Maurice Ravel: a short biography of the composer. General characteristics of the work of Maurice Ravel Maurice Ravel chronological table

Introduction……………………………………………………… page 3

Chapter #1. Overview of the piano work of Maurice Ravel.

The main styles and some

features of the musical language.

§1. The originality of the composer's impressionism……………… page 5

§2. Connection with classical traditions……………………… p.6

§3. Romantic features of style…………………………….page 8

§4. Folk - national origins………………………… page 12

§5. Melodic-harmonic features

musical language……………………………………….page 13

§6. Circle of images………………………………………………… page 15

§7. Orchestrality………………………………………….page 16

Chapter No. 2. Analysis of piano works, their

performance and methodological aspects.

§1. “Antique Minuet”……………………………………… p.17

§2. “Pavan in honor of the deceased infanta”…………………… p.19

§3. “The play of water”………………………………………………… page 20

§4. Sonatina…………………………………………………… page 22

§5. "Auditory Landscapes"……………………………………… p.25

§6. “My Mother Goose”…………………………………….page 26
Conclusion……………………………………………….. page 31

Bibliography……………………………………………..page 32

Introduction.

At the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, the development of art becomes especially complex and changeable. Gradually smaller and academicized romantic direction gives way to developing impressionism. The new trend that originated in painting in the second half of the 19th century is picked up by other types of art. Impressionism played a particularly important role in the formation of French music. The new art resolutely opposed the academic tradition, affirmed aesthetic principles that continued to develop at the beginning of the 20th century. Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel belonged to the representatives of musical impressionism.

This work is devoted to the analysis of the piano work of M. Ravel, the largest composer of French musical culture.

Creativity Ravel - one of the most complex phenomena in the history of art. Organically connected with the traditions of composers of previous generations, it also opened the era of the new - contemporary art.

Listening to Ravel's music, we enter a bright original world in which a process of intensive development takes place. The desire to rely on tradition was combined with his unflagging interest in the new. The spirit of true humanity lives in Ravel's music. In his art, the harmony of artistic genius was manifested. Impeccability of craftsmanship, balance of proportions, purity of style - all this is a necessary form of expression of what was endured in the depths of his soul.

Thanks to the originality and mastery of writing, the unique essence of his art, which was not immediately understood, the composer deserved the name "the greatest musician of France."

This paper examines the stylistic diversity of Ravel's music - the topic is very voluminous and complex. Within the framework of this work, only some important aspects of this topic will be covered. The first chapter will detail the development of the composer's piano work and consider the stylistic diversity of his compositions. The entire second chapter is devoted to the review and analysis of the works of the composer's early work: "Antique Minuet", "Pavane in Honor of the Deceased Infanta", "Audible Landscapes" - pieces for two pianos, Sonatina, "The Play of Water", a cycle of pieces "My Mother Goose", with wishes for performers - pianists. Recommendations will help to interpret Ravel's works in the most correct way, as well as to perform them more efficiently.

Chapter 1

Overview of the piano work of Maurice Ravel. The main style directions and some features of the musical language.

§1. For a long time, until the First World War, French music criticism perceived Ravel as a successor and almost an imitator of Claude Debussy - the founder of musical impressionism - whose bright personality made it difficult to see Ravel's individuality and creative independence. It is quite obvious that the composer expanded the understanding of impressionism, and sometimes even went beyond this concept, which brought the composer closer to realistic thinking, to the reflection of life reality.

According to the aesthetics of impressionism, the artist conveys, first of all, his own, subjective vision, his perception of the world. Ravel sets the goal of an objective description. The plots of his plays are concrete and definite. Unlike Debussy, the symbolist, Ravel is inclined to abandon symbolic nebulae for the sake of Gallic clarity. The musical techniques of the composers also differ. Ravel gravitates towards relief thematism, in which folklore origins are directly felt. Ravel's development is stricter and more consistent, based on certain schemes, the genre is presented by the composer as precisely outlined, and the provisibility, which is entirely characteristic of Debussy, is alien to him.

Aesthetics of Ravel - contains the interweaving of various aesthetic and stylistic trends. At different stages, classicist, romantic-impressionist and melodic-constructivist features, as well as elements of expressionism, appear. They interact, arising, sometimes in parallel, sometimes one or the other, of which prevails. The composer's desire to rely on the folk foundations of art was extremely fruitful. This is evidenced by numerous works created by him in the spirit of French, Spanish, oriental music. Many works by Russian composers evoked genuine admiration from him. (As an example, we can mention the magnificent orchestration of "Pictures at an Exhibition" by Mussorgsky).

§2. In the early piano works of the composer, the connection with classical traditions is clearly manifested. One such early work is the Antique Minuet, which Ravel considered mature enough for publication. The work was written not without the influence of Chabrier, whose work played an important role for Ravel, along with such composers as Schumann, Chopin, Weber, Liszt.

In the Minuet, the special nature of the hidden lyricism attracts attention. The composer, as it were, offers his own vision of the dance, over the archaism of which he himself slightly ironizes, using exquisite harmonic innovations.

The continuation of the same line in his work is the famous "Pavane in honor of the deceased infanta." This is one of the best examples of the composer's early works. Clear classical form, reminiscent of a rondo

The harpsichordists and the transparency of the presentation perfectly bring out the austere simplicity of the music. This is not a purely harpsichord writing, but rather a stylization of the texture of chamber ensembles from the heyday of lute and harpsichord art.

The style line of Ravel classicism goes from the "Antique Minuet" and "Pavane" to Sonatina. This work represents one of the first attempts by the artist to address the purely instrumental genre of the sonata cycle. The form of this work, the style of presentation show that its author is close to the traditions of the pre-Beethovian sonata - Mozart, Scarlatti, the techniques of the ancient French masters - Couperin and Rameau. Ravel calls his work a sonata not because of the ease of presentation and compact size, but because in its structure it is a “compressed” sonata. The desire to overcome the impressionist tendency and develop the classical line is characteristic not only of the composer's early works - this is one of the most important trends in his work. Characteristic in this regard are the Minuet on a Theme of Haydn, the piano cycle Noble and Sentimental Waltzes, works created in the last pre-war years, as well as during the war. Here, as it were, Ravel admires the refined subtleties of art from the position of an esthete. Subsequently, the cycle "Noble and Sentimental Waltzes" was orchestrated and used for the ballet "Adelaide or the Language of Flowers".

The Suite "Tomb of Couperin" can also be considered as a complete embodiment of Ravel's neoclassicism, as the limit of the stylistic line that goes from Ravel's "Antique Minuet". The artist embodies here the features of the French, more broadly - the Latin musical tradition - rationalism, tectonic form, the desire for clarity, elegance of expression. The suite is dedicated to Couperin, but it can be said that it is also dedicated to French music of the 18th century. In addition, the spirit of Scarlatti and the music of Italian harpsichordists can also be felt in the suite. The composition of the suite is strict, it consists of three groups of pieces: Preludes with a fugue (1 and 2 numbers of the cycle), three contrasting dances - Forlana, Rigaudon, Minuet (3,4,5 numbers), the center of them, like the whole work, is the Minuet. The final number is Toccata, which forms an arch with a prelude according to the nature of the presentation. Ravel builds the composition of the suite according to his own clear, constructive principles, similar to those of baroque clavier suites. The suite "The Tomb of Couperin" clearly shows that the composer's appeal to the ancient traditions of the French classics is not caused by narrow stylistic goals, but has deep spiritual roots. Ravel is close to the best ideas of the 18th century: humanism, the harmonious unity of beauty and morality, the demand for clarity in everything, the primacy of reason, the desire for balance in artistic elements.

Ravel's piano style is marked by influences from neoclassical trends in 20th century musical art. It is possible to speak about formal-genre solutions, and about the techniques of piano writing. In the later compositions of Ravel, the neoclassical manner merges with the manner of jazz pianism (for example, in a concerto for the left hand). In D major, classicism is qualitatively different. It is characterized by a heroic beginning, a reflection of significant events. In the G major concerto, the skill of Ravel as a colorist was revealed with exceptional brilliance. Here the neoclassical line is combined with Ravel's sound thinking (for example, at the level of harmony).

§3. The romantic features of the style manifested themselves in different ways in different creative periods of the composer. In the first decades of his activity, these features had a bright impressionistic form of expression. He is fascinated by the search for unusual fantastic images, the desire for programming and sound writing. Gakkel calls these romantic traits "Listianism". According to him, this is one of the most important indicators of Ravel's piano style. Gakkel proposed to consider these features at two levels: the level of color (register-timbral, pedal solutions) and the level of virtuoso concert pianism, quite unusual for piano music of the 20th century. In the future, the composer developed an interest in new artistic trends. Elements of constructivism and expressionism appear in his works.

The line of Ravel's romanticism was clearly marked for the first time in pieces for two pianos called "Audible Landscapes". This small cycle consists of two works: “Habanera” and “Among the bells”. These compositions were not published during Ravel's lifetime, but their interesting thematic ideas were used by the composer in later works. The musical material of "Among the Bells" is developed in the play "Valley of Ringings" from the cycle "Reflections", and the composer included "Habanera" in the "Spanish Rhapsody" without changing a single note in it.

In the work "The Play of Water", written in 1901, "for the first time those pianistic innovations appeared that were later recognized as characteristic of my style." The sound of a play gives rise to visible pictorial and poetic images. In The Game of Water, Ravel continues the path outlined by Liszt. The texture of The Play of Water shows that Ravel did not pass by Liszt's achievements in his plays from the Years of Wanderings and, above all, Fountains of the Villa d'Este. At the same time, Ravel shows his independence from the great romantic and maintains a balance between the emotional and the descriptive. Liszt's coloristic themes often lose the clarity of the melodic pattern, he dissolves into figurations. Ravel retains this pattern even with an even more developed figurative movement. He does this not without taking into account the experience of the greatest melodist - Chopin (for example, Fantasia - Impromptu). The overtone principle of writing is also interesting in this piece, which gives rise to sensations of the sound environment, atmosphere, which is a continuation of the ideas of piano romanticism. At the same time, the influence of Debussy's impressionistic manner (mainly in harmony) is also clearly evident here.

In the piano music of Ravel, the features of impressionism were most clearly manifested in the pieces of the "Reflections" cycle. Romantic tendencies are felt in this cycle. The prototype of the plays was not only programmatic virtuoso Liszt's plays, but also primordially French program miniatures of Couperin and Rameau, with their sense of proportion and balance.

In "Reflections" the author uses new expressive means. This applies to the harmonic language, dynamics, flexible rhythm. The finds made by Ravel in "Reflections", in a settled and selected form, will enter and receive a harmonious conclusion in the cycle of plays "Gaspard by Night".

"Night Gaspard" was written based on poems in prose by the French writer Aloysius Bertrand. Bertrand's short story gave the composer a reason to create a typically impressionist play. But the composer here followed the traditions of musical romanticism and only used some techniques of impressionistic sound painting. The Night Gaspard cycle turns out to be a brilliant achievement of virtuoso pianism of the 20th century. And at the same time, it becomes a sign of the close connection between Ravel pianism and romantic piano culture, with “Listianism”. Much here corresponds to the spirit of program instrumentalism, concert performance, and artistry.

In Ondine, Ravel, refusing the manner of dissolving the melody into harmonic figuration, creates a real and extended melodic line. The presence of this melody and its consistent development from gentle lyrical intonations to the expression of passion in the climax gives the play a constructive clarity. The melody imparts lyrical warmth to the image of the water element, greater humanness compared to its embodiment in such plays as "The Play of Water" or "Boat in the Ocean" from the "Reflections" cycle.

There are two main images in the Gallows: the image of a bell (reproduced by an organ point on the B-flat sound) and the image of a hanged man, created by very colorful “empty” (“lifeless”) non-chords, as if “swinging” around the reference tonic chord. Ravel's play is based on a consistent, very logical development of thematic material, devoid of significant colorful contrasts. With the extreme gloominess of its music and the heightened expressiveness of the harmonic language, the Gallows draws close to the works of expressionism.

"Skarbo" is a kind of "devilish scherzo", leading its pedigree from all kinds of "infernal" plays of the period of romanticism. This work is of exceptional difficulty. It contains various types of presentation: various figurations, rehearsals, martellato chords; tremolo, trills are often used. These techniques are characteristic of the mature style of the composer. The typically Ravel sequences of chains of seconds receive significant development; arising now in progressive passages, now in the form of decomposed chords, they emphasize the fantastic character of the music.

Loved to work in contrasting plans, Ravel simultaneously creates another cycle, completely different from the "Night Gaspard" - five children's pieces for piano four hands "My Mother Goose", based on French fairy tales of the 17th-18th century. It is after the "Night Gaspar" that it becomes especially clear what the world of children's images was for Ravel - his daylight opposed the night; his good denied evil; his unclouded clarity was a firm and sure moral support.

These pieces occupy an important place in Ravel's evolution. They precede works written by the composer in a late manner, which he himself called "the manner of exposure." The refinement and refinement of Ravel's writing is manifested in the fact that unexpected expressive possibilities are revealed in the simplest technique, and at the same time, the most refined means are clothed in a "naive" form.

The influence of romanticism marked "Noble Sentimental Waltzes", written in 1911. The general decision of the cycle indicates that Ravel is associated with the traditions of the waltz of Schubert, Chopin, Fauré, as well as with Schumann's Butterflies. Each waltz is based on the development of the initial rhythmic, motive-harmonic formula. The whole fabric of Ravel's "Waltzes" is permeated with several motifs, the sequence of which gives unity to the whole cycle.

PAGE_BREAK-- §4. Already in the early works, the artistic individuality of the composer was clearly manifested, and two leading lines of his work were clearly outlined: classical and romantic, which have already been mentioned, as well as a deep flair for the folk-national beginning.

The composer widely used folk modes in his musical compositions. Already since the conservative times, Ravel's Spanish sympathies have been manifesting. The theme of Spain in the composer's work entered with "Habanera" and was then continued in "Spanish Rhapsody", "Spanish Hour", Rhapsody "Gypsy", "Three Songs of Don Quixote".

A striking example of the Spanish theme is "Alborada" from the "Reflections" cycle. Here you can find the frets of folk music of the flamenco style, as well as the major-minor of Spanish origin.

One of the famous works of Ravel "Bolero" is of a generalized Spanish character. The composer uses Basque folklore. Rhythm and melody form the basis of the characteristic image of the work, as well as modal and rhythmic originality colors the melodies of the "Spanish Rhapsody".

Throughout his life, the composer was fascinated by the East. This is confirmed by such works as the early unfinished opera "Scheherazade", the vocal cycle of the same name, the concept of the opera based on the plot of "A Thousand and One Nights" - "Morgiana". In the play "The Ugly Lady - the Empress of Pagodas" from the cycle "My Mother Goose", the main expressive means is fret - the oriental flavor is emphasized by pentatonic.

Starting with the string quartet for Ravel, variability becomes almost the rule, the play of chiaroscuro of the parallel and eponymous major, natural minor, various modal deviations (Dorian, Phrygian, Mixolydian). Folklore origins and the development of folklore layers become characteristic of his work. The composer is also attracted to old frets. An interesting example is Three Songs for mixed choir. Ravel introduces a variety of modes, changes rhythmic meters (folk poems and melodics do not fit into the grid of strictly periodic rhythms).

§5. The composer's appeal to folklore sources played a great role in the formation of Ravel's harmonic language. It is possible that at first the author intuitively included natural modal turns in his works, being influenced by Chabrier and Fauré. This was followed by a stage of conscious study of folk songs, including French.

