1943–44 | revised 1952, 1990 |
| Chant des déportés (Song of the Deportees) | large ST chorus and orchestra | 1945 | believed lost until discovered in 1991 | |
(Five Re-chants) | 3 sopranos, 3 altos, 3 tenors, 3 basses | 1948 | ||
| La Transfiguration de Notre Seigneur Jésus-Christ ("The Transfiguration of Our Lord Jesus Christ") | large 100-voice 10-part chorus, piano, cello, flute, clarinet, xylophone, vibraphone, and marimba soloists, and large orchestra | data-sort-value="1969a" | 1965–69 | premiere 1969 |
Songs | ||||
| Deux ballades de Villon (Two Ballads of Villon) | voice and piano | 1921 | unpublished | |
| Trois mélodies (Three Melodies) song cycle | soprano and piano | 1930 | ||
| La Mort du nombre (Death of the Number) | soprano, tenor, violin, and piano | 1930 | ||
| Leçons de solfège à chanter (Solfege Singing Lessons) 5 wordless pieces | high voice and piano | 1934 | published 2001; originally part of an anthology series | |
| Vocalise-Étude ("Vocalisation Study") | soprano and piano | 1935 | orchestrated as 2nd mvt of Concert à quatre in 1991 | |
| Poèmes pour Mi (Poems for Mi) song cycle | soprano and piano | 1936 | orchestrated in 1937 | |
| Chants de Terre et de Ciel (Songs of Earth and Heaven) song cycle | soprano and piano | 1938 | ||
| Harawi : Chants d'amour et de mort (Harawi: Songs of Love and Death) song cycle | soprano and piano | 1945 | 5th mvt is arr. of oboe and piano Pièce | |
Chamber | ||||
| Adagio | organ, violin, cello | 1927 | lost | |
| Andantino | string quartet | data-sort-value="1927d" | 1926–27 | lost |
| Thème et variations (Theme and Variations) | violin and piano | 1932 | ||
| Fantaisie("Fantasia") | violin and piano | 1933 | premiere 1935; discovered and published 2007[4] | |
| Quatuor pour la fin du Temps ("Quartet for the End of Time") | violin, cello, clarinet, and piano | 1940-41 | 5th mvt is arr. of 4th mvt of Fête des belles eaux, 8th mvt is arr. of 2nd mvt of Diptyque | |
| Pièce("Piece") | oboe and piano | 1945 | written as a test piece for the oboe concours at the Paris Conservatoire, premiere 1945?;unpublished; arr. for soprano and piano as 5th mvt of Harawi | |
| Le Merle noir (The Blackbird) | flute and piano | 1952[5] | ||
| Le Tombeau de Jean-Pierre Guézec ("The Tomb of Jean-Pierre Guézec") | horn solo | 1971 | premiere 1971;unpublished; revised and expanded as 6th mvt of Des canyons aux étoiles... | |
| Sigle ("Acronym") | flute solo | 1982 | premiere 1982;unpublished; later used in the 7th mvt of Éclairs sur l'au-delà | |
| Chant dans le style Mozart ("Song in the Style of Mozart") | clarinet and piano | 1986 | written for Conservatoire de Paris harmony examinations, premiere 1986;unpublished, but recorded by Yvonne Loriod and Guy Deplus in 1999 | |
| Pièce pour piano et quatuor à cordes ("Piece for Piano and String Quartet") | piano quintet | 1991 | last work published during his lifetime | |
| Feuillets inédits ("Unpublished Leaves") 4 pieces | piano and ondes Martenot | c. 1934-7 | originally pedagogical works for voice and piano, 2 unfinished, compiled and arranged by Yvonne Loriod, published in 2001[6] | |
Organ | ||||
| Esquisse modale ("Modal Sketch") | organ | 1927 | unpublished | |
| Pièce pour orgue sur un thème de Laparra ("Piece for Organ on a Theme of Laparra") | organ | 1927 | lost | |
| Prélude("Prelude") | organ | unknown, probably around 1928 | discovered 1997, published 2002 | |
| Variations écossaises ("Scottish Variations") | organ | 1928 | unpublished | |
| Le Banquet Céleste (The Heavenly Banquet) | organ | 1928 | a recomposition of a section from the unpublished orchestra work Le banquet eucharistique; revised 1960 | |
| L'Hôte aimable des âmes ("The Kind Host of Souls") | organ | 1928 | unpublished | |
| Offrande au Saint Sacrement (Offering to the Holy Sacrament) | organ | 1929[7] | a recomposition of a section from the unpublished orchestral piece Le banquet eucharistique;published 2001 | |
| Prélude en trio sur un thème de Haydn ("Prelude and Trio on a Theme of Haydn") | organ | 1929 | lost | |
| Diptyque: Essai sur la vie terrestre et l'éternité bienheureuse ("Diptych: Essay on earthly life and blessed eternity") | organ | data-sort-value="1930a" | 1929–30 | 2nd section arr. as 8th mvt of Quatuor pour la fin du temps in 1940 |
| Apparition de l'église éternelle ("Apparition of the Eternal Church") | organ | 1932 | revised 1985 (registrations added) | |
| L'Ascension ("The Ascension")
| organ | data-sort-value="1934b" | 1933–34 | mvts 1, 2, and 4 arr. from the orchestra work, 3rd mvt is new |
| La Nativité du Seigneur ("The Lord's Nativity")
| organ | 1935 | ||
| Les Corps glorieux ("The Glorious Bodies")
| organ | 1939 | ||
