Interstellar Call

“I’m really thrilled to be presenting a concert of French-themed brass music with the very talented brass students at ANAM.

This program includes two of my favourite works — the fanfare from La Péri by Dukas and Tomasi’s Fanfares Liturgiques — alongside an incredible arrangement of Carmen and one of the most compelling solo horn pieces of the 20th century, Messiaen’s Appel Interstellaire (Interstellar Call) from Des canyons aux étoiles…. We’ve even got a secret encore planned, so please come and join us!” — Ben Jacks, Faculty, Horn

Taking its title from Olivier Messiaen’s Appel Interstellaire (Interstellar Call), this program traces the evolution of the modern French brass sound — from the grandeur of early 20th-century fanfares to Messiaen’s cosmic lyricism.

Written in 1971 as part of Des canyons aux étoiles…, Messiaen’s solo horn piece sits at the heart of the program: a work that transforms breath and resonance into something vast and otherworldly. Around it, music by Dukas, Tomasi, Boulanger, and Bizet reveals how French composers reimagined the brass ensemble as both ceremonial and spiritual — capable of conjuring stillness, light, and power in equal measure.

Paul DUKAS Fanfare from La Peri
Henri TOMASI Fanfares Liturgiques
Olivier MESSIAEN ‘Appel interstellaire’ from Des canyons aux étoiles
Lili BOULANGER arr. Arjan LINKER Psaume 24
Georges BIZET arr. Roger HARVEY Carmen Suite

Ben Jacks (ANAM Faculty, horn) director/horn
ANAM Brass
ANAM Percussion

Duration: approximately 1 hour and 10 minutes (no interval)