In the course of his career, the Belgian composer Henri Pousseur (1929) has been led to compose a certain number of songs, in the broad sense of the term. Some have been incorporated into symphonic works, others are musical illustrations for theatrical performances, and yet others have been inspired by events in life (births, deaths, conflicts, etc.). Here we have them all together, coherently grouped in three parts that transcend cleavages of ancient and modern or of art music and popular culture. The first part, Cycles de vie is a bouquet of impressions ranging from childhood to old age, while the second, Spirale de liberté, based on a single text of Michel Butor carries the listener irresistibly towards a kind of deliverance. The work concludes with an obligatory "encore", Le temps des surprises. Marianne Pousseur, Vincent Bouchot and Frederic Rzewski are the actor-musicians in this work full of freshness.