| Tristan et Yseult – Théme d'Amour ("Tristan and Isolde – Love Theme") | organ | 1945 | written for a play, premiere 1945;used as the thème d'amour in Harawi and Turangalîla (transposed) | |
Messe de la Pentecôte (Pentecost Mass)
| organ | 1951 | ||
| Livre d'orgue (Organ Book) | organ | data-sort-value="1952a" | 1951–52 | |
| Verset pour la fête de la Dédicace ("Verse for the Dedication Ceremony") | organ | 1960 | ||
| Monodie (Monody) | organ | 1963 | premiere 1998 | |
| Méditations sur le Mystère de la Sainte Trinité ("Meditations on the Mystery of the Holy Trinity") | organ | data-sort-value="1969b" | 1967–69 | |
| Livre du Saint-Sacrement (Book of the Holy Sacrament) | organ | 1984 | ||
Piano | ||||
| La Dame de Shalott (based on "The Lady of Shalott") | piano | 1917 | unpublished, but recorded by Yvonne Loriodtranscribed in 2022 | |
| La Tristesse d'un grand ciel blanc ("The Sadness of a Great White Sky") | piano | 1925 | unpublished | |
| Huit Préludes ("Eight Preludes") | piano | data-sort-value="1929c" | 1928–29 | revised 1945 |
("The Forgotten Offerings") | piano | 1931 | arr. of orchestra work | |
| Fantaisie burlesque("Burlesque Fantasia") | piano | 1932 | ||
| Morceau (au première piste) de lecture à vue ("Piece (on the First Course) for Sight-Reading") | piano | 1934 | exercise written for piano examinations at the École Normale de Musique | |
| Pièce pour le tombeau de Paul Dukas ("Piece for the Tomb of Paul Dukas") | piano | 1935 | published in 1936 as a musical supplement to La Revue musicale, republished 1996 | |
| Visions de l'Amen ("Visions of the Amen") | 2 pianos | 1943 | ||
| Rondeau | piano | 1943 | ||
| Vingt Regards sur l'enfant-Jésus ("Twenty Contemplations of the Christ-Child") | piano | 1944 | ||
| Cantéyodjayâ | piano | 1948 | ||
| Quatre Études de rythme ("Four Rhythmic Etudes") | piano | data-sort-value="1950" | 1949–50 | intended as a set but each piece initially published separately, published as a set in 2008 |
| Catalogue d'oiseaux ("Catalogue of the Birds") Book 1:Book 2:Book 3:Book 4:Book 5:Book 6:Book 7: | piano | data-sort-value="1958" | 1956–58 | 2. loriot and Loriod are homophones |
| La Fauvette passerinette ("Subalpine Warbler") | piano | 1961 | a birdsong piece possibly intended for Book 8 (perhaps for a larger sequel) of Catalogue d'oiseaux;discovered in 2012 by Peter Hill, edited for performance by Hill, and premiered by him in November 2013[8] | |
| Prélude("Prelude") | piano | 1964 | published 2002 | |
| La Fauvette des jardins ("Garden Warbler") | piano | data-sort-value="1972" | 1970–72 | |
| Petites esquisses d'oiseaux ("Little Sketches of Birds") | piano | 1985 | ||
Electronic | ||||
| Fête des belles eaux ("Festival of the Beautiful Waters") | 6 ondes Martenots | 1937 | 4th mvt arr. as 5th mvt of Quatuor pour la fin du temps;published 2003 | |
| Deux monodies en quarts de ton ("Two Monodies in Quarter-Tones") | ondes Martenot | 1938 | believed lost until discovered recently | |
| Musique de scène pour un Œdipe ("Stage Music for Oedipus") | ondes Martenot | 1942 | premiere 1942;unpublished | |
| Timbres-durées(Timestamps) musique concrète | tape | 1952 | realised by Pierre Henry in the radiophonic workshop of French radio, an experiment which Messiaen later deemed a failure; premiere 1952; published in fragments but withdrawn, recording released 2004 | |
Unspecified instruments | ||||
| Fugue sur un sujet d'Henri Rabaud ("Fugue on a subject of Henri Rabaud") | 4 parts in SATB clefs | 1926 | conservatoire assignment;published along with two other fugues that won the first prize that year | |
| Fugue pour le Concours de Rome (sur un sujet de Georges Hüe) ("Fugue for the Prix de Rome Contest (on a subject of Georges Hüe)") | 4 parts in SATB clefs | 1930 | unpublished | |
| Fugue pour le Concours de Rome ("Fugue for the Prix de Rome Contest") | 4 parts in SATB clefs | 1931 | unpublished | |
| Vingt Leçons en harmonie (dans le style de certains compositeurs importants de l'histoire musicale de l'harmonie de Monteverdi à Ravel) ("Twenty Lessons in Harmony (in the style of some important composers in the musical history of harmony from Monteverdi to Ravel)") | various or unspecified instruments | 1939 | written for a course Messiaen taught at the Opéra à Paris, the lessons analyze the harmonization of continuo and melody in the style of different composers (Monteverdi, Rameau, Bach, Gluck, Mozart, Schumann, Franck, Lalo, Chabrier, Massenet, Fauré, Albéniz, Debussy, Ravel, and Traditional Indian songs) | |
| Chant donné (Leçon d'harmonie : Hommage à Jean Gallon) ("Song Assignment (Lesson in Harmony: Tribute to Jean Gallon)") | 4 parts in SATB clefs | 1953 | written as part of a tribute (with 63 of his colleagues in other chants donnés) to the memory of Jean Gallon | |