The Lado-harmonic system of Ravel's thinking is presented in its final form in the suite "The Tomb of Couperin". The combined major-minor, enriched with natural frets, is its basis. The author also makes an important turn in his composer's writing in the suite. The suite is distinguished by a great activity of harmonic lines. The former "multi-storey" vertical is presented in a split form. This process is, as it were, the opposite of what happened in the romantic-impressionist plays. (“The play of water”, the cycle “Reflections”). But Ravel at the same time remained true to the classical principles of harmony, modifying traditional chords by introducing additional sounds and using unexpected juxtapositions.

To transform the character and structures of ordinary harmonies, taking on a new meaning, the pedal (“Gallows”) is masterfully used.

An interesting innovation is the composer's use of b2: arising in progressive passages and in the form of expanded chords. They emphasize the fantastic nature of the music in "Skarbo", and the virtuoso passages in the form of chains of seconds in the "Water Game" create an image of a sparkling water element.

Ravel is characterized by a multi-component, softly iridescent harmony. The composer is evolving, thanks to the expansion of the number of sounds used in the natural scale, the widespread use of unauthorized appoggiatura. Using the technique of modal harmonies, clearly appearing in the "Antique Minuet", Ravel departs from the traditional tertian chord ("Ondine"), returning to fourth-fifth consonances ("Alborada"). "Noble and sentimental waltzes" is also an example of experimentation along the line of natural-mode sequences, altered chords, appoggiatura.

Ravel demonstrates his amazing mastery in the strict framework of tonalities. It acquired particular importance and specificity precisely from Ravel - a non-chord, sometimes acquiring the function of a tonic foundation and the basis of most chords (“Playing Water”, “Boat in the Ocean” from the “Reflections” cycle). The pieces of the "Reflections" cycle are distinguished by a significant change in the harmonic language. Non-chord sounds, unfolding into independent lines, lead to a polyphonic layering of harmonic functions. In the system of Ravel's musical thinking (especially post-war), the importance of diatonic counterpoint grows (sonata for violin and cello, "Thumb Boy" from the cycle "My Mother Goose").

Ravel showed interest in Negro art, in particular jazz. As an example, we can cite both piano concertos, the violin sonata (2 hours - "Blues").

The attitude of Ravel - the composer of the 20th century - the century of the crisis of melody - to the melodic line is interesting. In the composer's early works, one can note the balance between harmony and melody - this was emphasized by the fusion of textural formations, in most cases, only highlighting the melody ("Water Play", Sonatina). And in the late period of his work, the melody in both instrumental and vocal works becomes the leading factor in Ravel's thinking. In the opera The Child and the Magic, in the sonatas for violin and piano, violin and cello, in Madagascar Songs, the melodic principle dominates. "Bolero" - the whole work is subordinated to the omnipotence of the melody.

§6. The melodic and harmonic language serves to create a diverse range of images in the composer's work. The figurative sphere of Ravel is closely connected with the stages of his life, with the change of his worldview, with the war. The war became a facet in the creative life of Ravel. If the works of the pre-war period (from the "Antique Minuet" to "Daphnis and Chloe") reveal images of nature, human character, the psychology of impressions, vivid folklore images, the Spanish theme, images of childhood, antiquity and absolutely new, by their nature, in the works written during the war and after - "The Tomb of Couperin", both piano concertos, especially the concerto for the left hand, "Waltz", "Bolero". The evolution of the image of the choreographic poem "Waltz", conceived in 1906 as "the apotheosis of the Viennese waltz", is interesting. The old idea was overlaid with a new one, brought in by the years of war. Therefore, the "Waltz" could not repeat the grace and coquetry embodied in the "Noble and Sentimental Waltzes", written in 1912. But, despite the fact that the tragic reality of life is especially reflected in his work, Ravel remains, in fact, an impressionist artist. Although Ravel's image is captured extremely accurately, accurately and even objectively, it (the image) appears as a wonderful given in contemplation and admiration of it.

§7. Ravel wrote for the piano in an unusually colorful way. In his works, there are many purely piano effects using the right pedal - thin layers of various harmonies, creating a "sound atmosphere", vibration and melting of individual sounds, octaves and chords on the pedal. The composer used orchestral colors in his piano compositions. Giving recommendations to pianists about the performance of his works, Ravel often made comparisons with the timbres of various orchestral instruments. Thus, revealing the interpretation of "Skarbo", he said: "The first measure should be played - like a "conrbassoon", tremolo in the following measures - like a "snare drum", and octaves in m. 366-369 - like "timpani". The composer often imagined piano passages performed as if on a harp - one of his favorite instruments.

Once Ravel said the famous phrase: "I wanted to make a transcription of the orchestra on the piano." Almost all of Ravel's piano pieces exist in an orchestral version - ("Antique Minuet", "Pavane", "Alborada" from the cycle "Reflections", "Tomb of Couperin", "Noble and Sentimental Waltzes", "Waltz", etc.). The goal of transcription of the orchestra on the piano was pursued by many composers - Beethoven, Liszt, Tchaikovsky, but none of them has such closeness between their own orchestral and piano styles. The French master gave a particularly consistent and striking solution to the problem of orchestral interpretation of the piano.

Chapter 2

Analysis of piano works, their performing and methodological aspects.

This chapter will analyze the works of the early period of Ravel's work, which give a vivid idea of ​​the composer's style, his subtle poetic images, colorful harmony, pianistic techniques that were further developed in the music of the 20th century, and at the same time, in terms of the level of pianistic difficulties, quite available for high school students of the music school.

§1. "Antique Minuet" (1895)

This is the first printed piano work by Maurice Ravel. The minuet is a free composition in the movement of the minuet, carrying certain features of stylization and, at the same time, a modern refraction of an old dance. Subtle lyricism manifests itself through irony, through a refined, quite conscious, slightly "old-fashioned" mannerism. At the beginning of the minuet, sharp syncopations of prickly chords coexist with quartoles of figurations, the measured smoothness of which is broken by rhythmic failures. Already in the first chord - m2 - "Ravel's calling card" (by the way, one of Chabrier's favorite tricks) - and it is this chord, with an unprepared delay, that the composer makes the impetus for the movement of the entire minuet.

The structure of the texture of the beginning of the minuet is curious in its combination of harmonic writing with contrapuntal writing, and both texture plans are distinguished by their touch: legato and portamento.

Further, the minuet is built on a somewhat ponderous development of the main theme, but this is redeemed by a subtly found sound echo and soft overflows of figurations, in which the techniques of Ravel's picturesque and figurative plays are anticipated (for example, "The Play of Water"). It is interesting how Ravel transforms the “archaic” sequence by substituting an organ point on the bass cis (vol. 27-34) under it. In the cadence, the minor is replaced by the major, and the entire cadence turnover acquires an “old” Mixolydian shade.

The outwardly beautiful melody in the trio is first set out remarkably smoothly, in decima, in the style of an educational modulation prelude. But already in the second sentence, Ravel's musical fantasy is clearly manifested: he includes modal turns that are far from traditional. The middle of the trio is perceived as distant echoes of the period that has just discovered the trio. The rhythm at the beginning of the trio is emphatically traditional, enriched in its middle by a hidden polyrhythm: the rhythmic figuration is, as it were, written in 2/4 time, with the general designation of time 3/4. (By the way, Ravel's refined rhythmic technique also manifests itself in the extreme sections of the minuet: the constant discrepancy between the motive and the strong beat). At the moment indicated by doux (p. 69), subtle lyricism suddenly illuminates everything with a different light. The reprise of the trio is combined with the beginning of the minuet - this is a successful find, which will be continued in the minuet of the suite "Tomb of Couperin".

The performance of this piece, which is not as simple as it might seem at first glance, requires a finely developed polyphonic and harmonic ear. Already in the first eight bars, we are confronted with the typical "exquisite" Ravel harmonies and imitative polyphony. It is important for the performer to pay attention to pedaling - to perform this work, it is necessary to be able to use a half-pedal (sequence on the organ bass cis (v. 27-34) - it is required to preserve the sound of the bass throughout the entire measure, while maintaining the clarity of the harmonic line of the upper voices, which is impossible without using half pedals). The use of the left pedal is accurately noted by the author (vols. 13,15,19,21 - similar in the extreme sections, vols. 56 and 63 in the trio): in addition to the designations pp and ppp, the composer emphasizes "avec la sourdine".

Attention should be paid to the thoroughness of the intonational phrasing in the figuration performed by different hands (v.24-25) - the change of hands should not be noticeable by ear.

Of course, the performer needs to familiarize himself with the orchestral version of this minuet, made by the author after the war, in order to find interesting timbre colors.

§2. « Pavan in honor of the deceased infanta "(1899)

Even in Faure's class, the famous "Pavane" was written. It is quite obvious that the impetus to the composer's imagination was not given by the image of a court dance - a procession. The composer gave her the name "Pavane in honor of the deceased infanta", and thus greatly intrigued everyone who tried to find out what was hidden behind her. Ravel claimed that he chose this name only for the sake of a pleasant "alliteration".

In this play, the lyricism of Ravel comes through more clearly, which in the "Antique Minuet" is hidden under ironic and stylized masks. This lyricism is akin to Fauré's music. At the same time, "Pavane" is quite individual, both in terms of general moods and compositional techniques.

The structure of this small composition is quite simple and fully corresponds to the ancient naive instructions that "this power dance should have three repetitions between which you can sing." Indeed, the same melodic phrase is repeated three times, modified only by the different detailing of the accompaniment. Two more expressive interludes separate it, and the second in its presentation no longer leads to a refrain, thus delicately breaking with a clear symmetry of development.

Harmony is typical of the composer's style: characteristic astringency, generated by the frequent use of sharply dissonant m2 and b7, as well as the widespread use of side steps - III, VII, II, which gives the music a strict, somewhat "archaic" character.

The absence of virtuosic difficulties made "Pavane" accessible for amateur performance. But even for a professional musician, this piece will give pleasure - there is something to work on here.

The orchestral arrangement, made by the author himself, gives a good reason to look for timbre colors. The composer himself hints at the ensemble character of this piece, exposing various strokes in the melody and accompaniment in the piano version, which the performer should not neglect.

§3. "The play of water" (1901)

With the sound splashes of The Play of Water, Ravel opens a series of pieces of pictorial virtuosity, in which he rediscovers the secret of that iridescent technique, those impressions caused by reflections and reflections that Liszt once introduced into music. The composer considered this work the beginning of all his pianistic innovations.

The epigraph: "The river god laughing at the water that tickles him" - borrowed from A. de Regnier and indicates that the picturesqueness of the play should be animated.

The play opens with a thematic construction, in which the theme-melody is replaced by a mobile textural formation, the lines of which, based on a complex harmonic vertical, are skillfully constructed in such a way that dissonant collisions of tones arise between them, giving a lot of sound reflections. In this piece, the composer arrives at a new type of thematic art that captures movement, fluidity, and variability.

The texture of the work is distinguished by a careful selection of figurations. The continuity of their “streaming” is not broken, and the role of textural connections, cadences is great in this.

The harmonies of the piece abound in subtle finds. These include the non-chord that opens the piece, as well as the final one - the seventh chord of the I degree E dur, which creates the impression of "suspension". Of the interesting harmonic findings, one can note the succession of chords with b7 and m7, the succession of seconds (in the accompanying figuration of the second theme), the movement in the cadence along triads separated by a tritone.

The piece gives the impression of an impressionistic sketch, but one of the most rigorous forms is the sonata form. True, Ravel pointed out that he “does not follow the classical tonal plan” in it. In addition, the first and second themes of the "Water Play" do not so much contrast as complement each other, which is also not typical for the sonata form and leads to a weakening of its own developmental section. As if to compensate for this, Ravel uses the method of variant - harmonic and modal transformation of the second theme, carried out through the entire piece. The differently interpreted sonata structure would subsequently be found frequently in Ravel's works.

As for the recommendations to the performers of this piece, it is hardly possible to find better than those received by M. Long, what is called “first hand”, from the author himself: “Thirty-seconds should be played compactly, concisely like a groupetto. Legato should be avoided in the left hand part. In bar 3, arpeggiated chords should be slightly emphasized. In the next measure, the right hand, barely touching the keys, should represent a light arabesque. In measure 6 of the left-hand part, the syncopated accented sixths must be kept exactly; in the right-hand part, the sixty-fourths should flow like a glissando. In bars 19-20, the short dreamy second theme in the left-hand part should sound somewhat separated and slightly emphasized, and the first octave (in bar 20) should resonate like a bell. It should be clearly distinguished legato, which connects in these two measures the last two octaves with the accented first. In bars 27-28, do not speed up the movement, as is often done. In measure 38, in a wide phrase in the right hand, it is good to highlight the lovely melody fluttering over the rustle of thirty-seconds. On a second, more modest plane, one must make one feel the extremely original rhythmic pattern of the left hand. In measure 48, the glissando must begin with ais; in the next measure, the left hand, after two sharp gis, falls heavily on a. In measure 55 we find a more modest echo of the same episode and the same accent. In bars 60-61 it is good to take the pedal on the bass gis. The pedal should be used in its entirety and in the following presentation, where it emphasizes the return of the first theme before the start of the cadenza. In bars 76-77, his, born from a chord, should sound alone for a long time. It goes without saying that one should not slow down before the final appoggiatura: its unresolved prolongs the dream beyond the last notes and perfectly alleviates the usual disappointment with abrupt endings. To this we can add the words of Ravel himself about how this work should be performed - he answered in monosyllables: "Like Liszt's music."

continuation
--PAGE_BREAK-- §4. Sonatina (1903-1905)

Sonatina for piano is one of Ravel's first attempts to compose in purely instrumental forms of the sonata cycle.

The three parts of the sonatina form an impeccably harmonious cycle, consisting of a dreamy-excited part I, a graceful minuet - an elegant scene of "explanation in the dance" in the spirit of Watteau and a swift finale in the style of harpsichordists, in which energetic impulsiveness is suddenly replaced by moments of thoughtfulness. Ravel unites the cycle by holding the theme of Part I. She appears in the Minuet (Plus lent), and in the finale becomes the second motif of the two-dark rondo. Sonatina is distinguished by the distinctness and clarity of the melodic pattern, the transparency of the musical writing, and the sharpness of the texture lines. These features are predetermined by the dominance of the melodic principle. The melody of the Sonatina is diatonic, song-like in nature. Its structure, as a rule, is second-quarter. The unsophisticated charm of the melody lies in the peculiarity of the modality and motive-rhythmic features inherent in French folk instrumental and song melodies. Song first theme of the Sonatina, harmonized by modal turns (I - Vnat. - IV-VI-VIInat., etc.) in natural fis moll. The melody of the Minuet is based on fifths coming from the practice of playing the bagpipes. Ravel uses the most sophisticated harmonic technique, for example, in the transformations of the first theme in the finale, where the chain of chords forms a whole-tone sequence. The manner of instrumental writing in Sonatina returns to the "Antique Minuet", but at the same time, Sonatina is the starting point for a new manner of Ravel's musical writing, a feature that will appear in "My Mother Goose", "Noble and Sentimental Waltzes".

The famous French pianist A. Cortot, who himself performed this work, said: “Give this music flexibility, but without adding or omitting anything from the instructions with which the author scrupulously equips the text and the meaning of which is always absolutely accurate ... neither excessive ritenuto, nor shifted accents. Such precise indications help us to determine the true poetic atmosphere of the play. At the beginning, the theme seems to try itself, then in pianissimo subito, coinciding with the line, it sets off on a further path, and it is necessary to announce this movement with a sound caesura (though not overly strict), before taking fis, cis, etc. again. . At 23t. it is important to give a special flavor to the nonchord so that this subtle detail does not go unnoticed. Be mindful of the ratios of rallentando and various movement changes, in development, rallentando links the anime to the first tempo. A new impulse cannot be prepared by a relaxed movement. Here the connection of one tempo with another. Together with the reprise, the tender expressiveness of the beginning of the sonatina returns again. The conclusion of this first part, somewhat embarrassed, touched, recalls, by analogy, feelings, some pages of Schumann's Childhood Scenes. The second movement is a minuet without a trio. However, it does not bear this name. Ravel only pointed out: in the movement of the minuet. Play as if in a dimmed mirror you saw moving shadows in a haze and indistinct outlines of colors. Delay only the upper thematic sounds; give the accompanying harmonies a pizzicato character. "Small notes" that need only be hinted at, almost hidden, slightly arpeggiated harmonies, convey as if gliding. In the last bars, tender sadness is expressed, however, not sadness. The ending is very fiery. Ravel finds that it is never played fast enough. Play it with ebullient temperament. Perform shades with brightness. In plus lent, give the sound a touch of regret, but let the whole remain swift and whimsical. This whole play is lively, radiant, full of inner joy and exceptionally strong-willed.

