Oraison

Oraison, composed by Olivier Messiaen in 1937 for six Ondes Martenot, transcribed for Buchla 200e synthesizer and Haken Continuum Fingerboard controller and performed by Richard Lainhart in 2009.
From the time I first touched the Haken Continuum, I'd wanted to use it to play a composition by Olivier Messiaen called "Oraison". I first heard "Oraison" years ago as a student of electronic music, and had fallen in love with its simple, beautiful harmonies and profound sense of mystery.
"Oraison" is not only a lovely piece of music, but has historical interest too - it may be the first piece of purely electronic music written expressly for live performance. Also of note is that Messiaen re-arranged "Oraison" for cello and piano and used it for the fifth movement of "Quartet for the End of Time", which he composed in a German prisoner-of-war camp in 1941; the "Quartet" is one of the great classics of 20th-century music.
"Oraison" ("prayer") is from a suite of pieces for six Ondes Martenot called "Fete des Belles Eaux" ("Celebration of the Beautiful Waters"), composed for the Paris International Exposition in 1937. The Ondes Martenot was among the first electronic instruments, and is still among the most expressive. The Continuum's own expressive qualities seemed at least the equal of the Ondes Martenot's, while allowing for polyphony and the possibility of performance of the work by a single player. I transcribed "Oraison" for my Buchla 200e/Continuum system, programmed the modern system in homage to the sound of the Ondes Martenot, and now offer this performance to you.

[@lilskullymane4057]

thank you richard. we still appreciate everything you left for us. always love 🤍

[@cameronscottcairney8852]

Incredible, Thank you Richard. RIP

[@m5st5gr5s]

Le genie de Messian plsu les fabueuses possibilités du Buchla Music Easel Bravo l' artiste Merci Beaucoup c'est extatique

[@mpatherton3795]

What an utterly stunning performance. I have only just found this and am saddened to learn that the performer has passed away. This was played with such depth and understanding of Messiaen's intent, and is a fitting memorial to both composer and performer.

[@SiliconBassist]

Beautifully put. I have also recently stumbled upon this wonderful performance and musician, and I hope to find more of his performances. He will be missed, even by those of us who never knew of him during his lifetime.

[@brendanbyrne5685]

I performed with Richard in 2010 and heard this song for the first. I was utterly devastated. I'd never been so affected by a piece of music in my life. There was just something so unsettling about the piece's sadness, wonder, and prescience. In my daily life I'll remember this song and have to stop. Nothing else I've encountered has allowed me to empathize so viscerally with the past.

[@odd_harmonics]

I was driving yesterday and somehow remembered this performance. Very insipiring... would have loved to see Richard performing live.

[@jbowmanmusic]

Such beauty.

[@SharedVision333]

amazing job on programming and performing... rest in peace Richard... you inspired many of us

[@opsysbug]

Beautiful !!

[@EastVram]

Amazing!

[@hector3550]

Bravo!!!

[@ia1lieutenant]

spacey and dreamy - Messiaen was years ahead - Rest In Peace Mr.Lainhart and thank you.

[@MuleHead06]

Well Done, Richard. Very Well Done.

[@profpep]

Thank you Mr Lainhart. Rest in Peace.

[@lespeol]

Hypnotized!!! Very very intense!

[@composerpoet]

Thank you so much for this performance and realization. Profound and Lovely.

[@UndertheBigTree]

Such beauty. I'm so sad that I never met Richard in person. He is a great inspiration as to what expressive electronic music is all about.

[@fescolfaro]

thank you :)

[@wileysupergenius]

Awesome. So nice to see a modular played in this way.

[@KentBuchla]

He's sorely missed. Not only a fine artist, but a sharing and knowledgeable gentleman. He definitely helped to send me down my path to the 200e and answered many of my questions with care and great thought. Too hear another & completely different take on the 200e, click up on the "200e song" by Hyperguy61 that is currently in the list to the right. Great percussion.

[@bostich1]

awesome!

[@ThomasZunk]

A Wonderful version of this wonderful composition! The instruments look so futuristic. I am currently working myself on a version for Theremin. best regards from Berlin Thomas

[@JohnLRice]

Beautiful! Rest in peace Richard, you will be missed! :-(

[@whatevermaybemaybe]

thanks, a beautiful performance of a beautiful composition

[@johnmahoney5393]

@Richard Price Elliott: Sadly, you can't see this live - we lost Richard Lainhart about two years ago. Too soon, so sad. As for the "phase interference" you hear, I believe it's intentional. Lainhart's Buchla contains a phase shifter module and Complex Waveform Generators. So, there is phasing and osc-to-osc frequency modulation (FM) by design.

