Chinese Whispers: Contextualizing the Finale of Messiaen’s <i>Et exspecto</i>

ABSTRACT The incessant, evenly spaced tolling of gongs throughout the 6-minute-long finale of Olivier Messiaen’s Et exspecto resurrectionem mortuorum presents a unique sonic phenomenon within the Western orchestral tradition. It nonetheless resonates with distinct features of the ‘Hymne du temple des Ancêtres’ and the ‘Hymne à Confucius’ Messiaen cited under the section ‘Les modes Chinois’ in Traité de rythme, de couleur, et d’ornithologie, volume vii. Through a comparative analysis of Western and Chinese sources related to the two hymns, we garner evidence to argue for cross-cultural intertextuality in Messiaen’s finale, and to speculate on the sources he might have (mis)read when commenting intriguingly on the Chinese modes and religious music prior to citing the specific hymns. Not least because the two hymns are emblematic of the Ming and the Qing dynasty, the story of their transmission to the West—arguably politically motivated—also throws light on the power dynamics between the rival dynasties.