To this we can add the remark of M. Long: “Usually the first movement is played too fast. Ravel, however, indicates "Modere". In order not to lose the immediate freshness of the work, one should keep aristocratic restraint even in the most passionate impulses. Minuet Ravel advised to play in the tempo of the minuet from the sonata Es dur op. 31#3 Beethoven. Particular attention should be paid to the frequent repetition of the rallentando litter. With Ravel, this is primarily a weakening of the sound: the effect of slowing down should come from a nuance and weakening of the sound rather than from an actual change in movement. In the third movement, impetuous and brilliant, there is only one difficulty, however, very real: it is the nervous, clear execution of the rhythmic formula characteristic of it; it is not so easy to accurately play these two notes against the background of an arabesque in the part of the left hand.

Sonatina Ravel, like "Pavane" was very popular. She won the sympathy of the audience forever and firmly entered the educational and pedagogical repertoire and concert practice of pianists.

§5. "Audible Landscapes" (1895-1897)

The quest of the young composer reflects two pieces for two pianos in 4 hands under the general title "Audible Landscapes". In the unusual and even pretentious title of the plays, the influence of Sati comes through. The plays were not published in their original version. Ravel later took advantage of their material. Some chords of the play "Among the Bells" were included, according to Cortot, in the "Valley of the Bells" ("Reflections"), and "Habanera" in an arrangement for the orchestra was included in the "Spanish Rhapsody".

The first piece of "Habanera" is, as it were, inseparable from the southern night landscape. At the beginning of the Habanera, the influx of a dance tune seems to come from afar. They are conveyed by a bizarre clutch of chords with a pedal on the dominant. The pedal on cis gives a stable reference point for the ear, and the chords - whirring sonorities, as if displaced in space. Ravel achieves this effect by emphasizing overtones with chords that sound in a high register. Returning to the pedal, we should note its important role: it is maintained in medium voices throughout the entire piece and thus becomes the sound axis of all melodic-harmonic movements. The harmonization of the theme is infinitely rich in modality - shades of fis moll - harmonic, natural, cIV # and the major of the same name - mixolydian and harmonic.

"Habanera" is Ravel's first reference to the Spanish theme, which he did not leave for long. With all the sophistication of a typically impressionistic design, Habanera is quite genre-specific. The contours of the rhythm of the dance are distinct in it, which Ravel does not blur anywhere.

The play "Among the Bells" is filled with the poetry of sounds overheard by a sensitive ear. Silvery chimes, the hum of bells, the twilight voices of the bell towers - the extreme sections, dissolve in the peace of a quiet evening. The middle section is an island of lyrics, where the composer gives himself up to the expression of personal feelings, his own emotional statement.

"Habanera" is performed in a muffled sound - the upper limit of the dynamic range is only mf and requires the performer to be able to hear and embody the finest dynamic gradations. The performer should also pay attention to the "instrumentation" of this piece. The flickering colors of the initial chords of the first part, against the background of a kind of “muted” cis in the second, which also requires performing sensitivity in rhythmic and intonational terms. The characteristic rhythm of the "Habanera" (v.15-18 and similar) is worth repeating - the author's note bis ad libitum.

In the piece "Among the Bells", to create the effect of a bell ringing, it is worth using a thick pedal: in this piece it is very important to choose the exact balance in order to obtain a single, solid, rich overtone sound. It is also worth paying attention to the tempo ratios. The middle part should not be played too slowly.

§6. "My Mother Goose" (1908-1910)

“My Mother Goose is a hymn to childhood, its chaste delight, its boundless gift of fantasy.” (M. Long)

Ravel approached the children's theme very individually. In contrast to Bizet, who embodied in his "Children's Games" typical scenes from the life of a child, closely connected with everyday life, with the world of the surrounding reality. Ravel gravitates towards unusual, exceptional images. In this sense, he is closer to Debussy. But unlike the author of "Children's Corner", Ravel does not seek to penetrate into the inner world of the child, to characterize his emotional experiences. The composer finds one of the most interesting facets of the children's theme, where his gift as a musician-painter, a master of sharp characterization, could clearly manifest itself. This is the realm of fairy tales. All five pieces of the cycle are devoted to various fairy-tale images drawn from children's fairy tales popular in France by Ch. Perrault. Here are the gentle chords of Pavane, to the sounds of which the Sleeping Beauty fell asleep; the ingenuously refined movement of a small step of timid thirds - the excitement and failure of a Boy the size of a finger. Fragile, unrealistic chime of fictional Asian musical instruments, accompanying the complex rite of ablutions of the "Ugly Woman" - the empress of pagodas; the sly expressiveness of the conversations of the Beauty and the Beast, then the touching beauty of the "Magic Garden", saturated with the aromas of sounds.

When writing Mother Goose, Ravel had to rely on childish, very limited pianistic abilities. He found a way out by turning to the clarity and simplicity of the melodic line. In his plays there is no hint of simplification, primitivization. Each technique is strictly selected, concisely expressive. The pieces are strikingly simple in texture and at the same time very refined.

In the play "Pavane to the beauty sleeping in the forest" Ravel refers to the old, primordially French counterpoint. The lulling melody of "Pavanes" is entwined with a thin veil of melodic undertones, unexpectedly creating an exquisite harmonization. Its freshness is largely achieved by diatonic mode.

"Thumb Boy" is about children who get lost in the woods. Melodic lines at a distance of a third move modally independently of each other. A new melody is layered on top of them.

Before the reprise, there is a chirping of birds responsible for the fact that the children could not find their way home.

In The Ugly Woman Empress of Pagodas, the conditional Chinese exoticism of the fairy tale is conveyed by the pentatonic black keys. Of course, it is very conditional, in the spirit of the XVIII century. The most surprising thing is that both in the texture of the introduction and in the theme one can recognize Ravel's favorite second-quarter and second-quint moves. In the middle episode, Ravel shows the Green Serpent crawling out in the bends of the infinite canon, and then in the reprise combines this theme with the pentatonic scale of the first theme.

The play "Dialogues of Beauty and the Beast" is given the character of a waltz. In this waltz, miracles happen not only with the Beast turning into the Prince. Ravel works wonders with the harmonic vertical. In the elegance and imaginary simplicity of the line of texture, the third decimal chord is hidden. Faithful to the exact depiction of the vicissitudes of the plot, Ravel recreates the sighs of the Beast in love, connects his theme with the coquettish theme of the Beauty and depicts the transformation of the Beast into a handsome prince, allowing himself at this moment the undisguised luxury of harmonic colors.

The Magic Garden is an apotheosis composed on the rhythmic basis of the sarabande. The ascending movement of chords gradually captures the upper registers c1 to g4 and ends with glissando and "bell" chimes, praising the heroes of the fairy tale and their virtues. All the solemnity of the sound of the apotheosis is based on the strict diatonic of modal sequences.

The pieces of "Mother Goose" form a certain sequence of musical numbers connected tonal (small and large terts tonal connections between the pieces) and framed by dance movements - pavane and sarabande.

It is impossible not to pay attention to the "classicist" side of the composer's letter "Mother Goose". Fairy tales of the 16th-18th centuries Ravel embodies with the help of expressive means of the same time: the rhythms of ancient dances, counterpoint, modes.

"Mother Goose" is also known in the orchestral version made by Ravel in 1012. With a modest orchestral composition (it is an incomplete pair, without trumpets and trombones, with a slightly enlarged percussion group), Ravel wonderfully blossomed the musical fabric of the plays. The soft sound of a low flute and muffled strings give the "Pavane" a noble color of tapestry fading. In the piece “Thumb-Boy”, the sound of wings and the chirping of birds are conveyed by high artificial harmonics of the strings (their sound is perceived especially sharply in contrast to the smooth lines of the piece, in particular, with the melody of the English horn in the lower register). In The Ugly Lady Empress of the Pagodas, Ravel mobilizes orchestral resources - an enlarged group of percussion and plucked instruments - to realize this unusual "Chinese" scene. The coquettish waltz melody of the Beauty is entrusted to the clarinet, and the "sighs" of the enamored Beast - to the contrabassoon. The miracle of the transformation of the Beast into a prince is accompanied by the miracles of orchestration: the glissando of the harp and the harmonies of the solo violin. The solemn tread of the sarabande in its apotheosis is excellently embodied in the rich sound of the string group. In a word, in the orchestral version of the work, a small orchestra is used with the utmost virtuosity.

Outwardly modest pieces of "Mother Goose" did not remain just an experiment, standing apart from the general evolution of the composer's work. On the contrary, this experiment gave very promising results. Rejecting the figurative texture, Ravel activated the melodic line.

Acquaintance with an orchestral score, where timbre effects are developed with the proper virtuosity and skill, will help pianists in finding the right sound coloring. A. Cortot advised pianists to use the score as a valuable aid in the study of these interesting pieces.

Conclusion

This work has a methodological focus. It provides recommendations that will help performers - pianists most accurately convey the composer's intention.

In lessons in a comprehensive school, you can use sections from Chapter I, which characterizes the composer's style (§ 1 "The originality of impressionism", § 4 "People-national origins", § 6 "Circle of images"), and when getting acquainted with the works of the composer, students figurative characteristics presented in Chapter II of the diploma can be offered.

Bibliography.

Alekseev A. French piano music. M., 1961.

Alekseev A. History of piano art. part III M., 1982.

Alschwang A. Works of Debussy and Ravel. M., 1963.

Alschwang A. French musical impressionism. M., 1945.

Gakkel L. Piano music of the XX century. L., 1990.

Corto A. About piano art. M., 1965.

Crane J. Maurice Ravel. Owls. music, 1957 No. 12.

Crane Yu. Style and color in the orchestra. M., 1967.

Long M. "At the piano with M. Ravel." Performing Arts of Foreign Countries, vol. 9. comp. Milshtein Ya.I. M., 1981.

Martynov I. Maurice Ravel M., 1979.

Music of the XX century, Essays, part I, book 2, ed. Zhitomersky D.V. M., 1977

Ravelian. Owls. music, 1976.

Ravel in the mirror of his letters. Comp. Marcel Gerard and

Rene Chalu. M., 1988.

Smirnov V. M. Ravel and his work. L., 1981.

Articles and reviews of the composers of France. L., 1972.

Stupel A. M. Ravel. L., 1968.

Falla M. de. Articles about music and musicians. M., 1971

Kholopov Y. Essays on Modern Harmony. M., 1976

Tsypin G. Maurice Ravel. M., 1959.

French impressionist composer Maurice Ravel, one of the representatives of the world musical culture of the first half of the 20th century.

Joseph Maurice Ravel was born on March 7, 1875 in the southern part of France, in the small town of Ciboure. Ravel's musical abilities are discovered in early childhood, and already at the age of seven he is playing the piano. And in 1889 he entered the preparatory piano class at the Paris Conservatory.

While studying at the conservatory, Maurice wrote several works, such as: "Old Minuet" and the pianoforte "Pavane on the death of an infanta." There he met the Spanish pianist R. Viñes, who was the first to perform his compositions.

In 1901, he makes an attempt to win the Prize of Rome, but fails. New attempts in 1902 and 1903 to participate in the competition are also unsuccessful.

Since 1905, Ravel Maurice has become widely known in Paris as an innovative musician. His fame is growing every day, compositions are performed like hot cakes. And despite the defeat in Rome, the composer feels like a winner in the eyes of the musical and intellectual society.

An artist of high culture, Ravel paid special attention to French literature (both classical and modern) and painting (he was fond of the Impressionists). He showed great interest in folklore (French, Spanish, etc.). Spanish themes occupy a significant place in his work (Ravel's mother is of Spanish-Basque origin).

Ravel gave concerts as a pianist and conductor, performed mainly his own compositions (in the 1920s he made a concert tour of Europe and North America), and appeared with musical critical articles.

During the First World War of 1914-1918 he volunteered for the active army. The war gave rise to deeply dramatic works by Ravel, including a piano concerto for the left hand, written at the request of the Austrian pianist P. Wittgepstein, who lost his right hand at the front; he dedicated the piano suite The Tomb of Couperin (1917) to his dead friends.

At the same time, neoclassical tendencies appeared in a number of works. Ravel's works represent a variety of genres: Spanish Rhapsody (1907), Waltz (1920), and Bolero (1928) for orchestra - one of the pinnacles of French symphony of the 20th century, the opera Spanish Hour (1907) , the opera-ballet The Child and the Magic (1925), etc. Ravel is subject to the elements of dance rhythms of different times, which is reflected in the “dance” compositions - the ballet (choreography, symphony) “Daphnis and Chloe” (to the libretto by M. M. Fokina, 1912), Bolero,

“Noble and Sentimental Waltzes” (for piano, 1911), etc., as well as in such works as the Sonata for Violin and Piano (2nd movement - blues), the opera “Child and Magic” (foxtrot of the Teapot and Cup) and etc. Creativity, Ravel's discoveries in the field of harmony, rhythm, mode, orchestration led to new stylistic trends in the musical art of the 20th century.

In 1933, the composer gets into a car accident, as a result of the injury, a brain tumor develops. Due to a progressive illness, Maurice ceases his creative activity.

In 1937, he undergoes a complex operation, but the operation fails and the composer dies at the age of 62. He was buried in the suburbs of Paris at the Levallois-Perret cemetery.

10/15/2015 at 20:47

Acquaintance with the musical tastes and passions of the composer is always of great interest: it helps in many ways to understand the course of the process of formation of a creative personality. Ravel himself rarely spoke out on this subject. But friends have kept a lot of thoughts of the author of Daphnis and Chloe, which provide enough material for a summary of his opinions about the music of various eras and countries.

In Ravel's statements, two names are rarely found, without which it is difficult to imagine the history of music - Bach and Beethoven. One can, however, understand that their art was far from the direction of French music, to which the author of Daphnis and Chloe belonged. Of course, Ravel understood their greatness, but this was only an objective recognition of a historical fact.

But in relation to Mozart, he invariably showed the warmest feelings. The author of Don Juan was for him the perfect embodiment of music itself, a source of high artistic joys, he surprised and delighted with the amazing immediacy and purity of his inspiration. Ravel repeatedly chose Mozart's works as "models" for his creative work. Mozartianism manifested itself in his concern for the clarity of form and sound, the harmony of proportions. J. Bruy quotes Ravel's words: “Mozart is absolute beauty, perfect purity. Music would have to die with it, die of exhaustion or this purity, if we didn't have Beethoven, who was deaf." In this statement, the French composer echoes Tchaikovsky.

We know about Ravel's love for the work of Schumann. It was, in essence, a childhood hobby, although, by the way, the French master, already in his mature years, worked with great satisfaction on the orchestration of Carnival. Mendelssohn turned out to be much closer to him in his striving for clarity of form and finished polishing of details. In this regard, he put a particularly high violin concerto. Through Schumann and Mendelssohn, Ravel came into contact with the world of German romance, where he also singled out Weber, admired his Freischütz, never tired of listening to the final quintet from this opera, and greatly appreciated Weber's songs. Ravel noted the innovative beginning of his work, saw in it an important prerequisite for creating the Wagnerian concept of the unity of poetry and music.