[@RichardPriceElliott]

+John Mahoney I compose mostly in FM. I guess that is why it stood out.

[@Percussa]

absolutely beautiful !

[@JohnLRice]

Very impressive!!!!!!!!!

[@nickblackburn]

A thing of beauty. Many thanks, Nick

[@peter47a]

1937? Amazing. Sounds fresh and interesting.

[@ejectproject]

great!!!respect from moscow

[@biotonk]

fantastic !!

[@jcenfuego667]

this is so beautiful...thank you so much

[@sirdnamusic]

You've reminded me how good the Haken Continuum is Richard. Of course the Buchla must be making a substantial contribution too. Very nice playing and very nice tones. Thanks for sharing. Andris

[@Sukyhoi]

sounding so beautiful on Buchla 200e :)

[@KentBuchla]

Absolutely speechless. Wow! A very beautiful piece and it must have been a lot of hard work. Congratulations!

[@Arc-nh1ef]

Great stuff, Richard. As always. =D!

[@zenocomplex]

Using the continuum for this is a really brilliant idea. Also, as others have said, the dynamics are excellent. Incredibly tasteful arrangement-great job. If I'm not mistaken, C. S. Levine himself commented below with praise. Apparently you're on the right track. A+.

[@paolosince66]

Very deep! Cool synth there!

[@johna1205]

Just beautiful. Thanks so much, Richard. jg::

[@GeorgiosZaimis]

Magnificent!

[@Iddybud]

Lovely!

[@waveshaper]

damn i love it richard!

[@MusicaRicercata]

Very beautiful! This could also prove to be a very cost-effective alternative to the ondes Martenot, especially in the future.

[@unfrostedpoptart]

I know this is a very old post but I almost had a spit-take reading that someone thought a Buchla synth plus a Continuum could possibly be described as "cost-effective".

[@wabbit2099]

@@unfrostedpoptart It was 2010. So young, innocent, and full of hope. A different time.

R.I.P. Richard Lainhart (February 14, 1953 - December 30, 2011)

[@sidecars]

One of my favorite pieces, played beautifully. Wonderful. Amazingly done. I have a full size continuum for sale for 4k. Or.. I want a Buchla Lightning 3 plus 2k for it.

[@MusicaRicercata]

You can view its page on Wikipedia; due to their rarity, these instruments can run well up into the 100 000 range (or even higher). Rental of an ondes is not exactly inexpensive either.

[@mediocrefunkybeat]

The single most beautiful recording of Messiaen I have heard. Deft use of dynamics and timing that I found is often lacking from recordings of Louamge and Oraison. Only an expressionistic musician could understand.

[@adityanirvaanranganathan8049]

amazing performance! one of my favourite Messiaen pieces would you be willing to share your transcription? please let me know

[@MichaelTiemann]

Really nice! Are you making a full surround (quad) DVD version for sale?

[@YuckTV]

Wonderful video! Easily one of the top 200e performances, but I'm guessing you would make a CZ-101 sing beautifully as well.

[@alexPi77]

very nice! I was wondering, can the buchla maintain the 1 cent tuning accuracy of the continuum fingerboard? I interested in making some just intonation music..

[@lilskullymane4057]

It can with the haken cvc (what richard is using here) as opposed to midi

[@CTABPOGIN]

great, my fav 20th century piece, with a new timbre, unknown for me. Extremely well played. Do you know if the score can be found for free on the interwebs?

[@RichardPriceElliott]

I must see this live. I cannot tell if there is a lot of phase interference, or it is the after effect of the recording process.

[@elpagna]

Nice job =) Did you learn from yourself how to use a synthesizer or did you study something special ?

[@hargous]

Oraison.

[@GulioMahn]

Is the sheet music available?

[@moccagriselda]

'The Revenant' brought me here.

[@RichardPriceElliott]

WTH? you got pops around four-forty; You wrecked it!

[@DexMProductions]

Thumbs up if you're here via Billy Corgan.

[@callactm14]

That scumbag

[@MusicaRicercata]

ondes Martenots are far more expensive.

[@tlainhart]

Any chance of releasing a high-fidelity audio recording of this?

[@composerpoet]

Thank you so much for this performance and realization. Profound and Lovely.

[@OliverCox]

Beautiful!