1 Valses Nobles et Sentimentales: I Modére – Tres Franc 00:00 2 Valses Nobles et Sentimentales: II Assez Lent – Avec une expression intense 01:27 3 Valses Nobles et Sentimentales: III Modére 04:03 4 Valses Nobles et Sentimentales: IV Assenz Animé 05:38 5 Valses Nobles et Sentimentales: V Presqu Lent – Dans un Sentiment Intime 06:47 6 Valses Nobles et Sentimentale:VI Vif 08:15 7 Valses Nobles et Sentimentale:VII Moins Vif 08:57 8 Valses Nobles et Sentimentale:VIII Epilogue Lent 11:55
St Paul’s Suite (Op. 29, No. 2), originally titled Suite in C,[1] is a composition for string orchestra by the English composer Gustav Holst. It was written in 1912, but due to revisions was not published until 1922. It is named after the St Paul’s Girls’ School in the United Kingdom, where Holst was Director of Music from 1905 to 1934. It was written in gratitude to the school which had built a soundproof studio for him. This suite is the most famous of the many pieces he wrote for students at St. Paul’s.[2]
The suite has four movements:
I. Jig: Vivace (alternating between 6/8 and 9/8 time)
This article is about the Ravel piano composition.
Cover of the first printed edition designed by Ravel himself
Le tombeau de Couperin is a suite for solo piano by Maurice Ravel, composed between 1914 and 1917, in six movements based on those of a traditional Baroque suite. Each movement is dedicated to the memory of a friend of the composer (or in one case, two brothers) who had died fighting in World War I. Ravel also produced an orchestral version of the work in 1919, although this omitted two of the original movements.
The first performance of the original piano version was given on 11 April 1919 by Marguerite Long, Joseph de Marliave’s widow, in the Salle Gaveau in Paris.[3][4]
Orchestrations and transcription
House where Ravel composed Le tombeau de Couperin
In 1919 Ravel orchestrated four movements of the work (Prélude, Forlane, Menuet and Rigaudon);[5] this version was premiered in February 1920 by Rhené-Baton and the Pasdeloup Orchestra, and has remained one of his more popular works. Ravel transcribed many of his piano pieces for orchestra, but here he reaches the height of his orchestration skills, turning a very pianistic piece into a superb orchestral suite with very few hints of its origins. The orchestral version clarifies the harmonic language of the suite and brings sharpness to its classical dance rhythms; among the demands it places on the orchestra is the requirement for an oboe soloist of virtuosic skill, as the oboist takes the melody in the Prélude and the Menuet as well as for the pastoral C minor section of the Rigaudon, where it is accompanied by guitar-like pizzicati.[6]
Only a few years after Ravel’s own orchestration, Lucien Garban (working under the pseudonym of Roger Branga) produced a version of the piece for ‘small orchestra’ with a piano-conductor, consisting of the Prélude, Menuet and Rigaudon. He had previously transcribed the full suite for piano four hands in 1919.
Several other composers have since created orchestrations of those two movements which Ravel omitted, the Fugue and the Toccata. David Diamond has orchestrated the second movement Fugue, while the Hungarian pianist and conductor Zoltán Kocsis has produced his own version of both the Fugue and the Toccata. However, here, the Toccata, scored for a very large orchestra, goes far beyond the limits of Ravel’s own, small orchestra, and the Fugue is set for winds only. Another instrumentation of Fugue and Toccata by pianist Michael Round was recorded by Vladimir Ashkenazy (Exton, 2003): the score is published (as two separate titles, ‘Fugue’ and ‘Toccata’) by Edwin F. Kalmus. Round’s version of the Toccata adds percussion, requiring up to five players. Kalmus omitted the percussion parts from the published score so as to exactly match the orchestration of the rest of the suite, but these parts are available separately, directly from the orchestrator. In 2013 the British composer Kenneth Hesketh orchestrated the Fugue and Toccata for the exact orchestration of the original four-movement orchestral suite. The first performance was given by the Goettingen Symphony Orchestra conducted by Christoph Mathias Mueller. The scores are available from Schott Music, London.