Wagner himself was, however; far away for Ravel, who grew up in an era when the fascination with the music of the author of the "Ring of the Nibelung" had already passed its zenith in France. Ravel's system of aesthetic views and tastes was difficult to combine with Wagner's, not only subjective, but also national factors contradicted each other, and trends in the historical development of French and German cultures clashed. Most of Ravel's friends were also far from fascinated by Wagnerism. And yet he could not fail to understand the significance of Wagner in the history of world art. It is interesting to recall in this connection one of the composer's statements referring to the thirties.

J. Zogeb once asked him: who, in his opinion, “... some French master or Wagner left a deeper mark? Ravel concentrated and after a long thought dropped: "Wagner". These words are all the more remarkable because they were said in the last years of the composer's life, when much was rethought anew.

Ravel had especially warm feelings for Liszt and Chopin. He loved not only the piano music of the Hungarian composer, but also his symphonic poems, the manner of orchestral writing. While working on "Night Gaspar", he asked to send him Liszt's sketches - "Mazepa" and "Wandering Lights". Roland-Manuel writes that he studied them in preparation for composing a suite, just as a virtuoso practices before a concert. In the last years of his life, he again returned to Liszt, looking through his sketches. J. Szigeti recalls Ravel's words about Liszt - "this unfairly underestimated composer and discoverer ...". Elsewhere he spoke of Liszt's influence on Wagner. All this is evidence of the unchanging love for the master, which is also spoken of by the rhapsody "Gypsy" and many pages of Ravel's piano music. Liszt always remained for him an example of high artistry, the personification of creative inquisitiveness.

As for Chopin, Ravel dedicated an article to him, published on the pages of the Courier musical magazine in 1910, when the centenary of the birth of the great Polish composer was celebrated. This fact itself is remarkable - after all, Ravel almost did not appear on the pages of the press, and a special reason was needed to encourage him to do so.

Speaking about the rejection of music without subtext, Ravel notes that this is "a deep and true thought." “How much of it was discovered later - this subtext! Up to that time, music had only appealed to feeling. She was sent to the mind. And he didn't care about her. Music - musicians. Here is a genuine interpretation of thought by non-professionals, damn it! Musicians, creators or amateurs who are sensitive to rhythm, melody, atmosphere created by sounds. To those who can tremble when connecting two chords, when comparing colors. Content is the main thing in all arts. Pointing to the origins of the Polish and Italian - Ravel remarks: "Chopin carried out everything that his teachers had negligently expressed very imperfectly." Negligence, perhaps, is not the right word, but the idea of ​​the accuracy of craftsmanship, the complete subordination of the material is clearly expressed, and here the aesthetic principles of two composers, Polish and French, came into contact: both of them strove for the utmost clarity of expression of thought, were intolerant of any manifestation of dilettantism. The completeness of the form, the thoroughness of the finishing of details - everything attracted Ravel in the works of Chopin. Both have in common the impeccability of stylistic taste and sense of proportion.

One way or another, Ravel came into contact with a wide range of phenomena in European music of the last century. But much remained outside of his attention - he resisted the charm of the Italian opera. In essence, Ravel turned out to be far from the most powerful representative of French romanticism - Berlioz, although, of course, he could not pass by his orchestral discoveries. In his native music, he was incomparably more interested in other phenomena - from Couperin and Rameau, highly respected by him, to composers of the second half of the 19th century - Saint-Saens, Duke (in whom he admired the unity of man and artist), Fauré, Chabrier and a number of others.

Chabrier was especially dear to Ravel, he saw in him an outstanding representative of French culture. There is information, although not entirely reliable, that Ravel and Viñes visited Chabrier during their conservatory years to play Three Romantic Waltzes for him. One way or another, but Ravel sincerely loved and respected the creator of "Spain". Over the years, some of the weaknesses of Chabrier's work became clear to him, but he was always ready to defend him from overly picky critics. He was outraged by talk about the banality of Chabrier's music: “They also talk about vulgarity. A mysterious flaw for a composer, whose accidentally heard three measures make it possible to recognize the individuality of the author, ”he answered one of his ill-wishers. In an interview given in 1931, Ravel called Chabrier one of the most authentic French musicians.

Evidence of enduring interest in him was the piano piece "in the style of Chabrier", and the orchestration of the "Solemn Minuet" made in 1919, where some researchers saw a "model" for Ravel's "Antique Minuet". Subsequently, Ravel intended to edit the score of the opera The Reluctant King.

Finally, one can also point to direct creative links. More than once an analogy has been drawn between Ravel's Toccata and Chabrier's Fantastic Bourree, some ["... common features ... "Spanish Rhapsody" and "Spain"".] Bathory, the first performer of "Natural Histories", believes that , writing them, Ravel could remember such plays by Chabrier as “Fat Turkeys”, “Song of Ducklings”, “Grasshopper”. A comparison also arises between "Noble and Sentimental Waltzes" and "Three Romantic Waltzes". The similarity of images and even plots speaks volumes!

Behind all the names of composers who were interested in Ravel during the formative years of his work and influenced him, Debussy and Russian masters - Borodin, Mussorgsky, Rimsky-Korsakov stand to their full height. The connections with them are the most important and significant, they determine the essential features of Ravel's evolution. Therefore, it is necessary to dwell in more detail, first of all, on contacts with Debussy, which were covered in one way or another by all those who wrote about the two masters and, more broadly, about French music of the 20th century.

Their creative and personal relationships were long, complex and varied, sometimes conflicting. Behind all this, something is revealed that was important for both: the commonality of the paths of the new art, on which they won so many brilliant victories. Composers belonged to different generations. By the time Ravel took his first steps in the composer's field, Debussy had already created such masterpieces as the Quartet, "Afternoon of a Faun", "Nocturnes", and in 1902 - "Pelléas and Mélisande" (recall that in the assets of his younger colleagues then were "Pavane" and "Game of water"). All these were artistic events that captivated young people, including Ravel: he grew up in an atmosphere of the growing fame of Debussy, experienced his influence. It could not have been otherwise - Debussy unusually expanded the horizons of art, revealed perspectives that were fascinating for an original young talent.

Ravel was such a talent. Admiring the music of Debussy, he early understood its liberating meaning and the multiplicity of opening paths, among which he quickly found his own. The features that distinguished his music from the works of the author of Pelléas became more and more distinct. Like him, Ravel appreciated Gallic clarity and sense of proportion, but they took on a different character with him. First of all, he was distinguished by loyalty to traditional forms, while Debussy did not show much attention to them.

Ravel's musical thinking lay on its own plane, and the figurative structure of his works was different. This is felt even where both composers turned to similar subjects, as, for example, in the work on vocal cycles to the words of Mallarme or in the scores of the Spanish Rhapsody and Iberia. The difference in manners did not interfere with understanding between them, even in cases where personal circumstances were mixed with aesthetic assessments.

There are many testimonies of Ravel's love for Debussy's music. “Listening to the record “Afternoon of a Faun,” I saw,” writes one of the composer’s friends, “how Ravel’s eyes filled with tears. “Listening to this work after a long time,” he told me, “gave me to understand what real music is” ” . These words were spoken in March 1918 under the direct impression of the loss of Debussy, but they also expressed the constant - the depth of the feeling that lived in Ravel's heart.

He was among the fans of "Pelléas", tried not to miss a single performance. Ravel himself was looking for completely different themes and solutions, but he understood the full significance of Debussy's opera for modern music, and later saw two of her milestone works in Pelléas and The Rite of Spring. In 1912, he recalled that the appearance of "Pelléas" amazed many supporters of Debussy, remained incomprehensible to them: "The word impasse was uttered, then it was expected. Many young people have been wary of the claims of the critics and have found, at the bottom of the cul-de-sac, a gate wide open to magnificent, entirely new expanses.

In February 1913, Ravel appeared on the pages of Les Cahiers d "aujound" hui with a warm, heartfelt article about Debussy's Spring Dances and Iberia, especially admiring its second part, Flavors of the Night. The number of such reviews can be increased. Let us add that in 1901, Ravel, together with a friend at the conservatory R. Barda, worked on a piano transcription of the Nocturnes, and he was “... instructed to rearrange the third nocturne, Sirens, by himself, perhaps the most beautiful of them and, without a doubt, the most difficult". He also made a two-hand arrangement of "Afternoon of a Faun". We add that on April 24, 1911, Ravel and Aubert played "Nocturnes" in the Gaveau Hall arranged for two pianos. In 1920, Ravel orchestrated the "Saraband", in 1923 - "Styrian tarantella". Both works were performed in concerts by Lamouret, and the second of them was the basis for the choreographic embodiment after the death of Ravel - in 1946. All this suggests that Ravel forever retained his love for Debussy's music, unchanging love and admiration for it .

This feeling was also caused by the awareness of the closeness of artistic aspirations. Jourdan-Morrange recalls that Ravel sometimes emphasized the influence of Debussy in such works as Scheherazade, the Quartet, the Great Overseas Winds, but also believed that his constructive principles were important for the author of Iberia, Gardens in the Rain ”, Sonatas for violin and piano.

Debussy's influences on the young Ravel were numerous. Yu. Kremlev draws a number of parallels: between the dawn scenes in The Prodigal Son and Daphnis and Chloe,

A fantasy for piano and orchestra, which Ravel found "charming", and a bacchanal scene from the ballet, reminiscent of it in its "clear and even harsh coloring". These unexpected convergences are not without interest in understanding the general trends in the work of such different masters.

In "Pavane" Ravel "comes very close to some features of Debussy's harmonic thinking (suffice it to point out the parallel nonchords in bars 26-27)". Then - the transition from the second to the third scene of "Pelléas", "the amazing effect of play of sound colors, found here by Debussy, certainly served as a model for the sound painting of dawn in the ballet" Daphnis and Chloe "by Ravel".

There is, of course, an element of the subjective in such analogies, but they are of undoubted interest. Now that the "Debussy-Ravel" problem has lost its former sharpness, when it is no longer possible to exchange remarks like the following: "Don't you see that Ravel goes much further than Debussy" and "Your Ravel only smokes the cigarette butts that Debussy throws at him", we can give each according to his merit. Beyond the subjective artistic tastes that persist to this day, the true meaning of the two masters, the features of their commonality and differences, emerges.

Undoubtedly, each of them was the ruler in his kingdom. One could create something inaccessible to another: it is impossible to imagine Debussy as the author of Bolero, and Ravel as the author of Pelléas. But they had crossroads, on one of which there was, for example, the “Valley of Rings”. Debussy paid tribute to Ravel, and he said that he would like to die listening to Faun. All this obscures the individual quarrels and misunderstandings that arose between them.

It has already been said that Debussy performed before Ravel and in the decade of 1892-1902, when Ravel was going through the stage of maturation of his talent, he created a number of fundamental works. In other words, the last decade of the century was marked by maturity for Debussy, and for Ravel - the formation of a creative personality. Moreover, it took place in a different setting than the author of The Afternoon of a Faun. The 90s were marked by a sharp struggle between the two camps - the Conservatory, which at that time was a stronghold of academicism, and the National Society, which attracted to its concerts everything truly new and talented that appeared then in French music, including many of Debussy's works. Next to this, the forces of Frank's supporters were strengthening, which were grouped around the Schola cantorum. In the 1900s they were already attacking the direction of the National Society.

Young people accepted as classics the works of new poetry, painting and music, around which until recently, at the end of the last century, passions boiled, discussions unfolded. Now her attention was turned to other subjects, but the essence remained the same - young art resolutely opposed the academic tradition, asserted aesthetic principles that continued to develop at the beginning of the 20th century. This was the heyday of musical impressionism, whose representatives included Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel, who became the greatest masters of French music of their time.

The authors of articles and books about Ravel have already revealed in sufficient detail the difference between the styles of the two masters of new French music. So, Suarez notes that Debussy penetrated classical art in order to reject its traditions, to create new forms. Ravel willingly uses old forms, often updating them. The first one is dominated by modality, wholeness, while the second one has a favorite big seventh chord. Indeed, in the field of harmony, Debussy thought more radically. Ravel innovatively developed the already established harmonic system, in general, not striving to go beyond its limits. Debussy set as his task precisely the expansion of modal structures, which was rightly pointed out by Bartok, who noted the role of the French composer in liberating music from the hegemony of major-minor.

Composer and musicologist R. Reti writes that Debussy rejected the laws of classical tonality, but not its very principle, expanded its limits. He speaks of this composer's commitment to the harmonic pedal and whole-tone constructions. Ravel gravitates towards the stability of the tonal plan. We will dwell in more detail on the characterization of his writing, but for now we will confine ourselves to a comparison with Debussy. This is done by all researchers. So, Yu. Kholopov sees the similarity between them in “the tendency to sensual luxury of softly dissonant chords, modal-harmonic colorfulness”, noting that “... Ravel's harmony is psychologically simpler, more classical. It is quite objective, has a pronounced genre basis, especially dance.

The same difference in approach is noted in the field of shaping. The freedom of constructions of Debussy, who invariably affirms the priority of fantasy, and Ravel's adherence to tradition. This is also emphasized by Honegger, who says that Ravel's works are firmly put together: “In them we will find the opposition of two themes, development, reprise. Ravel does not break up and dissect the theme according to scholastic school rules, however, thematism plays an important role in him, and in a number of cases he managed to achieve greater strength and power of development. To this must be added the frequent use of the forms and rhythms of classical dances.

The difference is really cardinal, making you forget about a separate similarity. At the same time, it should be borne in mind that Ravel's tradition is filled with new content. His fantasy - bold and rich - unfolds within the framework of traditional forms, including the sonata, which no longer attracted Debussy (the return to it in his last works meant, in essence, a radical rethinking).

Cortot also notes more specific style differences between the two composers in what he calls "the concept of virtuosity". In Debussy, it seems to be associated with the “poetic or pictorial possibilities of the instrument”, which mean for the composer something more than concern for the rigor of form. For Ravel, on the contrary, the instrument "only carries out an unconditional will ... is limited to fixing the decisions of an accurate, sharp-witted and foresighting mind." Cortot pays tribute to his piano writing, although sometimes (for example, in "Noble and Sentimental Waltzes") he prefers the sound of an orchestral version.

Alschwang says very well: “... Debussy, as a true impressionist, conveyed in his music poetic impressions of reality with an inevitable smack of subjectivism; Ravel, on the other hand, preferred the logical processing of already existing musical genres (folk song, folk dance, waltzes of the Schubert era and the era of Johann Strauss) and, therefore, acts as a more objective and at the same time less direct artist. Here the fundamental question of the difference in styles and individualities is touched upon, which ultimately determined the originality of the art of the two masters, without whom it is unthinkable to imagine the history of new music. Everything private, purely personal, recedes behind the main thing.

Comparing their works within the same genre (for example, piano or vocal music), one can be convinced of their difference in the presence of common features. It has already been said that new paths of pianism are outlined in The Play of Water. These discoveries were significant for Debussy as well. But how dissimilar are the piano style of the two composers, not to mention the figurative content of their music! W. Gieseking, a wonderful performer of their music, is right that both of them were brilliant, unique, unlike each other masters. Even in the evolution towards neoclassicism common to both, there is a difference.

Much has been said and written about this, and not always objectively. Biased statements were heard during the life of Debussy, they escalated tension in the relations of composers. Things got to the point that during the rehearsals of The Rite of Spring they sat at opposite ends of the hall. In addition, each of them had "well-wishers" who inflated the issue of imitation and even brought charges of plagiarism.

