DES CANYON AUX ÉTOILES

Death Valley

On a commission from the Saint Louis Symphony, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Sydney Symphony, Cal Performances, and Washington DC Performing arts to create projections to accompany live performances of Olivier Messiaen’s “Des Canyons aux Étoiles,” I traveled to many locales referred to directly in the orchestral score. Messiaen was captivated by the beauty of Utah’s red rock canyons and desert landscapes of the western United States. For Messiaen, this was a spiritual journey that began in the desert, a place of contemplation, where the vast silence allows a meeting with soul. Death Valley National Park became for me that spiritual landscape.