Four movements (Prélude, Fugue, Menuet, and Rigaudon) have been arranged for wind quintet by American horn player Mason Jones (1919–2009).[7] Danish composer Hans Abrahamsen has also transcribed four movements for wind quintet.,[8] and further American composer Gunther Schuller has made a wind-quintet arrangement.[9]
In 2013, Trevor P. Wagler re-arranged the orchestral version of four movements (Prélude, Forlane, Menuet, and Rigaudon) down to a quintet (ob/cl/vn/vcl/pft), played at Wilfrid Laurier University.[10]
For oboe and piano, the four orchestral movements (Prélude, Fugue, Menuet and Rigaudon) have been arranged 2014 by Elena González Arias (Adliswil: Ed.Kunzelmann, 2014). [11] combines the essential features of both of the composer’s versions in one – the intimate character of the piano original and the tone-colour of the oboe in the orchestral transcription. A compromise was found between the two versions not only with respect to the compositional material, but also with regard to articulation and dynamics.
“Alborada del gracioso” (“The Gracioso’s Aubade”) is the fourth movement of “Miroirs” (Reflections), a suite for solo piano written by French impressionist composer Maurice Ravel between 1904 and 1905. All the five movements are dedicated to a fellow member of the French impressionist group, Les Apaches:1. “Noctuelles” (“Night Moths”) – Dedicated to Léon-Paul Fargue, Noctuelles is a highly chromatic work, maintaining a dark, nocturnal mood throughout. The middle section is calm with rich, chordal melodies, and the recapitulation takes place a fifth below the first entry.2. “Oiseaux tristes” (“Sad Birds”) – Dedicated to Ricardo Viñes, this movement represents a lone bird whistling a sad tune, after which others join in. The rambunctious middle section is offset by a solemn cadenza which brings back the melancholy mood of the beginning.3. “Une barque sur l’océan” (“A boat on the Ocean”) – Dedicated to Paul Sordes, the piece recounts a small boat as it sails upon the waves of the ocean. Arpeggiated sections and sweeping melodies imitate the flow of ocean currents. It is the longest piece of the set, and, with the exception of Alborada del Gracioso, the most technically difficult.4. “Alborada del gracioso” (“The Gracioso’s Aubade”) – Dedicated to Michel-Dimitri Calvocoressi, Alborada is a technically challenging piece that incorporates Spanish musical themes into its complicated melodies.5. “La vallée des cloches” (“The Valley of Bells”) – Dedicated to Maurice Delage, the piece evokes the sounds of various bells through its use of sonorous harmonies.“Alborada del gracioso” was orchestrated by Ravel himself in 1918.Conductor: Claudio Abbado & London Symphony Orchestra.
Sergiu Celibidache dirigiert die Münchner Philharmoniker; Maurice Ravel: Boléro
Inhaltsangabe der TV-Zeitschrift “Gong“: Anläßlich des Geburtstages von Sergiu Celibidache am 28. Juni zeigt das ZDF eine Aufzeichnung des glanzvollen Interpretation von Maurice Ravels “Bolero” von 1983.
