The eighth movement, "The Resurrected and the Song of the Star Aldebaran, " strikes a meditative mood, with strings chanting a gently shifting melody while stars twinkle and birds twitter in the glockenspiel, piccolo and piano.

NPR: Messiaen At 100: A Song For The Solar System

An introduction, complete with finger cymbals and (almost) a cappella vocals, slides seamlessly into a gently driving, plaintive folk melody.

NPR: The Dry Spells: Mystical, Wounded Whimsy