Relation Between Added Notes and Added Values

Definition: A conceptual and aesthetic parallel between harmonic and rhythmic enrichment. Just as added values supplement rhythmic durations (Chapter III), added notes supplement harmonic structures.

Messiaen's Treatment: Messiaen explicitly draws this connection, stating that "the relation of notes added to chords and values added to rhythms strikes us." He identifies "the same charm, somewhat perverse" in both domains: both involve elements that make structures "limp deliciously," whether through rhythmic irregularity or harmonic enrichment. This connection reveals a deeper aesthetic unity in Messiaen's system—the principle of supplementation and asymmetry operates across all musical parameters. The added elements in both cases function as foreign intrusions that transform rather than destroy the identity of their host structures.

Modern Context: This cross-domain analogy exemplifies Messiaen's systematic thinking. Contemporary theory might interpret this parallel through concepts of perturbation or destabilization: just as added values disrupt metric regularity while maintaining temporal coherence, added notes disrupt harmonic simplicity while maintaining tonal identity. Both techniques embody what Messiaen calls in Chapter I the "charm of impossibilities"—the aesthetic pleasure derived from elements that seem contradictory yet function coherently. The parallel also suggests that Messiaen conceives musical parameters not as independent domains but as manifestations of underlying structural principles.

Examples: Discussed throughout; specific rhythmic examples in Chapter III