Piano: Theodore Paraskivesco Book 1: Be apart of my Facebook page! http://www.facebook.com/Blop888 00:00 – Danseuses de Delphes: Lent et grave (Dancers of Delphi) 03:00: – Voiles: Modéré (Veils / sails) 06:26 – Le vent dans la plaine: Animé (The Wind in the Plain) 08:27 Les sons et les parfums tournent dans l’air du soir»: Modéré (“The sounds and fragrances swirl through the evening air”) 11:33 – Les collines d’Anacapri: Très modéré (The Hills of Anacapri) 14:22 – Des pas sur la neige: Triste et lent (Footsteps in the Snow) 18:00 – Ce qu’a vu le vent d’ouest: Animé et tumultueux (What the West Wind has seen) 21:20 – La fille aux cheveux de lin: Très calme et doucement expressif (The Girl with the Flaxen Hair) 23:42 – La sérénade interrompue: Modérément animé (Interrupted Serenade) 25:49 – ‘La cathédrale engloutie: Profondément calme (The Submerged Cathedral) 31:13 – La danse de Puck: Capricieux et léger (Puck’s Dance) 33:33 – Minstrels: Modéré Book 2: 35:36 – Brouillards: Modéré (Mists) 38:21 – Feuilles mortes: Lent et mélancolique (Dead Leaves) 41:10 – La puerta del Vino: Mouvement de Habanera 44:09 – Les fées sont d’exquises danseuses»: Rapide et léger (“Fairies are exquisite dancers”) 47:12 Bruyères: Calme (Heather / town in Eastern France) 49:50 – Général Lavine – eccentric: Dans le style et le mouvement d’un Cakewalk 52:18 – La terrasse des audiences du clair de lune: Lent (The Terrace of Moonlit Audiences) 56:49 – Ondine: Scherzando 1:00:05 – Hommage à S. Pickwick Esq. P.P.M.P.C.: Grave (Homage to S. Pickwick) 1:02:34 – Canope: Très calme et doucement triste (Canopic jar) 1:05:27 – Les tierces alternées: Modérément animé (Alternating Thirds) 1:08:13 – Feux d’artifice: Modérément animé (Fireworks)
This is a thrilling excerpt from the beginning of Act II of the opera Le Roi malgré lui by Emmanuel Chabrier (1841-1894). The elegant, surging waltz rhythms of Chabrier’s music inspired Maurice Ravel‘s orchestral poem La valse.
Alto Rhapsody for Alto, Male Chorus & Orchestra, Op. 53. Christa Ludwig (mezzo soprano), Otto Klemperer/Philharmonia Orchestra & Chorus.
The Rhapsody is a setting of verses from Goethe’s Harzreise im Winter. It was written in 1869, one year after the German Requiem, with which the third part of the Rhapsody has similarities of vocal and choral style. The work is in three sections: the first two, in a chromatically dense and wandering C minor, are for the soloist and orchestra and describe the pain of the misanthropic wanderer. The second section is an aria in all but name. The third section, in a nominal C major, brings in the male chorus, which joins the soloist in a plea to a celestial spirit for an abatement of the wanderer’s pain. The work typically takes between twelve and fifteen minutes in performance. See recordings, below, for indicative timings. The work was first “tried out” on 6 October 1869, at the dress rehearsal for the Karlsruhe season’s first orchestral subscription concert. Amalia Boni sang the solo role; the conductor Hermann Levi was on hand, but there was no male voice chorus, and it is unclear whether Boni was accompanied by orchestra or simply on piano. Brahms and Clara Schumann were present, but there was certainly no other audience. It received its first public performance, and its first definitely known proper performance, on 3 March 1870, at Jena. The soloist at the first performance was Pauline Viardot and the conductor was Ernst Naumann.
The Tragic Overture (German: Tragische Ouvertüre), Op. 81, is a concert overture for orchestra written by Johannes Brahms during the summer of 1880. It premiered on December 26, 1880 in Vienna. Most performances last between twelve and fifteen minutes. Brahms chose the title “Tragic” to emphasize the turbulent, tormented character of the piece, in essence a free-standing symphonic movement, in contrast to the mirthful ebullience of a companion piece he wrote the same year, the Academic Festival Overture. Despite its name, the Tragic Overture does not follow any specific dramatic program. Brahms was not very interested in musical storytelling and was more concerned with conveying and eliciting emotional impressions. He summed up the effective difference between the two overtures when he declared “one laughs while the other cries.” Brahms quotes some material from the last movement of the Second Symphony in this overture. The Tragic Overture comprises three main sections, all in the key of D minor.
1.Allegro ma non troppo 2.Molto più moderato 3.Tempo primo ma tranquillo.
Maurice Ravel – Introduction & Allegro for Harp, Flute, Clarinet & String Quartet(1905)
pelodelperro ******Stuttgart Chamber Music Ensemble******The Introduction and Allegro (1905) is one of the few pieces by Ravel that has remained more or less in the shadows — save in the minds of harpists — throughout the last century. While it is certainly not among the composer’s most striking works, it is nevertheless a pleasant enough showpiece that looks forward to the raw sensuality of Daphnis et Chloé while hearkening back with great affection to the music of Chabrier and, especially, Franck. The full title of the work is Introduction and Allegro for Harp, Accompanied by a Quartet of Strings, Flute, and Clarinet. Although it is often conveniently designated a septet, it is really a kind of miniature (10-minute) harp concerto, complete with virtuoso writing and an extended central cadenza for the instrument. Chamber performances of the work, in fact, are few and far between; it is far more frequently heard in the orchestra hall with a full complement of strings. The general simplicity of form and harmony have led some to conclude that the Introduction and Allegro might have originally been composed as a test piece for the Paris Conservatoire; certainly it did not stand out sufficiently in Ravel’s own memory for him to include it in his list of works.