The grounds for such accusations were themselves rather shaky. For example, the comparison of "Pagodas" and "The Play of Water" is hardly convincing: the pentatonic passages were not the property of this or that composer, they existed besides them. The analogy between the descending passage in "Gardens in the Rain" and the same "Play of Water" is even less substantiated - only the bass sound is common in them, the very structure of the passage is different, and by the way, Ravel's is more complicated. This is not said to belittle the merits of any of the remarkable composers: roll calls are natural among the masters of one country and era, and they are not necessarily borrowings. In the same way, polemical exaggerations on the part of admirers of their talent are quite possible and even common. Only with the passage of time can one understand all the details and understand the essence of this issue.

Its correct formulation was hampered at one time by circumstances that have now lost their significance. Now the scope and independence of the art of two luminaries of French music of our century are clear. And again, the insight of Bartok is confirmed, who wrote back in 1928 in the pages of the Revue musicale that the appearance of two musicians of this magnitude at once testified to the richness and strength of the creative possibilities of new French music.

Indeed, Debussy and Ravel were its brightest representatives at a time when it asserted its independence and freed itself from academic norms and dogmas. Both went through the complex paths of impressionistic searches, both then turned to the rapidly gaining strength of neoclassicism. They enriched it with the sound of a deeply independent note, which is equally heard in Debussy's Sonata for Violin and Piano, and in Ravel's Tomb of Couperin.

History gave its assessment to the long-standing dispute. Undoubtedly, Debussy - as the older one - was the first to embark on the path of updating his native art. Ravel enriched him in later years. Chronologically, in some ways, he even went first to the frontiers that Debussy foresaw, whose life and career ended much earlier - during the First World War, while the author of "Bolero" continued to write in the 20s and early 30s . However, both occupy a landmark position: one - at the beginning of the century, the other - at a sharp turning point in European art that came after the war of 1914-1918.

In the post-war years, Ravel largely remained true to the former aesthetic principles, which now acquired a different meaning. He showed interest in polytonality, early forms of seriality, invariably remaining a tonal composer. The spirit of creative anxiety continued to live in him, and he constantly set himself new tasks, right up to the time of creating two piano concertos. However, they are not final works in the exact and full sense of the word. The evolution of Ravel's creativity did not lead to the final synthesis - creativity itself ended much earlier than the possibilities hidden in it were exhausted. To a certain extent, this also applies to Debussy, who found new means in his piano etudes and chamber sonatas of recent years, which he never managed to realize.

All of the above is important for understanding the essence of the problem of "Debussy - Ravel" in a broad socio-historical aspect, in connection with the study of the development of French art.

We have already mentioned Ravel's constant interest in Russian music, his ardent love for Borodin, Mussorgsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, his work on the orchestration of Khovanshchina and Pictures at an Exhibition, the play "... in the style of ...", collaboration with Diaghilev and Stravinsky, Fokin and Trukhanova, meetings with Prokofiev. All this is an integral part of the composer's biography, which is attracting more and more attention from researchers.

Ravel's interest in Russian music had not only private, but also general reasons. With her, a fresh wind of renewal blew in Europe, and he awoke a lively response among the composers of France, and of other countries as well. At the beginning of the century, Bartók and Kodály studied the scores of Russian masters, preserved in Budapest, in the Liszt library. Falla wrote about the significance of Glinka for the new Spanish music. Ravel's acquaintance with the work of the Kuchkist composers was of the same, even more important, significance: it was a whole world of inspiring ideas.

He found there an example of the development of national traditions, which helped him to better understand his tasks. Before Ravel, a sea of ​​harmonic and orchestral colors, unusual in their freshness, spread out, and he, like Debussy, felt in them something close to his own ideals. The principles of combining speech and musical intonations, "melody created by speech", also became the subject of careful study and largely determined the nature of his vocal writing. Ravel listened with delight to the eastern pages of Russian music; he was especially attracted by the world of fairy-tale images of Rimsky-Korsakov. It is no coincidence that French musicologists find similarities between the episodes of a number of Ravel's works and the operas The Tale of Tsar Saltan and The Snow Maiden - one can talk about the roll call of images and motives that are individual for each composer.

Speaking about the origins of Ravel's creativity, it is necessary to indicate, next to the national ones, Russian music, first of all, the art of the composers of the Mighty Handful. Of course, it was not perceived in its entirety, but in the closest aspects to Ravel. There was not even a shadow of imitation in this, everything entered organically into the creative consciousness and merged into one with its subjective beginning. Ravel perceived the lessons of the Russian masters as a true artist, remaining himself and the spokesman for national aspirations.

It should be added that the impact of Russian culture was wide: Ravel heard Chaliapin, was well acquainted with the achievements of Russian choreography, Russian artists who lived in Paris and took part in the creation of Diaghilev's performances. In a word, Ravel's Russian contacts were wide and varied.

Ravel was always sensitive and responsive to the new, “followed the musical and literary evolution with the greed of a young man,” recalls E. Jourdan-Morrange, who talked with the composer about art more than once, attended concerts and performances with him. The flow of events was endless, a string of contradictory phenomena passed before my eyes. All this fascinated creative thought.

Of his contemporaries, besides Debussy, Ravel was especially interested in two - Schoenberg and Stravinsky. He understood the full significance of these two masters for the new art, was fond of their works such as Lunar Pierrot and The Rite of Spring, but retained his own aesthetic principles, remained himself in search of new expressiveness. From this point of view, his attitude towards Schoenberg is remarkable.

Ravel got acquainted with the works of the Austrian master in the early 1910s. He had to read the article "Schoenberg and the Young Viennese School" published in the pages of the "Revue musicale S. 1. M." According to Roland-Manuel, he recognized Schoenberg's piano pieces at the same time (op. 11). Stravinsky interested him in the music of Lunar Pierrot, and he attended the Paris premiere of this work, which he appreciated very highly. Paul Kollar quotes the following words: “I feel a disposition towards the Schoenberg school: they (his followers - THEM.) are both romantic and strict. Romantics, because they always want to break old tables. Strict in their new laws, which they introduce, and in the fact that they do not trust the hated "sincerity", the mother of long-winded and imperfect works. Acquaintance with the Lunar Pierrot opened up to him the possibilities of a new interpretation of the chamber ensemble and vocal writing (Sprechgesang). All this became for him not an object of imitation, but another incentive in search of new ways.Reactions to acquaintance with the music of Schoenberg can be found in the "Three Poems of Mallarme" (G. Bruy considers them not even alien to the "young dodecaphonists of 1950"). that in Madagascar Songs and the Sonata for Violin and Cello “we find several musical waves testifying to this admiration.” But these are precisely “several waves”, separate strokes, because in the main Ravel went his own way.

Defending the artistic value of the Lunar Pierrot, Ravel was far from accepting the Schoenberg system, he believed that art should be free from any dogmas. Moreover, he himself firmly stood on the tonal basis and remained faithful to her to the end. He could not accept the dodecaphonic dogma, with all due respect to the personality of its creator. Once Ravel told E. Jourdan-Moranger that Schoenberg "invents the typewriter." But the machine, invented by another, least of all suited Ravel, with all his love for mechanisms. He wanted to create according to his own laws.

His relationship to Stravinsky was closer and more immediate, but also complex and ambiguous. The friendship of the two composers arose in the pre-war years and grew stronger in joint work on the instrumentation of Khovanshchina. They highly appreciated a number of each other's works. Ravel was among the first to determine the meaning of the Rite of Spring. He said: "We must listen to Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring. I think that it will be as significant an event as the premiere of Pelléas." Stravinsky himself noted the fidelity of Ravel's understanding of his true artistic intentions. However, in the future, after 1920, there were discrepancies - the last work of Stravinsky, which received recognition from Ravel, was "The Wedding", although J. Bruy claims that he liked the "Symphony of Psalms". Of course, they followed each other's novelties, but without the former vivacity of attention and expression of mutual enthusiasm.

We do not know how Ravel reacted to The Story of a Soldier, which embodies neoclassical principles with such clarity. Probably, this should have interested the master, who solved similar problems, but solved them differently: Ravel does not forget about the beauty and richness of timbre in his last works, while Stravinsky, for example, in the Symphony of Psalms, creates an atmosphere of almost ascetic sound. The rights of E. Jourdan-Morrange, who wrote: “Two great musicians, upon returning to the past, acquired classical purity, remaining themselves to the last point.”

There were differences of aesthetic principles and tastes. But "... the nobility of the soul retained a deep respect for one another." Both of them took - each their own - place in the history of music, both met at international festivals, evoked many responses, in a word - were on the musical Olympus.

Ravel, of course, knew the music of his contemporaries: Bartók and Kodály (he even defended them from militant chauvinists during the First World War), Hindemith (A. Veprik, who visited the master at the end of October 1927, recalled the interest shown by him in pedagogical principles German composer). He knew Prokofiev and Gershwin, met such a radical representative of the new art as E. Varèse, heard a lot of modern music at festivals, and all this was within his circle of attention.

The composer witnessed the premieres of Satie's "Parade" and "Socrates", the promotion of the "Six", the rapidly growing popularity of jazz. The post-war generation often opposed him as the bearer of an "obsolete" tradition. But he himself perceived much of what came into life, and some of the young, such as Honegger, treated him with complete respect.

He saw "a new joy, a new hope and a new childhood, victory, the music of spring and the music of nine o'clock in the morning, but also anxiety, convulsions and the fermentation of an uncertain future: everything that still today can awaken attention and recall the nostalgia of 1921."

Ravel's musical tastes and passions are inextricably linked with the features of his personality, which are quite fully disclosed in the memoirs of various authors. Direct evidence always retains its value, even if they are somewhat contradictory. Friends and acquaintances of Ravel felt the unusualness of his nature, and it revealed itself to them in different ways.

E. Vuyermoz emphasizes the features of psychological character: “This little brilliant Basque was supposed to bear the name of a rural flower, which gardeners call“ The Despair of the Artist ”". A. Syuarez endows Ravel with fantastic features, sees him “... running in pursuit of Peer Gynt, but not over the snows of Norway, but over the red lands of Castile", looks with surprise at "the hands of the artist, who, it seems, made an appointment here to change a little the hands of the great bacteriologist". And next to them, A. Veprik remains in a very real sphere: for Ravel is “a charming, sweet, intelligent and knowledgeable old man.” The composer was then only 52. ​​Age criteria have changed since then, but he probably really looked older than his years.

Those who knew Ravel note his dandyism a la Baudelaire - cold elegance, sophistication in clothes, fear of triviality, emphasized respectability, even in relations with closest friends. With the exception of two or three Conservatory comrades, he was not "on you" with anyone, very rarely gave scope for the expression of feelings. J. Zogeb recalls: “You see,” he said to me one evening, “they talk about the dryness of my heart. This is not true. And you know it. But I'm a Basque. Basques feel passionately, but indulge in this little and only in individual cases.

Ravel attracted attention with his talent, appearance and very way of life, which paradoxically combined the need for friendly communication and the habit of loneliness. Love for life and nature lived in him next to an interest in toys and automata, even a passion for them, strange for an adult, sometimes causing ridicule and even neglect of those around him: “He was reproached for fabricating automatic toys; but they were magnificent toys from fairy tales, which had a magical effect on our imagination and our sensibility. They were wonderful toys for grown children."

The words, written by a friend's hand, reveal the essential side of the composer's aesthetic views, but only one and, of course, not the most important. The “Swiss watchmaker” often went into the world of fairy tales, but other areas were also subject to his talent, where he created works that cannot be called “wonderful toys”. The combination of psychological and aesthetic elements that made up the image of a composer and a person was much more complicated than it seemed at first acquaintance. However, individual elements were correctly noticed by observant friends.

It is curious that all this was expressed during the composer's lifetime, moreover, in the collection for his fiftieth birthday, where he was spoken of as a master, although he himself protested against this. The authors of the articles already saw in Ravel the spokesman for the artistic aspirations of the epoch that had come to an end and considered themselves entitled to make generalizations and sum up. This had a certain meaning, although the work of Ravel was soon enriched by works that outlined new paths.

The composer's friends often emphasized not only his dandyism, but also his peculiar infantilism. It is possible that it was only a protection from extraneous influences, from outside interference in personal life, a quality associated with some internal features. Along with this, there was an interest in the urban reality of the surrounding world, in industry and technology, which are also mentioned on the pages of the composer's letters. Technology directly entered Ravel's life during the war years, when he was a truck driver, and it attracted his attention in the future. In 1928, Ravel visited the Ford factories, he also thought about the factory when composing the music for Bolero. In his enduring interest, he was truly modern, the son of the age of industrialization.

But he perceived this in a purely technical aspect, far from any social generalizations. Ravel was locked in a private world, carefully guarded by him in his established order. Only once - during the war years - did he show civic feelings. In Ravel's letters, we will find almost no mention of the events of political and social life. But complete isolation from reality was impossible, talent demanded space, access to life, and we know that the echoes of its storms and anxieties penetrated the composer's closed world. They are heard in the "Waltz", the Concerto for the left hand, testifying to the complex processes that took place in the mind of their author. The charm of images of nature remained unchanged for him, which are so beautifully embodied in many pages of music, full of special poetic charm.

Ravel was a poet - by the very essence of his music, by the sensitivity of perception of the images of the surrounding world and the poetic word. And in everything he looked for his aspect of embodiment, which determined the vitality of music, made it sincere, although the composer himself strongly dissociated himself from this definition, calling it "hateful". Indeed, the sensitivity of lyrical outpourings was alien to him, but he always remained truthful in art, spoke about his experiences, and in this sense he was truly sincere, as a true artist should be. The requirements of craftsmanship were a strict, voluntarily assumed discipline, everything was subordinated to the clarity of logical design, which was reflected in the closeness to the French rationalism of the eighteenth century.

Once Ravel said: it is important to find a principle, and there every student of the conservatory can solve the problem. Here he touches on one of the cardinal problems of contemporary music. The definition of the basic principle - the parameter - became in it an increasingly important and defining moment. True, sometimes everything was limited to purely formal construction, but on the whole this in one way or another relates to the practice of the most diverse composers. That is why "Bolero" is a truly modern work: accuracy and consistency in the implementation of the chosen principle determines the entire flow of music. Ravel's ideal was "... a conscious activity by which the composer can confidently achieve technical perfection, no matter what theme he chooses and what musical language."

The features of the highest professionalism were noted in his art by everyone who knew Ravel. L. Farg writes that the composer had "the character and qualities of a craftsman", that his "passion was to offer the public finished works, polished to the highest perfection". It is even possible that this was sometimes decisive for him, becoming almost the main aesthetic criterion. But the composer's friends rightly pointed out that a great feeling was hidden behind the external gloss and the utmost care of the finish. This seeming contradiction was one of Ravel's paradoxes.

It is not always easy for the listener to penetrate into the depths of Ravel's music in order to understand the validity of such statements. Like any artist, Ravel must be judged not only by the first impression, but try to understand his intentions, and then they reveal what was imperceptible at first sight. R. Shalu expressed an important thought on this matter: “But if his music does not speak to us in the stormy language of passions, it knows better than any other the secret of penetrating into the depths of our soul.”

Feeding deep respect for professionalism, keenly interested in issues of technology and craft, Ravel did not allow any deviations from the norms of high taste and skill. He placed the craft very highly, knew how to appreciate it in others, attached great importance to individual details, up to the quality of the intervals.

An interesting thought is expressed in this regard by E. Ansermet: "It is believed that he is looking for the effects of color, or comedy, or picturesque, while he evaluates the volume, weight or density." Recall that Stravinsky also spoke about the density and weight of the interval - another point of contact between the views of the two masters. Both of them built musical constructions that had independent meaning and did not need programmatic interpretations. But, like true artists, these designs had not only a formal meaning, they contained a large and significant content within their framework.

It is known that Ravel himself appreciated the professionalism of the criterion in any art. He could not stand superficial dilettantism, no matter how it manifested itself. He once said: “I can’t consider a picture as an amateur, but as an artist ... In my youth, Manet’s Olympia brought me one of the most beautiful emotions ... I read professionally.” Ravel was happy with the knowledge that he could achieve everything more clearly, he said that "all the pleasures of the world consist in holding tighter the fleeing perfection."

