c
 

by Maurice Ravel
 Maurice Ravel (1875 ʹ 1937)

Born in Ciboure, France.

Private; single bachelor for his entire life.

Virtuoso pianist. Attended Paris Conservatory.

Member of the ͞Apaches͟ (Hooligans): artistic

outcasts.

Influenced by Faure, Debussy, and Russian

composers.

Achieved great fame; „

 and 


Death from experimental brain surgery.

 History of c
 

Premiered in 1901

Title: ͞Water Games͟, ͞Fountains͟, or ͞Playing Water͟

Dedicated to Faure, and published with an inscription of a

poem by Henri de Regnier: ͞The river god is laughing from
the water which is tickling him.͟

Inspired by Liszt͛s [
    

 

 ]ignificance of c
 

͞Inspired by the noise of water, cascades, springs, the

jeuxd͛eau is based on two motives, in the manner of
first-movement sonata form without, however,
conforming to the classic tonal scheme.͟ (Ravel)

Preempted ]travinsky͛s use of the ͞Petrushka͟
Chord;  

 not composed until 1917.

muote from Nikolai Andreyevich, after hearing

c
 
in 1907:
͞As far as the principle of using dissonances
with all the rights of consonances is
concerned, it͛s not my cup of tea, although͙I
should hurry right home lest I get used to it,
and, God forbid, begin to like it.͟
 ͞Petrushka͟ Chords in c
 

·xample 1a, Formation of a ͞Petrushka͟

Chord:
Mse of ͞Petrushka͟ Chords in c
 

·xample 1b, mm. 70 ʹ 71*:

*]teven Baur, ͞Ravel͛s ͚Russian͚ Period: Octatonicism in his ·arly Works_c

 

„
  
 Vol. 52, No. 3 (Autumn, 1999), pp. 531-592
 Atonality?

·xample 2*: Mse of all twelve tones of the

chromatic scale within three measures:

*]teven Baur, ͞Ravel͛s ͚Russian͚ Period: Octatonicism in his ·arly Works_c

 

„
   Vol.
52, No. 3 (Autumn, 1999), pp. 531-592
 Mse of Pentatonic ]cale in Major
Themes

·xample 3: Theme 1, m. 1 (G#, B, D#, C#, ·)

· position,
mm. 1 - 23

Theme 1,
m. 1
 Theme 2,
m. 19

Development,
mm. 24 - 61
Recapitulation:
Theme 1
Theme 2