The brief Très lent introduction presents two themes, the first for the woodwinds in leaping parallel thirds, the second an inverted-arch-shaped gesture sung by the strings in octaves. Presently a shimmering texture of arpeggios and woodwind double-tonguing takes over, inviting the cello to explore another melody before the harp rejoins the lush musical fabric.
Twenty-six bars into the piece the Allegro commences. Now, as the harp makes an extended solo exploration of the melody presented earlier by the strings, a sonata form begins to take shape. A second, hemiola-ridden theme arrives in the woodwinds, accompanied pizzicato by the strings. The development of this material takes place in the usual fragmentary manner, building to an excited fff climax that breaks away abruptly as the harp assumes center stage with a cadenza. The recapitulation is quite straightforward, and the work ends without extensive fireworks or bombast of any kind. The Introduction and Allegro was first performed in late February 1907. [allmusic.com]
Google Art Project works by Jean-Léon Gérôme Google Art Project works by Jean-Léon Gérôme From Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository (click to access and view the Art collection, or take a virtual museums tour! All available here at euzicasa!)
From Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository
Media in category “Google Art Project works by Jean-Léon Gérôme”
Set design by Léon Bakst for the world premiere of the ballet Daphnis et Chloé (music by Maurice Ravel), Paris 1912.
Daphnis et Chloé is a ballet with music by Maurice Ravel. Ravel described it as a “symphonie choréographique” (choreographic symphony). The scenario was adapted by Michel Fokine from an eponymous romance by the Greek writer Longus thought to date from around the 2nd century AD. Scott Goddard published a contemporary commentary that discussed the changes to the story that Fokine made to prepare a workable ballet scenario.[1] The story concerns the love between the goatherd Daphnis and the shepherdess Chloé. The ballet is in one act and three scenes.
At almost an hour long, Daphnis et Chloé is Ravel’s longest work. In spite of the ballet’s duration, four discernable leitmotifs give musical unity to the score.[1][2] The music, some of the composer’s most passionate, is widely regarded as some of Ravel’s best, with extraordinarily lush harmonies typical of the impressionist movement in music. Even during the composer’s lifetime, contemporary commentators described this ballet as his masterpiece for orchestra.[3] Ravel extracted music from the ballet to make two orchestral suites, which can be performed with or without the chorus. The second of the suites, which includes much of the last part of the ballet and concludes with the “Danse générale”, is particularly popular. When the complete work is itself performed live, it is more often in concerts than in staged productions.
The title song (“You can see forever”) from the musical On a clear day is based on the “Dawn” passage in the second Suite from Daphnis et Chloé.[citation needed]
Sports
In 2002 American figure skater Sarah Hughes won an Olympic gold medal skating to selections from Daphnis et Chloé at the XIX Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City.
