Catalogue D'oiseaux

As he starts his journey through Messiaen's "Catalogue d'Oiseaux", pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard will take up the baton from the dawn chorus as the sun rises over the Alde Estuary in Suffolk.

Tom McKinney presents the first of four live broadcasts from the Aldeburgh Festival today, in which Pierre-Laurent Aimard performs Messiaen's set of thirteen piano pieces based on bird calls that he composed in the late 1950s. These three movements: Le Traquet stapazin (black-eared wheatear), La Bouscarle (Cetti's warbler) and Le Traquet rieur (black wheatear) are not simply transciptions of birdsong - they are tone poems for the piano, evoking the landscape, its colours and atmosphere. And what better setting than the marshes behind the concert hall at Snape Maltings in Suffolk.

After the concert ends, at 5.15 am, Tom McKinney continues his exploration of music associated with birds, including recordings of Warlock's The Curlew, Rautavaara's Cantus Arcticus, Sibelius's The Swan of Tuonela and Jonathan Harvey's Bird Concerto with Pianosong.

Pierre-Laurent Aimard plays Messiaen's Catalogue d'Oiseaux at the 2016 Aldeburgh Festival.

As he starts his journey through Messiaen's "Catalogue d'Oiseaux", pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard will take up the baton from the dawn chorus as the sun rises over the Alde Estuary in Suffolk.

Tom McKinney presents the first of four live broadcasts from the Aldeburgh Festival today, in which Pierre-Laurent Aimard performs Messiaen's set of thirteen piano pieces based on bird calls that he composed in the late 1950s. These three movements: Le Traquet stapazin (black-eared wheatear), La Bouscarle (Cetti's warbler) and Le Traquet rieur (black wheatear) are not simply transciptions of birdsong - they are tone poems for the piano, evoking the landscape, its colours and atmosphere. And what better setting than the marshes behind the concert hall at Snape Maltings in Suffolk.

After the concert ends, at 5.15 am, Tom McKinney continues his exploration of music associated with birds, including recordings of Warlock's The Curlew, Rautavaara's Cantus Arcticus, Sibelius's The Swan of Tuonela and Jonathan Harvey's Bird Concerto with Pianosong.

Pierre-Laurent Aimard plays Messiaen's Catalogue d'Oiseaux at the 2016 Aldeburgh Festival.

As he starts his journey through Messiaen's "Catalogue d'Oiseaux", pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard will take up the baton from the dawn chorus as the sun rises over the Alde Estuary in Suffolk.

Tom McKinney presents the first of four live broadcasts from the Aldeburgh Festival today, in which Pierre-Laurent Aimard performs Messiaen's set of thirteen piano pieces based on bird calls that he composed in the late 1950s. These three movements: Le Traquet stapazin (black-eared wheatear), La Bouscarle (Cetti's warbler) and Le Traquet rieur (black wheatear) are not simply transciptions of birdsong - they are tone poems for the piano, evoking the landscape, its colours and atmosphere. And what better setting than the marshes behind the concert hall at Snape Maltings in Suffolk.

After the concert ends, at 5.15 am, Tom McKinney continues his exploration of music associated with birds, including recordings of Warlock's The Curlew, Rautavaara's Cantus Arcticus, Sibelius's The Swan of Tuonela and Jonathan Harvey's Bird Concerto with Pianosong.

Continuing his journey through Messiaen's "Catalogue d'Oiseaux" today, pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard moves to the Britten Studio at Snape Maltings in Suffolk to perform another four movements of this piano masterpiece: La Buse variable (buzzard), L'Alouette calandrelle (short-toed lark), Le Loriot (golden oriole) and Le Merle bleu (blue rock thrush)

Presented by Tom McKinney.

Continuing his journey through Messiaen's "Catalogue d'Oiseaux" today, pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard moves to the Britten Studio at Snape Maltings in Suffolk to perform another four movements of this piano masterpiece: La Buse variable (buzzard), L'Alouette calandrelle (short-toed lark), Le Loriot (golden oriole) and Le Merle bleu (blue rock thrush)

Presented by Tom McKinney.

Tom McKinney presents the third instalment of Messiaen's "Catalogue d'Oiseaux" today. The setting for this evening's concert is the RSPB Minsmere Nature Reserve - where pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard will give an outdoor performance on the BBC Springwatch stage, beyond which spreads a vast expanse of grassland, water, reeds and sky. Here, Aimard will play another three movements of Messiaen's birdsong-inspired collection of piano pieces, including Le Chocard des Alpes (Alpine chough), La Merle de roche (rock thrush) and Le Courlis cendré (curlew).

Tom McKinney presents the third instalment of Messiaen's "Catalogue d'Oiseaux" today. The setting for this evening's concert is the RSPB Minsmere Nature Reserve - where pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard will give an outdoor performance on the BBC Springwatch stage, beyond which spreads a vast expanse of grassland, water, reeds and sky. Here, Aimard will play another three movements of Messiaen's birdsong-inspired collection of piano pieces, including Le Chocard des Alpes (Alpine chough), La Merle de roche (rock thrush) and Le Courlis cendré (curlew).

Pierre-Laurent Aimard concludes his live performances throughout the day of Messiaen's "Catalogue d'Oiseaux" at the Aldeburgh Festival with three more movements: La Chouette hulotte (tawny owl), La Rousserolle effarvatte (reed warbler) and L'Alouette lulu (woodlark). Presented by Tom McKinney.

Pierre-Laurent Aimard concludes his live performances throughout the day of Messiaen's "Catalogue d'Oiseaux" at the Aldeburgh Festival with three more movements: La Chouette hulotte (tawny owl), La Rousserolle effarvatte (reed warbler) and L'Alouette lulu (woodlark). Presented by Tom McKinney.