E. Poe's aphorism: "Perfection is beauty in intensity" - can be attributed to Ravel, in any case - in the sense of the emotional richness of every detail. True, he often reduced intensity to filigree decoration, but this already applies to the individual characteristics of the letter.

Ravel sought originality in strict obedience to the "rules of the game." He loved the saying of Remy de Gourmont: "Sincerity is difficult to explain, it can never be an explanation." Sometimes he became paradoxical in his judgments: "Everyone is gifted: I am no more than others, with a little diligence each of you can do what I do." He advocated the need to assimilate the tradition, even in the process of imitation: “If you have nothing to say, you can do nothing better ... than to retell what has already been said well. If you have something to say, nowhere will that something show up more clearly than in your unwitting infidelity of the model. These words, as it were, are introduced into the workshop of a medieval artist, where students diligently copy the work of a teacher and other senior masters. This is what Ravel himself taught: his student Vaughan Williams recalls that the assignments were reduced mainly to orchestration of works by other composers and analysis of scores. Related to this is his concern about finding "models", from which, in the end, he went very far. Demandingness and a constant desire for something new were associated with the workshop concept of craftsmanship.

Roland-Manuel recalled that Ravel was losing interest in a successfully solved artistic problem. It is known, for example, that after one of the performances of the Quartet, he declared that he was listening to it as something extraneous - he had gone so far from what had already been done to the full extent of his possibilities. The constant striving for the new is characteristic of the understanding of Ravelian psychology and, more broadly, of its evolution. The author of Daphnis and Chloe has always strived to solve fundamentally new problems. Of course, Ravel was not as radical as Stravinsky, but he rarely lingered for a long time in an already mastered field, switched to another, remaining within the framework of his style and general aesthetic concept.

She was repeatedly written about both during the composer's lifetime and after his death; many interesting things can be found in the special numbers of the Revue musicale dedicated to him. In the memory of contemporaries, many of the composer's thoughts, his brief remarks and remarks made in friendly conversations and discussions have been preserved. He rarely spoke at greater length, perhaps only in a lecture given in Houston and an interview published in Etud in 1933. The interview was a kind of testament of the composer, who clearly defined his creative credo.

He begins by confirming his fidelity to tradition: “... I have never tried to refute the established laws of harmony and composition. On the contrary, I have always looked for inspiration in the works of the great masters (I never stop learning from Mozart!), and my music is based on the traditions of the past, grows out of them.”

In the light of such words, many imaginary contradictions in the appearance of the composer, who was sometimes considered a dangerous destroyer of foundations, are clarified. In fact, he perfectly mastered the conservative discipline, which entered into his consciousness very deeply, although it did not subordinate him to its norms. Ravel developed his own, without abandoning what he had already learned. He was a true student of Gedalge and Faure, and through them he was connected with the tradition of French academicism. His enormous and self-willed talent transformed any sound material, but everywhere, in any search, he retained an unchanging love for order, for completeness and elegance of expression, in which he resembles his teacher Fauré, and to some extent Saint-Saens, about whom, as you know, he responded with great sympathy and even found one of the "models" of the Piano Concerto in G-dur.

But following tradition, however academic, did not mean for Ravel to become a traditionalist. He was looking for support for movement on the paths that he chose himself - at the behest of his talent and heart. He was convinced that behind all the perfection of craftsmanship there must be something significant, important not only for the composer, but also for the listener, he felt responsible for what he would say to him with his music. His standard was lofty and essentially humanistic. He said: “Great music, I am convinced of this, always comes from the heart. Music created only by the application of technology is not worth the paper on which it is written.

How not to recall in this connection the poetic lines of T. Klingsor about the tender heart that beats under the velor vest of Maurice Ravel! Moreover, the author of the interview emphasizes: “... music should be first of all emotional, and then intellectual... And music, I insist on this, in spite of everything, should be beautiful. And for this there is one way: ... an artist must compose his music not according to theories. He must feel the musical beauty in his heart, he must deeply feel what he is composing.

In some ways, here you can find contradictions with earlier statements by Ravel. But time only clarified, made more mature the concept, which had previously found expression in the composer's works: the definitions expressed in 1931, on the eve of the creative finale, which were piano concertos, are quite applicable to them.

It is important not only to affirm the emotional beginning of art, but also to reject dogmatism, to refuse to follow preconceived theories. Ravel could subordinate inspiration to the principle chosen specifically for this piece, in accordance with the artistic concept (as is done in the score of "Bolero"), But he refused to follow other people's systems.

“Ravel knew what he wanted and followed his path with unbending logic,” Vuyermoz wrote. “Art is sometimes scattered, sometimes restless. He embarrassed his interlocutors with his imperturbable air and his butads, in which he asserted a caustic love for paradoxes. His music is imbued with the same character... Under the pretense that his craftsmanship was impeccable, he was often placed among the manufacturers of musical boxes intended for the amusement of the elite connoisseurs. The future proved that it had more than just that.”

M. de Falla said about Ravel: “... an exceptional case of something like a “miracle child”, whose miraculously developed talent could perform “magic” through his art. And this, in my opinion, is the reason why Ravel's music cannot always be evaluated without a preliminary understanding of its individual structure and the emotional principle embodied in it ... criticism ... generally denied the existence of any emotion in his music, in which there is a distinct a strong sincere feeling beats, sometimes hidden behind a touch of melancholy or mocking irony.

Ravel's dislike for the verbal disclosure of the content of his music is also connected with this. Gilles-Marchet reports that the composer often began work by establishing a harmonic and modulation plan and only then looking for thematic material. It is difficult to say how consistently this was embodied in practice, but, for all the rationality of his mindset, Ravel erected sound buildings in which the living thought of a person and an artist reigned. "My ambition is to say with notes what others say with words: I think and feel with music."

""Expressive inexpressiveness" ("Expressivo inexpressif") was Ravel's bashfulness of expression and a mask: Ravel expressed something in the absence of a desire to express! The significance of this thought should not be exaggerated - after all, the very choice of plots, their figurative structure evoked emotionality, which was sometimes muffled for subjective psychological reasons. The stinginess of nuances and, as the opposite, excessive detailing were associated precisely with them, echoing Stravinsky's similar statements addressed to the performers - both composers did not want to be interpreted, they demanded complete fidelity to the text.

In search of sophistication of expression, Ravel willingly turned to the experience of harpsichordists, and in this he was not alone: ​​the accuracy and elegance of their writing attracted Debussy, Fallu and other composers of the 20th century.

This is how the characteristic features of the style developed, brought by the composer to the highest perfection. Ravel's music has the ability to deeply touch only by its grace; it, better than any other, corresponds to the canon of Edgar Allan Poe, who demanded "... equal independence of feeling." The ideal is difficult to achieve even for the poet himself, but Ravel really shows an example of the completeness and harmony of writing, which, according to Roland-Manuel, is "the negation of all romanticism." However, any categorical definitions have their drawback - after all, in some of his works, Ravel was not alien to romantic aspiration. And this did not prevent him from remaining faithful to the ideals of French classicism.

Many saw Ravel as a representative of the musical elite, and his friend T. Klingsor also shared this opinion, believing that the composer expresses "the character of a completely aristocratic era", which subsequently caused a reaction. He is referring to the anti-Ravel and, more broadly, the anti-impressionist opposition of the 1920s. Among its noisy and restless innovators, Ravel was distinguished by his penchant for clean and clear drawing, reminiscent of his favorite Japanese artists. He remained - with a general change in aesthetic views - a man of the beginning of the 20th century. Let's add - those who crossed the line of war and, like Stravinsky, spoke their word to the new generation.

This took place in the conditions of musical life, so unlike the pre-war. Numerous contemporary music festivals, the unprecedented scope of concert and touring activities, recording, and later radio and television - all this decisively brought the composer closer to the listener. If at the beginning of the century Ravel's music was heard in salons and friendly circles, and only relatively rarely in concert halls, now it has become the property of the widest circles. And this was for him, as for other composers, an exam for artistic maturity. Life has shown that many things that seemed significant in the quiet of a creative laboratory lost this quality when they reached a wide audience. Ravel avoided such a danger; life has shown that his music is truly popular.

He himself believed that his music was simple. He spoke, for example, about the music of the dawn from Daphnis and Chloe: “It is simply a pedal of three flutes, and against its harmonic background the theme develops just like in the song Returning from the Parade.” These words showed a desire for a rationalistic explanation of the creative process The exceptional talent of the composer and the sensitivity of intonational hearing saved him from locking himself in a narrow circle of images and impressions, allowed him to speak with people of all social status. It is interesting to recall in this regard the testimony of the French journalist J. Catala: ago, while relaxing on one of the islands of the Baltic Sea, I somehow put on a record with the Minuet from the "Tomb of Couperin" - and I saw tears in the eyes of a simple Estonian peasant woman: she understood something that not a single official commentator, as far as I know, felt she understood the pain of these pages...”. The author of the article recalls Ravel's closeness to the people, that the composer loved to talk with his fellow countrymen, watch the cheerful revival of the Parisian streets, rejoiced along with everyone on the day of July 14, when he tried to be in the circle of people celebrating the national holiday. All this makes significant adjustments to the idea of ​​​​Ravel as a dandy and Montfort recluse: in reality, his appearance was multifaceted, not fitting into the framework of one categorical definition.

It is no coincidence that Roland-Manuel called his article in the anniversary collection of 1925 "The Aesthetics of Deception": he had in mind the property of Ravel's art to hide its true essence behind the outer shell. “It is difficult to imagine Ravel in the role of a deceiver,” the author of the article writes, assuming the meaning of the title, indirectly, in stating that “mimosity” and restraint of emotional expression, which other researchers wrote about. Ravel, of course, read the article, and its author would not say anything that could offend a teacher and friend. It is possible that to a certain extent he accepted the concept of Roland-Manuel, especially since there was a paradox close to his mind in it.

V. Zhankilevich also writes about this. He prefers to talk about the aesthetics of not deceit, but a dispute, he calls Ravel a debater (gageure is a French word that also means to bet, to bet). The concept of gageure, in his opinion, contains the idea of ​​overcoming difficulties, steel will. “Having experienced that the beautiful is difficult, Ravel still artificially creates exceptional conditions, ungrateful, paradoxical, which restore the rights of beautiful firmness, and since he does not know the romantic conflict of vocation and fate, he invents the error of the natural difficulty of expression, fabricates voluntary prohibitions for his own usage." The author of these words even believes that artificiality and paradoxicality are the most characteristic features of Ravel's creativity.

One may disagree with the categorical nature of such a definition, but, undoubtedly, the problem of overcoming difficulties, the desire to remain within the framework of a constructive design created by oneself are an important feature of Ravel's art. Moreover, he focused not only on the formal side, but used the found constructive schemes and techniques to express artistic intent and figurative content (the clearest example is "Bolero"). At the same time, great difficulties arose, both purely technical and aesthetic. But here the creative temperament of the gageure came into its own - a debater and lover of paradoxes, experiencing tremendous joy of victory over difficulties.

Speaking of Ravel's mastery, truly rare and individual, one cannot help but see his connection with the world of images that inspired the composer's work. This world is diverse, the impressions of life, nature and art come to life in it, which became the property of the creative consciousness of the composer, who did not strive for immediacy of expression. Hence the evenness of the psychological atmosphere, only sometimes disturbed by the tension of the sounds. All this is in harmony with the image of a restrained and emphatically correct person, who knew how to hide his feelings under the guise of calmness, who loved the strict order and sophistication of the environment, which can still be seen today by visiting his house in Montfort-l "Amaury.

The performers of Ravel music face big and complex tasks: they must reveal the fullness of its inner content without violating the evenness of tone, and at the same time avoid the danger of calmness and indifference, a falsely understood objectivity. After all, Ravel himself said that the artist "must feel the musical beauty in his heart, he must deeply feel what he composes." And he was such an artist, in his temperamental and emotional, he carried great feelings hidden under his inherent manner of narration. Behind all his calls for precision and rationality of performance was an ardent love for art. E. Jourdan-Morrange quotes Ravel's words: “My mistress? It `s music!".

The nature of the composer was deep, receptive, but also very stable in its aesthetic principles. Many important features of his composing manner appeared already in his early works, withstood the onslaught of new impressions. Ravel has always been inherent in the rationality of the way of thinking, but it did not exclude intuition and inspiration: “... his mind is a powerful and faithful ally of the unmistakable taste that arises in the depths of creative emotion,” K. Shimanovsky rightly notes, as if answering Ravel’s own thoughts about correlation of intellect and feeling in a work of art.

This was felt not only by musicologists and composers, but also by performers. For them, in particular, the question of the evolution of styles was important, and above all the attitude towards impressionism. G. Neuhaus found that this is "... a too narrow term for an artist who feels nature in all its diversity of forms and states, for an artist with a philosophical orientation of thinking." His idea is clarified by S. Richter, who believes that Ravel's works are "...too dynamic, temperamental to be typically impressionistic, and too multicolored, colorful, colorful not to be at all." The pianist is captivated by the composer's "bright decorativeness and richness of colors, the richest exoticism, fragrant and spicy sound coloring - what could be called the" Gauguin "worldview in musical art." Richter's opinion is also close to the perception of E. Gilels, who hears in the Ravel music echoes of southern France.For L. Oborin, the main thing is "... the classical origins of Ravel's music - his constant desire for internal harmony, for the perfection of form and external decoration."

The thoughts of great performers provide the key to their interpretation of Ravel's music. Of course, they expressed their understanding of Ravel by means of their art, and this is the most important thing, because music exists primarily in live sound. But the thoughts of great artists are always extremely interesting and often reinforce the conclusions of researchers, are included in the concept they create.

From the general problems of the Ravelian style, we move on to considering the features of the master's harmonic and orchestral writing, where his creative originality is revealed with particular clarity.

Ravel repeatedly spoke of his fidelity to the laws of harmony and composition. He liked to point out the strictness of the school he had gone through and its importance in the formation of a young composer. As Veprik recalls, “he emphasized elementary harmony, where not everything is allowed, where there are restrictions.” And he himself always established strict "rules of the game", within the framework of which his harmonic searches unfolded. This is stated in numerous research articles and studies.

A significant contribution to the study of Ravel's harmony was made by the French musicologist J. Chaille, who published several articles and essays on this topic. Based on particulars, he paints a picture of the whole, emphasizing, first of all, the organic evolution of Ravel's harmonic writing. The attention of the researcher is attracted by three main factors.

First of all, he deals with the problem of the genetics of Ravel chords. He takes the opening bars of Noble and Sentimental Waltzes, where the sounds With And A included in the tonic chord g-h-d, lose the character of apodjatura, acquire a new unity. In the seventh waltz there is a combination F major And E-dur, which is considered as an analogy to the famous bitonal passage from Petrushka. But Stravinsky has something different - black and white diatonic, juxtaposition in the tritone interval, changing color and harmonic meaning.

Shaye interprets the chord c-cis-fis-a-d as typical of Ravel and finds his prototypes in the first movement of Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata, as well as in the final bars of Chopin's Scherzo in h-moll. Thus, the evolution of the formation of the technique is outlined: “... passage apodjatura (Beethoven), persistent apodjatura of delayed resolution (Chopin), independent chord (Ravel)”. It must be said that this is not an isolated observation of the researcher: the entire Ravelian chord is for him the result of the historical evolution of harmony. Like the composer himself, Chaiet points out, first of all, the features of continuity.