Gabriel Tacchino, piano. Luxemburg Radio Symphony Orchestra, Louis de Froment ***************************************************************************
Legendary conductor Fritz Reiner established his legacy when he assumed his directorship of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Reiner raised the status of the CSO that of one of the finest in the world. Although not often associated with the works of the French Impressionist composers, these performances from 1958 are considered among the finest from the Reiner/CSO era! Recorded on March 4, April 13 and April 15, 1957 at Orchestra Hall, Chicago. Musicians: Chicago Symphony Orchestra Fritz Reiner, conductor
Sergei Rachmaninoff -Symphonic Dances, Op. 45 I. Non allegro II. Andante con moto (Tempo di valse) III. Lento assai – Allegro vivace – Lento assai – Come prima – Allegro vivace
La Casa di Davide
Modest Mussorgsky Pictures at an Exhibition orchestrated by Maurice Ravel
Sergiu Celibidache conducts London Symphony Orchestra
Movements:
No. 1 “Gnomus” 2:24
No. 2 “Il vecchio castello” (The Old Castle) 7:10
No. 3 “Tuileries” (Dispute d’enfants après jeux) 12:44
No. 4 “Bydło”(Polish, Cattle) 14:01
No. 5 “Ballet of the Unhatched Chicks” 18:29
No. 6 “Samuel” Goldenberg und “Schmuÿle” 19:52
No. 7 “Limoges”, le marché (La grande nouvelle) 22:53
No. 8 “Catacombæ” (Sepulcrum romanum) and “Con mortuis in lingua mortua” 24:22
No. 9 “The Hut on Fowl’s Legs (Baba-Yagá)” 29:43
No. 10 “The Bogatyr Gates (in the Capital in Kiev)” 33:41
Rapsodie espagnole by Maurice Ravel 1. Prélude à la nuit: Très modéré 2. Malaguena: Assez vif 3. Habanera: Assez lent et d`un rythme las 4. Feria:Assez animé Wiener Philharmoniker Wilhelm Furtwängler, conductor Stuttgart, 22.XI.1951
The “Danse slave” at the beginning of Act III from the comic opera “Le Roi malgré lui” (King in spite of himself) by French composer Emmanuel Chabrier (1841-1894).
The libretto of this opera is a real mess, as it was written by in collaboration by two mediocre playwrights Emile de Najac and Paul Burani, partially revised by the poet Jean Richepin and later by Chabrier himself after Richepin gave up the work, disgusted. Chabrier called the libretto a “a bouillabaisse of Najac and Burani, cooked by Richepin, into which I throw the spices.” A synopsis of this convoluted opera can be found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Le_roi_m…
Nonetheless, the music of “Le roi malgré lui” is truly wonderful. Maurice Ravel wrote that when the opening bars of the Prelude were first played, harmony in French music completely changed course. In this series of videos, I will present selections from the opera. The famous Fête polonaise from the beginning of Act II was already posted on this channel and can be found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbNhug…
Flashmob – Bolero de Ravel na Pinacoteca de São Paulo, Brasil, Conservatoire de Paris, GURI & EMESP
Project of Marine Gandon, Ghislain Roffat & Pierre-Olivier Schmitt
During three weeks, between August and September of 2013, musicians of the Conservatoire de Paris (CNSMDP) were in Sao Paulo for pedagogical activities with teachers and students of Tom Jobim EMESP and Guri. The exchange is the result of a partnership between the Santa Marcelina Cultura and the prestigious french Institution. One of the results of the project was the execution of Ravel’s Bolero in the shape of a flashmob, at the Pinacoteca do Estado, on 14th September.
Durante três semanas, entre agosto e setembro de 2013, músicos do Conservatório de Paris estiveram em São Paulo para atividades pedagógicas com professores e alunos da EMESP Tom Jobim e do Guri. O intercâmbio é fruto de parceria entre a Santa Marcelina Cultura e a prestigiada instituição francesa. Como um dos resultados deste intercâmbio, surgiu o flashmob Bolero de Ravel na Pinacoteca do Estado de São Paulo.
A picture by Gustave Doré of Mother Goose reading written (literary) fairy tales (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The Symphony Orchestra of the Liszt School Of Music, conducted by Prof. Nicolás Pasquet, plays Maurice Ravel’s “Ma Mère l’Oye” (Mother Goose), originally composed as a piano duet for 2 children, later transformed into a solo piano piece, then orchestrated and finally transformed into a ballet. Our Symphony Orchestra plays the Orchestra Version, which consists of 5 parts:
Jules Massenet – Le Cid – Ouverture Work: Le Cid, opéra in four acts, first performance 30 November 1885, Opéra, Paris. ***Libretto: Adolphe Philippe d’Ennery/Louis***
An excellent reproduction of Ravel’s 1913 Welte Mignon reproducing pianorecording. This recording is free of the tempo hiccups and pedaling errors which hackneyed previous releases. The mechanism of the Welte Mignon reproducing piano system is not fully understood, as the inner workings of the units were a heavily guarded secret. There are no known Welte Mignon recording units still in existence. There were very few to begin with, and all were either dismantled or destroyed during World War II.
Special thanks to Professor Anatole Leikin of the University of California, Santa Cruz for recommending this fantastic recording and taking time to answer my questions about reproducing pianos. Be sure to pick up Professor Leikin’s fantastic new book, “The Performing Style of Alexander Scriabin” in which he explores the nuances of this unique composer’s performing style in the broader context of Romanticperformance practice. Follow the link below to purchase this wonderful book!
Philippe Gaubert : Divertissement Grec pour Deux Flûtes avec Accompagnement de Piano
Philippe Gaubert(1879-1941) : Divertissement Grec pour Deux Flûtes avec Accompagnement de Piano. / Keiji Katsumata, Fl.1st ; Tetsuo Kugai, Fl.2nd ; Mariko Kaneda, Piano “Concert Salon de musique des raisins secs” 12 Aug. 2011, The Luteran Ichigaya Center, Tokyo 「第4回レーズン派の音楽館演奏会」～フィリップ・ゴーベール : 2本のフルートとピアノの為のギリシャ風嬉遊曲 / 勝俣敬二(fl)、陸井鉄男(fl)、金田真理子(Pf) 2011年8月12日、ルーテル市ヶ谷センター(東京)
Cover of Philippe Gaubert
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Philippe Gaubert (5 July 1879 – 8 July 1941) was a French musician who was a distinguished performer on the flute, a respected conductor, and a composer, primarily for the flute.
Gaubert was born in Cahors in Southwest France. He became one of the most prominent French musicians between the two World Wars. After a prominent career as a flautist with the Paris Opéra, he was appointed in 1919, at the age of forty, to three positions that placed him at the very center of French musical life:
Gaubert’s compositions are by no means especially innovative, but his work benefited from the examples of Franck, Ravel, and Debussy. Naïla, his opera in three acts, premiered at the Paris Opéra on 7 April 1927. Three of his ballets had their first performances at that venue, as well.
During 1941, Gaubert died of a stroke while in the French capital. His friend, the journalist Jean Bouzerand, convinced the town of Cahors to create a public garden named in his honor near the river Lot in the late 1930s. When Gaubert was still alive, Albert Roussel dedicated the movement ‘Monsieur de la Péjaudie’ in his piece ‘Joueurs de Flûte‘ to him.
Selected works
Chamber music
3 Aquarelles, for flute, cello and piano
Ballade, for flute and piano
Ballade for viola and piano (1938)
Berceuse, for flute and piano
Cantabile et Scherzetto, for cornet and piano (1909)
Divertissement Grec, for 2 flutes and harp
2 Esquisses, for flute and piano
Fantaisie for clarinet & piano
Fantaisie, for flute and piano
Gavotte en rondeau (after Lully’s Les ballets du roi), for flute and piano
Madrigal, for flute and piano
Morceau Symphonique, for trombone and piano
Médailles antiques, for flute, violin and piano
Nocturne et Allegro Scherzando, for flute and piano
Pièce Romantique, for flute, cello, and piano
Romance, for flute and piano (1905)
Romance, for flute and piano (1908)
Siciliene, for flute and piano
Sonata for Flute and Piano, No.1
Sonata for Flute and Piano, No.2
Sonata for Flute and Piano, No.3
Sonatine, for flute and piano
Suite, for flute and piano
Sur l’eau, for flute and piano
Tarantelle, for flute, oboe and piano
Nocturne et Allegro Scherzando for flute & piano
Vocal
Soir paien, for voice, flute and piano
Vocalise in form of Barcarolle, for voice and piano
Sergiu Celibidache dirigiert die Münchner Philharmoniker; Maurice Ravel: Boléro
Inhaltsangabe der TV-Zeitschrift “Gong“: Anläßlich des Geburtstages von Sergiu Celibidache am 28. Juni zeigt das ZDF eine Aufzeichnung des glanzvollen Interpretation von Maurice Ravels “Bolero” von 1983.