The second important question is the modality of Ravel's music, which appears clearly in the Ancient Minuet. It is possible that we have here an example of the influence of Chabrier. In any case, Chaillet, in his report at the international symposium (Paris, 1975), draws a very convincing analogy between the harmonic turns of the "Antique Minuet" and Chabrier's opera "Gwendoline". In the future, Ravel repeatedly used the technique of modal harmonies, sometimes complicated by the introduction of "neighboring sounds" - his favorite technique - but without losing their modal essence. This is another evidence of the infallibility of Ravel's hearing, which found an exact balance in all sound combinations. Let's go back to Shaye's article. He writes: “Next to Foret, he (Ravel. - THEM.) shared the reputation of one of the creators of modern modality, he claimed to know only the strictest school tonality. Of course, this is not entirely true, because the examples of modality that Ravel found in Russian music - in Mussorgsky, and in French music - in Debussy, directed his thought far away from academic dogmas.

Related to this is Ravel's departure from the traditional tertian chord, a return to more archaic forms of fourth-quint consonances; taking on a new meaning. The renaissance of these harmonies began at the end of the 19th century, it was associated with an increase in interest in the pentatonic scale, which also attracted the attention of Ravel. At the same time, he is not alien to something close to ancient chromatism, as the example from Madagascar Songs shows.

One can also recall other pages of Ravel's music, showing the variety of forms of harmonic writing that the composer found, while remaining closely connected with the classical concept of harmony. He sought to delve into the world of new sounds, could use individual techniques, but included them in the framework of his system. So he was far from the linearity already emerging at that time, the warehouse of his thinking remained strictly harmonious. Ravel knew how to use his favorite harmonies (for example, a large seventh chord) in his own way, making you forget that they existed before.

Interesting thoughts about the harmonic language of Ravel were expressed in 1925 by A. Casella. He examines the issue in historical terms, recalling the years of the composer's teaching, which coincided with the period of the decay of harmonic thinking, which to a large extent took place under the influence of Wagner's ideas. A similar concept is developed by E. Kurt in his famous book “Romantic Harmony and Its Crisis in Wagner's Tristan” (by the way, it contains only one mention of Ravel - in connection with the Minuet from Sonatina). Debussy successfully searched for his own ways of updating harmony.A. Casella brings Ravel closer to Saint-Saens, although, to tell the truth, there is little in common between them, especially in terms of harmonic writing.

In general, Ravel uses the traditional major and minor in a variety of ways, the Greek modes - Dorian, Hypodorian, and sometimes Phrygian, all of which are found in him in many combinations. With all this, Casella believes that polymodality did not play such a role in Ravel as in Debussy. This somewhat contradicts the views of modern researchers, but in general it correctly indicates the composer's commitment to the classical concept of European harmony.

Casella finds in the mature work of Ravel one of the most important - in his opinion - signs of harmony of the 20th century: a chord with an eleventh overtone overtone g-h-d-f-a-cis, which was also found in Debussy, but acquired particular importance and specificity precisely from the author of Daphnis and Chloe. He sees here one more evidence of the naturalness of the evolution of Ravelian harmony, based on the expansion of the number of sounds used in the natural scale. Another source of enrichment was the widespread use of apodjatura, especially the unpermitted one.

Critics often pointed to this, they even accused Ravel of abusing the technique, in the "cult of the neighboring note." Indeed, many chords arose from him as a result of complex apodjaturs.

It is easy to see that all these are superstructures on the classical dominant seventh chord. Such formations, often found in the score of Daphnis and Chloe, were perceived in their time as something completely new, although - and here Casella agrees with Chaillet - they have a precedent in Chopin's music: chord fis-h-d-eis-g. There is, however, a significant difference, we add: the coloring of the harmonic function in Ravel and its sharp expressiveness in Chopin. This is an interesting example of the difference in the meaning of the same device by different composers, depending on the artistic intentions and, in a broader sense, on their aesthetic concepts.

A. Casella, like P. Kollar, notes that the most complex Ravel harmonies can be analyzed taking into account the apojatures built on top of traditional chords, and this is precisely the reason for the constant tonal stability of music. Bitonality arises in Ravel in the post-war years from a combination of two lines, which in itself speaks of the increased importance of counterpoint in the system of his musical thinking. He is also familiar with what Yu. Tyulin calls polymodality (the vertical ratio of different modal formations).

The next harmonic resource is the pedal, with the help of which the character and structure of ordinary harmonies are also transformed, taking on a new meaning, for example, in the music of the second part of "Night Gaspar". Another typical stroke is various combinations of large seconds, including parallel ones.

Ravel attached exceptional importance to harmonic finds, often to a single chord, knew how to appreciate it and enjoy it, and sometimes even see it as the center of the work. Vuyermoz notes on this occasion: “When you recognize him in the depths of the work, you guess that harmony often became a precious stone for him, which is carefully placed in a wonderful frame and which orients the balance of the composition.”

In this he is close to Debussy and Scriabin, whose names were repeatedly mentioned by those who wrote about Ravel's harmony. Contacts (and differences) with the first of these are undeniable, but as for Scriabin, we do not know how familiar Ravel was with his work, although it can be assumed that he heard his Third Symphony performed in Paris in 1907. In any case, Scriabin's harmonic searches, although they lay in a different area, could interest Ravel. In the strict logic of Scriabin's harmonic constructions (it is known what importance the author of Prometheus attached to this), in their amazing clarity (despite all the complexity), in constant concern for the purity of style and clarity of writing, Ravel could find something related. But, of course, in their figurative structure and the very nature of the musical language, these composers are far from each other, they are in different spheres of art of the 20th century.

In his report at the Paris symposium in 1975, the musicologist A. Oeré said that Ravel had relatively few colors of the harmonic palette, but he knew how to use them in a very diverse way. Many important elements of harmonic writing were found by the composer in his youth and have been preserved throughout his creative life. Oeré focused his attention on the Madagascar Songs, where, in his opinion, Ravel's harmonic thinking appears in a particularly crystallized form. It is noteworthy that the Soviet scientist Y. Kholopov in his book “Essays on Modern Harmony” builds a description of the Ravel style on the basis of an analysis of one of the “Madagascar Songs”.

The music of this cycle contains many typically Ravelian apojatures, what O. Messiaen calls "additional notes". It contains polytonal episodes, background effects and other interesting details. Oeré singles out the construction of two large sevenths - a-gis-g, which can be reduced to the sequence of two small seconds, often found in E. Varèse. But if there it is in the nature of deliberate harshness, then Ravel uses this technique in a different way, finds a form of presentation in the spirit of his aesthetic concept. He was always far from the destructive tendencies that manifested in European music, said that he was not going to use "radical" harmonies, and in all his searches he remembered the clarity and beauty of sound. Ravel remained true to the classical principles of harmony, modifying traditional chords by introducing additional sounds and using unexpected juxtapositions.

Listening to the music of Ravel, we enter into a bright and original harmonic world, in which processes of intensive development take place. The desire to rely on tradition was combined with his unflagging interest in the new, the tendency to expand the range of means, clearly visible in the works of the 20s. We already know how much new was found in them by the composer, tireless in search of paths not yet traveled, which makes Ravel's harmonic writing truly fresh, original and modern.

This can also be said about Ravel's orchestral writing, which is marked by high skill and bold innovation. And here one can feel strong ties with predecessors and contemporaries, both French and foreign.

E. Jourdan-Morrange notes in this regard that Ravel learned a lot from Rimsky-Korsakov and R. Strauss, who taught him to look for and find the still unexplored possibilities of wind instruments. As for Rimsky-Korsakov, here the successive ties are incomparably deeper and more significant.

Roland-Manuel is right when he asserts that “Ravel owes the fertilizing principles of the alchemy of timbres to the Russians. He borrowed from them the secret of instrumental combinations that give birth to new sonorities in union with the peculiarities of each timbre, without which the orchestra is aggravated by unnecessary overload. But the lesson of the Russians was only a lesson, and if the rise of the clarinet or the magic of using percussion in the works of Rimsky-Korsakov evoke analogies, then the orchestra of two musicians opposes each other in character.

This is true - this is how a master learns, not losing independence when learning the lessons of another. However, the question of the influence of Rimsky-Korsakov's orchestral writing on the development of the style of Ravel and Debussy cannot be reduced to particulars. The point is that Rimsky-Korsakov opens a new period in the understanding and interpretation of the orchestra, and that is why much of his work turned out to be important and acceptable to composers of the 20th century, including Stravinsky. So Ravel accepted the experience of the author of Antar, highly respected by him, but read his scores in his own way, remaining himself even when solving similar problems - it is enough to compare the Spanish Capriccio and the Spanish Rhapsody.

Speaking about the influences of Rimsky-Korsakov, they usually recall the scores of "Antar" and "Scheherazade" - works written in the 19th century, forgetting about the achievements of a later time, primarily about the "Golden Cockerel", excerpts from which Ravel could hear performed by the Column orchestra as early as in May 1908. The Russian master's score reveals perspectives that perhaps attracted Stravinsky more than Ravel. But he could not remain indifferent to the unprecedented renewal of technical means. Something similar can be seen in the evolution of orchestral writing from Rhapsody Spanish to Bolero, of course, adjusted for the individuality of the French composer.

Ravel's orchestral style took shape in an era when Debussy had already established his innovative traditions, when Stravinsky's work was taking off rapidly. Ravel's strength was reflected in the fact that he managed to pave his own way and in these conditions was not suppressed by the powerful influences of great contemporaries, he created a style of writing that still attracts attention with its unique colorfulness, relief and originality, although stylistically it is far from our time. Not to mention the purely artistic merits of Ravel's scores, they show an example of an excellent knowledge of instruments, inexhaustible imagination in their combinations, and precision in the application of each means. Ravel brilliantly expressed the desire to transform orchestral writing, which is characteristic of French music in the last decade of the last century.

Debussy was the first to rebel against the polyphony of Wagner's instrumentation, contrasted it with the technique of pure timbres, expanded the arsenal of sound production means, and found new roles for orchestral instruments. He made extensive use of various forms of divisi to create specific color effects. Ravel took all this and combined it with direct lessons in Russian music.

Vuyermoz, the author of an interesting article on Ravel's orchestra, notes on this occasion: "The import of the most" delicious "finds of Mussorgsky, Borodin and Rimsky-Korsakov further enriched this vocabulary, so flexible in its Slavicisms and exceptionally charming Orientalism. At a time when Ravel stepped onto the stage, everything seemed to have already been said in the most inventive and most accurate orchestral confessions.

The role of Russian music - the Kuchkists and Stravinsky - was in fact great in the development of Ravel's orchestral writing. But this did not exhaust the resources of renewal, and other composers of the 20th century opened their orchestral worlds: the works of Bartok and Hindemith appeared, and somewhat later - Shostakovich, all this was added up in the sum of technical and artistic achievements. Ravel has taken a worthy place in the pleiad of modern masters of the orchestra. He brought the technique of the impressionistic orchestra to the highest perfection, and then came to a new one, far beyond its limits, as the scores of the Bolero and piano concertos show.

An important feature of Ravel's scores is in the extreme detail and accuracy of the author's instructions, which excludes any arbitrariness of interpretation, in the dynamic nuances that arise as a result of the use of precisely calculated orchestral means, what is called "written out crescendo and diminuendo". The classic example is "Bolero", where build-up results from the gradual accumulation of orchestral resources. Ravel "... requires from instrumentalists, first of all, virtuosity, which is not connected with the conductor's initiative," notes P. Kollar on this occasion. The peculiarity of Ravel's orchestral writing is thus directly related to his understanding of the essence of the "composer-performer" problem, which we have already mentioned above.

Ravel highly appreciated the "made" score, verified to the smallest detail. By the way, here he is also close to Rimsky-Korsakov - they are related by love and respect for composer's skill, for what is denoted in French by the word metier, which is not quite analogous to the Russian word "craft".

It is necessary to add one more feature of commonality: Ravel, like Rimsky-Korsakov, attached exceptional importance to the most detailed knowledge of the technical features of the instruments, which was for both one of the most important prerequisites for the complete mastery of individual orchestral skills. Each of them had his own preferences, but both knew the subject thoroughly. Rimsky-Korsakov practically studied playing the cello and wind instruments, and Ravel spent long hours communicating with orchestral musicians, trying to comprehend all the details of their skill and the technical capabilities of their instruments. Moreover, he sought to find new techniques that at first glance seemed impossible. While studying, he taught others - hence the wealth of amazing finds, unmistakably aimed at the implementation of the artistic concept.

This is shown by the analysis of any score by Ravel, in particular, the study of his tutti, where the sound density of each instrument is determined with such impeccable accuracy. He is no less accurate in transparent episodes. If we take, for example, the first movement of the "Spanish Rhapsody", then we can trace the thoroughness of the "fit" of each orchestral detail. This is not deliberate, it is embedded in the compositional scheme itself, where the ratio of a few constituent elements is just as accurate and everything is subject to the strictest logic, leaving no room for rethinking the performer. The principles of orchestral writing are, therefore, in full accordance with the general composer's concept. Like any great master, Ravel synthesizes all the elements of his talent, which determines the organic nature of his music. Listening to her, it is difficult to distinguish intuition and creative insight from strict calculation and logical discipline.

Like most musicians of his time, Ravel was interested in unusual sounds, showed special attention to still unknown methods of sound production, combinations of timbres, in a word, to what some call orchestral alchemy. Moreover, his searches were not only not limited to what was considered impossible for this or that instrument, but, on the contrary, became even more active in an effort to approve the unprecedented. And how many times did he emerge victorious from martial arts with the technique of one or another instrument! Strictly speaking, all the reformers of orchestral writing faced this problem in one way or another, but for Ravel it acquires special significance, because his love for the paradox found expression in its solution. The thing was that a rare knowledge of the instruments helped him to embody daring ideas in those exquisite and unexpected sounds that abound in his scores.

Ravel set himself the most difficult virtuoso tasks, which sometimes came close to the realm of a technical trick, but an unmistakable sense of proportion saved him from excesses, from crossing a dangerous border, and he always remained in the realm of true musicality.

Many examples can be found in the score of "Spanish Rhapsody", where - especially in the first part - the composer strives for an impressionistic fixation of changeable impressions, continuing and developing in his own way the traditions that come in many respects from Debussy's "Afternoon of a Faun" (which by this time already significantly expanded the range of orchestral means, as the score of "The Sea" shows). Ravel's attention is focused here on the invention of colorful orchestral effects, so richly represented in the sound fabric of "Spanish Rhapsody". There was novelty in this refinement, from here the path to the pomp of colors of the score of Daphnis and Chloe was already outlined - the pinnacle of Ravel's impressionistic orchestral writing. Then it remained either to repeat or grind the details endlessly. But, as the future showed, the composer discovered other possibilities related to the general evolution of his work; orchestration has always been determined by the inner content of music, even where, it would seem, a purely technical problem is being solved.

Ravel's orchestration can be likened to an elegant, multi-colored fabric, which amazes with the subtlety of the pattern and the unexpected combination of colors. It is always noticeable, and in this the composer follows a different principle than Beethoven, whose orchestration Stravinsky said that it does not attract attention in itself. Well, there are different compositional approaches, and Ravel had his own. He always proceeded from a detailed knowledge of the technical features of each tool and used them to solve precisely defined tasks. This is typical for any work of Ravel.

He was a "conscious craftsman", but also a magician of the orchestra, a master of the finest calculation and rare intuition, able to appreciate every stroke and find a place for it in the overall picture. In this he is also close to Rimsky-Korsakov. Ravel's orchestration is a miracle of precision, as, indeed, is the whole manner of his composer's writing. His scores are instructive for every professional musician: they will awaken in him many important thoughts and considerations. And for a wide range of listeners, they will remain among the favorite works, pleasing with the beauty and richness of sound.

The glory of Ravel - the master of orchestral writing - was established during his lifetime and has not faded so far, although many amazing discoveries have been made in this area. Obviously, Ravel worked on his scores with the same feeling of complete creative enthusiasm as Rimsky-Korsakov, who spoke of the joy he experienced in orchestration, in the consciousness of his power over the sound element.