I. Pavane de la Belle au bois dormant / Pavane of Sleeping Beauty [1:44] II. Petit Poucet / Little Tom Thumb [3:24] III. Laideronnette, Impératrice des Pagodes / Laideronnette, Empress of the Pagodas [3:41] IV. Les Entretiens de la Belle et de la Bête / The Conversation of Beauty and the Beast [4:27] V. Le Jardin féerique / The Fairy Garden [4:07]
I. Modéré II. Assez lent III. Modéré IV. Assez animé V. Presque lent VI. Assez vif VII. Moins vif VIII. Epilogue: Lent
Philharmonia Slavonica H. Adolph
Maurice Ravel could be slightly obsessive in the way he allowed certain musical interests to reappear throughout his compositions. Two such interests were dance and the past, and in Valses nobles et sentimentales one can hear how Ravel was able to effectively fuse these two curiosities together. While Le Tombeau de Couperin was inspired by the eighteenth century, the Valses was oriented toward the nineteenth century. Written out of homage to Schubert’s piano piece of the same name, the composer declared that the work’s title, “indicates clearly enough my intention of composing a chain of waltzes following the example of Schubert. The virtuoso element that was the basis of Gaspard de la nuit is here replaced by a writing of greater clarity, which has the effect of sharpening the harmony as well as the outline of the music.” Ravel achieved his goal of clarity, as the waltzes were written using intense precision, sophistication, and technical flawlessness.
Valses nobles et sentimentales contains eight waltzes presented in the following order: Modéré, Assez lent, Modéré, Assez animé, Presque lent, Assez vif, Moins vif, and the Epilogue. Originally written for solo piano, the waltzes stimulate but do not disturb, while displaying different aspects of Ravel’s imagination including pride, tenderness, and sentiment. The work was dedicated to Louis Aubert and it was he who gave the first performance on May 9, 1911, at a concert held by the Société Musicale Indépendante, where Schubert’s piece of the same name was also premiered. As a little game, the composers’ names were withheld, leaving the audience to guess who had written each piece. Audience suggestions included Eric Satie, Zoltán Kodály, and even a correct answer from Debussy, whose ears could not be fooled by the identifiable quality he appreciated. Even though several of Ravel’s friends confessed their dislike, others claimed to be strongly drawn to the piece. Tristan Klingsor commented that he was one among several who, “were immediately seduced by the music, and yet he had taken a lot of risks, at least for the period….He had taken the use of unresolved dissonances to its furthest point. What we now find very piquant was extremely daring at the time. The first bars of the Valses seemed quite extraordinary. Then, since there was nothing there that was not well thought-out, the ear quickly grew to enjoy these pseudo-‘wrong notes,’ and a glance at the score revealed that they had a proper harmonic justification.”
As with Ma mère l’oye Ravel allowed only himself to alter Valses nobles et sentimentales through orchestration. He adapted the waltzes for the ballet Adélaïde ou Le langage des fleurs, for a performance by the troupe of Natasha Trouhanova, and it was premiered as an orchestral work on April 22, 1912, at the Théâtre du Châtelet. Some say that the ironic overtones of the Valses foreshadow the superb choreographic poem La Valse while confirming to audiences that dissonance was indeed an essential element of his musical style. [Allmusic.com]
I. Ondine [0:00] II. Le Gibet [7:36] III. Scarbo [14:28]
A work for solo piano by French composer Maurice Ravel (1875-1937), based on poetry by the French proto-Symbolist Aloysius Bertrand (1807-1841). The first movement “Ondine” evokes the ethereal realm of the title water-fairy who lures hapless men into her magical lake. The second movement (“Le Gibet”) depicts a different vision: “It is a bell tinting at the walls of a city under the horizon and the carcass of a hanged man reddened by the setting sun.” The third movement “Scarbo” depicts a fiendish creature – perhaps a scarab beetle-like imp – scampering and twirling underneath the bed of the frightened observer. This movement is notorious for its incredible difficulty, since Ravel intended it to surpass Balakirev’s Islamey in technical terms.
The piece is performed by the famous Croatian pianist Ivo Pogorelich.
This is Ravel‘s “Empress of the Pagodas” played by Christopher Parkening from the great CD: “The Artistry of Christopher Parkening”. Many thanks to ‘Music Publishing Rights Collecting Society‘ for graciously allowing this amazing recording to be shared world wide!
From wikipedia:
“Ravel originally wrote Ma mère l’oye as a piano duet for the Godebski children, Mimi and Jean, ages 6 and 7. Ravel dedicated this work for four hands to the children (just as he had dedicated an earlier work, Sonatine to their parents). Jeanne Leleu and Geneviève Durony premiered the work.”
“The Green Serpent (a green dragon, known as
Serpentin Vert in French), is a French fairy tale written by Marie Catherine d’Aulnoy, popular in its day and representative of European folklore, that was published in her book New Tales, or Fairies in Fashion (Contes Nouveaux ou Les Fées à la Mode), in 1698. The serpent is representative of a European dragon. His description is: “he has green wings, a many-coloured body, ivory jaws, fiery eyes, and long, bristling hair.”
The Green Dragon is really a handsome king placed under a spell for seven years by Magotine a wicked fairy. In many ways the tale is based on the story of Eros and Psyche, to which the narration pays conscious homage when referring to the “discovery” of the Green Dragon.”
The Introduction and Allegro (1905) is one of the few pieces by Ravel that has remained more or less in the shadows — save in the minds of harpists — throughout the last century. While it is certainly not among the composer’s most striking works, it is nevertheless a pleasant enough showpiece that looks forward to the raw sensuality of Daphnis et Chloé while hearkening back with great affection to the music of Chabrier and, especially, Franck. The full title of the work is Introduction and Allegro for Harp, Accompanied by a Quartet of Strings, Flute, and Clarinet. Although it is often conveniently designated a septet, it is really a kind of miniature (10-minute) harp concerto, complete with virtuoso writing and an extended central cadenza for the instrument. Chamber performances of the work, in fact, are few and far between; it is far more frequently heard in the orchestra hall with a full complement of strings. The general simplicity of form and harmony have led some to conclude that the Introduction and Allegro might have originally been composed as a test piece for the Paris Conservatoire; certainly it did not stand out sufficiently in Ravel’s own memory for him to include it in his list of works.
The brief Très lent introduction presents two themes, the first for the woodwinds in leaping parallel thirds, the second an inverted-arch-shaped gesture sung by the strings in octaves. Presently a shimmering texture of arpeggios and woodwind double-tonguing takes over, inviting the cello to explore another melody before the harp rejoins the lush musical fabric.
Twenty-six bars into the piece the Allegro commences. Now, as the harp makes an extended solo exploration of the melody presented earlier by the strings, a sonata form begins to take shape. A second, hemiola-ridden theme arrives in the woodwinds, accompanied pizzicato by the strings. The development of this material takes place in the usual fragmentary manner, building to an excited fff climax that breaks away abruptly as the harp assumes center stage with a cadenza. The recapitulation is quite straightforward, and the work ends without extensive fireworks or bombast of any kind. The Introduction and Allegro was first performed in late February 1907. [allmusic.com]
Maurice Ravel – Shéhérazade, ouverture de féerie:
“Shéhérazade, ouverture de féerie”, written in 1898 but unpublished, is a work for orchestra by the french composer Maurice Ravel, intended as the overture for an opera of the same name. It was first performed at a concert of the Société Nationale on 27 May 1899, conducted by the composer.
“Shéhérazade, ouverture de féerie”, written in 1898 but unpublished, is a work for orchestra by the french composerMaurice Ravel, intended as the overture for an opera of the same name. It was first performed at a concert of the Société Nationale on 27 May 1899, conducted by the composer.
Daphnis et Chloé is a ballet with music by Maurice Ravel. Ravel described it as a “symphonie choréographique” (choreographic symphony). The scenario was adapted by Michel Fokine from an eponymous romance by the Greekwriter Longus thought to date from around the 2nd century AD. Scott Goddard published a contemporary commentary that discussed the changes to the story that Fokine made to prepare a workable ballet scenario.[1] The story concerns the love between the goatherd Daphnis and the shepherdess Chloé. The ballet is in one act and three scenes.
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CIDSE - TOGETHER FOR GLOBAL JUSTICE (CHANGE FOR THE PLANET -CARE FOR THE PROPLE-ACCESS THIS NEW WEBSITE FROM EUZICASA)