An important issue is the primacy of the timbre image: Ravel, the great master of the orchestra, always composed at the piano. G. Neuhaus believed that, while working on his works, the pianist should emphasize the orchestral elements, thus indicating the connection between the two spheres of the French master's music. However, this refers more to the psychology of creativity than to the orchestral style, which remains truly independent, which is best evidenced by the works of Ravel themselves, which affirm the style of genuine orchestrality that has developed with the composer, who in his own way comprehended a wide range of phenomena of the past and present.

It remains for us to add a few necessary remarks about the genre range of Ravel's orchestral music. Like Debussy, he, in essence, remained indifferent to the symphonic tradition of Beethoven, and at the same time to its characteristic methods of development and development, which were continued in France in the work of Franck and his followers. Ravel was looking for something different in orchestral music, connected with his general aesthetic concept. He clearly preferred the forms of rhapsody and suites, loved picturesque sketches, and most of all - dance genres, so widely represented in his music. He continued the line of symphonizing the dance, in which he again turned out to be close to the aspirations of Russian composers, without repeating what they said. In this regard, we would like to recall once again the scores of Waltz and Bolero, their inherent scale, and the originality of the methods of their conflict and variant development. The principles of embodiment are fully consistent with the content, new, like the content itself. Ravel has said his word in an area where so much has been said by others, convincingly confirming the independence of his composer's thinking.

This has already been mentioned in connection with Ravel's work in other genres: everywhere he remained himself, and, moreover, within the limits precisely limited by himself. The composer compensated for the limited space by the fullest use of all possibilities. There is something reminiscent of his garden at Montfort, where so much variety was concentrated in a very small plot of land, arranged in an elaborate sequence. Just as economically, he disposed of the sound material of his works, just as thoughtfully introduced new effects into their music, which rises in the composer's imagination, like an architect's plan.

He was proud of the harmony of his designs, liked to emphasize the fundamental significance of the found principle, acted as a master of the highest exactingness, able to completely cross out what was written and start work over again. He was also exacting in relation to the art of others, he clearly saw that much of what arose around him was still immature, far from his aesthetic criterion. But the deep properties of nature attracted him to the world of new art and literature. “He was one of the first readers of Paul Valéry,” writes E. Jourdan-Morrange, immediately appreciated Stravinsky, listened to jazz music with enthusiasm. Responsiveness to the new has always lived in the heart of the composer, and more and more phenomena of post-war art entered the circle of his close attention, he peered into them, assessed a lot correctly - from the standpoint of his experience and skill. He himself essentially remained a representative of the pre-war era.

This does not negate the musicological concept of "two Ravels". The composer, indeed, has changed in many ways in the post-war years. But he met the new as the owner of a strong independent individuality. He mastered only what seemed to him necessary, and did not just swim along the general flow. And if some of the friends of the change seemed too radical, then for the younger generation it remained beyond the line of modernity.

Ravel's works were heard in the programs of new music festivals and were successful, but he did not stand in line with the leaders of our time, which were then Stravinsky and Schoenberg, Bartok and Hindemith. There were, of course, objective reasons that strengthened Ravel's academic position in the world of post-war European music.

It is quite possible that this suited him, because even in his youth he did not strive for stunning novelty, his ideal was the individual continuation of the tradition, which he also spoke about in an interview in 1931. And the reality of the art of that time was largely connected precisely with the rebellious denial that resonated with young people, and Ravel inevitably turned out to be an academician in her eyes, capable, perhaps, of understanding her, but not joining with her in the ranks of the avant-garde of those years. This is how his position in contemporary art was determined.

This is the position of a great artist, inextricably merged with the traditions of French culture, developing them in the difficult conditions of the first decades of the 20th century. Connections can be traced far into the past, they are diverse, they appear not only in music, but also in other arts. Hence the significance and organic nature of the emergence of an artistic phenomenon, such as Ravel's music.

The composer himself has repeatedly emphasized the national character of his work. True, he constantly turned to plots and sound material that led him out of the French sphere, but this did not prevent him from retaining a true national character. Falla said that every melodic phrase of Ravel is French in its "very special way".

Yes, the composer's specificity manifested itself both in the features of the musical language and in aesthetic principles. He was among those who asserted the strength of national schools of art and emphasized the prospects of their development. And together with Debussy, he became one of the greatest French musicians.

He deserved this not only due to the unique originality and mastery of writing, but also due to the very essence of his art, which was not immediately understood. Szymanowski was right when he said back in 1925 that behind the play of colors on the surface, not everyone recognized the depth of Ravel's music. The spirit of true humanity lives in her, she introduces high and beautiful feelings into the world. In the art of Ravel, the harmony of the French artistic genius was once again manifested. Impeccability of craftsmanship, balance of proportions, purity of style - all this is a necessary form of expression of what was endured in the depths of the soul. That is why the music of the best works of Ravel - "Daphnis and Chloe", "Tombs of Couperin", "Waltz" and others awakens a response in the hearts of people of a new generation. They turned out to be responsive to the voice of the composer, who began his career at the turn of the century.

The past tense makes us take a fresh look at many artistic values, including Ravel's music. But this also allows us to better understand its features and place in the historical perspective.

We often see the name of Ravel on posters, in radio and television programs. His works are recorded on records performed by the best artists and bands. The pages of many books and articles are dedicated to him. In a word, Ravel's personality and art continue to attract the attention of everyone who is sensitive to the voice of the music of the 20th century.

Maurice Ravel was born on March 7, 1875 in the city of Ciboure in southern France (now the Pyrenees-Atlantiques department). In 1882 he began to study piano with A. Guise, since 1887 he studied harmony with C. Rene. The city of Cibur was located on the very border with Spain, where at that time his father served as a railway engineer, a passionate lover of music, who instilled this love in his son. In 1889, Ravel entered the Paris Conservatoire, where he graduated in piano. The young musician was helped a lot by his teacher Charles Berneau, a famous pianist of that time. However, Ravel's interest in improvisation and composition appeared after he got acquainted with the work of the "underground" founder of musical impressionism and simply extravagant composer Eric Satie, as well as a personal meeting with another composer and pianist Ricardo Viñes. It was after this that Maurice developed a passion for writing. Twenty and thirty years later, despite difficult personal relationships, Ravel repeatedly emphasized how much he owes to Sati in his work and called him none other than his “Forerunner” (or Precursor).

In the last year of his studies, he was in the class of a major French composer Gabriel Faure. On his initiative, Ravel composed a cycle of works on Spanish melodies - "Habanera", "Pavane for the Death of the Infanta", "Antique Minuet". After graduating for the period 1900-1914, he wrote many compositions.

When you listen to the music of this composer, you get the impression that you are watching the work of the artist creating his canvas. However, like most composers, the work of Maurice Ravel was not recognized for some time. Only after the speeches in his defense by the largest cultural figures of France, R. Roland and G. Faure, Ravel was awarded a large Rome Prize. This allowed him to go on a three-year internship in Italy.

During World War I, Maurice worked as a truck driver at an airfield. After serving for more than a year, Ravel was demobilized after two serious wounds. After the war, Ravel's music began to be dominated by an emotional element. Therefore, from composing operas, he moves on to creating instrumental plays and writes the suite “The Tomb of Couperin”. Around the same time, Maurice Ravel met the famous Russian producer and director S. Diaghilev, who was staging Russian Seasons in Paris. Specially by his order, a ballet to the music of Ravel "Daphnis and Chloe" is staged, in the main part - V. Nijinsky - the great Russian dancer. Then another ballet, "Waltz", will be staged. After the premiere, the composition began to be used as a separate work. The dawn of the glory of Maurice Ravel is coming.

However, the popularity and fame oppress the composer, and he moves from Paris to the town of Montfort-Lamory, which, in principle, does not mean a refusal to further musical activity.

Ravel tours a lot: he performs with tours in Italy, Holland and England. And everywhere he was met with an enthusiastic reception of grateful admirers. By order of the Russian conductor S. Koussevitzky, Ravel performs a brilliant orchestration of "Pictures at an Exhibition" by M. P. Mussorgsky. All this happens while Maurice is working on his most famous work, Bolero. In it, the composer tried to combine classical traditions with the rhythms of Spanish music. The idea of ​​this work belongs to the famous ballerina Ida Rubinstein.

The location of the parts, their strict sequence in the development of the main theme made it possible to convey the dance element of Spanish music. The famous Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova included "Bolero" in her repertoire. In 1925, M. Ravel completed work on the innovative work "Child and Miracles (Magic)". It was called opera-ballet. Along with traditional instruments, for the first time, during the performance of this work, the composer's instrument, the Eliophone, skillfully imitating gusts of wind, sounded.

In 1932, Ravel again toured Europe with the outstanding pianist Marguerite Long. At the same time, he begins work on a new work - the ballet "Joan of Arc". However, he gets into a car accident, and work stops. Starting in 1933, Ravel suffered from a serious neurological disease, possibly the result of a head injury, which he received in a car accident.The last work of the seriously ill composer was "Three Songs" for the first sound film "Don Quixote. They were written for the Russian singer F. I. Chaliapin.

Rhapsody for violin "Gypsy", Quartet, Trio, sonatas (for violin and cello, violin and piano), piano works (including Sonatina, "Water Play", cycles "Night Gaspard", "Noble and sentimental waltzes" , “Reflections”, suite “The Tomb of Couperin”, parts of which are dedicated to the memory of the composer’s friends who died during the First World War), choirs, romances. A bold innovator, Ravel had a great influence on many composers of subsequent generations.

He was born in the family of the Swiss engineer Joseph Ravel. My father was musically gifted, he played the trumpet and flute well. He introduced young Maurice to technology. Interest in mechanisms, toys, watches remained with the composer throughout his life and was even reflected in a number of his works (let us recall, for example, the introduction to the opera Spanish Hour with the image of a watchmaker's shop). The composer's mother came from a Basque family, which the composer was proud of. Ravel repeatedly used the musical folklore of this rare nationality with an unusual fate in his work (piano Trio) and even conceived a Piano Concerto on Basque themes. The mother managed to create an atmosphere of harmony and mutual understanding in the family, conducive to the natural development of the natural talents of children. Already in June 1875 the family moved to Paris, with which the whole life of the composer is connected.

Ravel began to study music at the age of 7. In 1889, he entered the Paris Conservatoire, where he graduated from the piano class of C. Berio (the son of a famous violinist) with first prize at the competition in 1891 (the second prize was won that year by the greatest French pianist A. Cortot). Graduating from the conservatory in the composition class was not so happy for Ravel. Having started studying in the harmony class of E. Pressar, discouraged by his student's excessive predilection for dissonances, he continued his studies in the counterpoint and fugue class of A. Gedalge, and since 1896 he studied composition with G. Fauré, who, although he did not belong to the advocates of excessive novelty, appreciated Ravel's talent, his taste and sense of form, and kept a warm attitude towards his student until the end of his days. For the sake of graduating from the conservatory with a prize and receiving a scholarship for a four-year stay in Italy, Ravel participated in competitions 5 times (1900-05), but was never awarded the first prize, and in 1905, after a preliminary audition, he was not even allowed to participate in the main competition . If we recall that by this time Ravel had already composed such piano pieces as the famous Pavane for the Death of the Infanta, The Play of Water, as well as the String Quartet - bright and interesting works that immediately won the love of the public and remained to this day one of the most repertoire of his works, the decision of the jury will seem strange. This did not leave indifferent the musical community of Paris. A discussion flared up on the pages of the press, in which Fauré and R. Rolland took the side of Ravel. As a result of this “Ravel case”, T. Dubois was forced to leave the post of director of the conservatory, Fauré became his successor. Ravel himself did not recall this unpleasant incident, even among close friends.

Dislike for excessive public attention and official ceremonies was inherent in him throughout his life. So, in 1920, he refused to receive the Order of the Legion of Honor, although his name was published in the lists of those awarded. This new "Ravel case" again caused a wide echo in the press. He didn't like to talk about it. However, the refusal of the order and dislike for honors does not at all indicate the composer's indifference to public life. So, during the First World War, being declared unfit for military service, he seeks to be sent to the front, first as an orderly, and then as a truck driver. Only his attempt to go into aviation failed (because of a sick heart). He was also not indifferent to the organization in 1914 of the "National League for the Defense of French Music" and its demand not to perform works by German composers in France. He wrote to the "League" a letter protesting against such national narrow-mindedness.

The events that added variety to Ravel's life were travels. He loved to get acquainted with foreign countries, in his youth he was even going to go to serve in the East. The dream to visit the East was destined to come true at the end of life. In 1935, he visited Morocco, saw the fascinating, fabulous world of Africa. On the way to France, he passed a number of cities in Spain, including Seville with its gardens, lively crowds, bullfights. Several times the composer visited his homeland, attended the celebration in honor of the installation of a memorial plaque on the house where he was born. With humor, Ravel described the solemn ceremony of consecration to the title of doctor of Oxford University. Of the concert trips, the most interesting, varied and successful were the four-month tour of America and Canada. The composer crossed the country from east to west and from north to south, concerts everywhere were held in triumph, Ravel was a success as a composer, pianist, conductor and even lecturer. In his talk about contemporary music, he, in particular, urged American composers to develop elements of jazz more actively, to show more attention to the blues. Even before visiting America, Ravel discovered in his work this new and colorful phenomenon of the 20th century.

The element of dance has always attracted Ravel. The monumental historical canvas of his charming and tragic "Waltz", the fragile and refined "Noble and sentimental waltzes", the clear rhythm of the famous "Bolero", Malaguena and Habanera from the "Spanish Rhapsody", Pavan, Minuet, Forlan and Rigaudon from the "Tomb of Couperin" - modern and ancient dances of various nations are refracted in the composer's musical consciousness into lyrical miniatures of rare beauty.

The composer did not remain deaf to the folk art of other countries (“Five Greek Melodies”, “Two Jewish Songs”, “Four Folk Songs” for voice and piano). Passion for Russian culture is immortalized in the brilliant instrumentation of "Pictures at an Exhibition" by M. Mussorgsky. But the art of Spain and France always remained in the first place for him.

Ravel's belonging to French culture is reflected in his aesthetic position, in the choice of subjects for his works, and in the characteristic intonations. Flexibility and accuracy of texture with harmonic clarity and sharpness make him related to JF Rameau and F. Couperin. The origins of Ravel's exacting attitude to the form of expression are also rooted in the art of France. In choosing texts for his vocal works, he pointed to poets especially close to him. These are the symbolists S. Mallarme and P. Verlaine, close to the art of the Parnassians C. Baudelaire, E. Guys with the clear perfection of his verse, representatives of the French Renaissance C. Maro and P. Ronsard. Ravel turned out to be alien to the romantic poets, who break the forms of art with a stormy influx of feelings.

In the guise of Ravel, individual truly French features were fully expressed, his work naturally and naturally enters the general panorama of French art. I would like to put A. Watteau on a par with him with the soft charm of his groups in the park and Pierrot's grief hidden from the world, N. Poussin with the majestically calm charm of his "Arcadian shepherds", the lively mobility of softened-accurate portraits of O. Renoir.

Although Ravel is rightly called an impressionist composer, the characteristic features of impressionism manifested themselves only in some of his works, while in the rest, classical clarity and proportion of structures, purity of style, clarity of lines and jewelry in the decoration of details prevail.

Like a man of the 20th century Ravel paid tribute to his passion for technology. Huge arrays of plants caused genuine delight in him while traveling with friends on a yacht: “Magnificent, extraordinary plants. Especially one - it looks like a Romanesque cathedral made of cast iron ... How to convey to you the impression of this realm of metal, these cathedrals full of fire, this wonderful symphony of whistles, the noise of drive belts, the roar of hammers that fall on you. Above them is a red, dark and flaming sky... How musical it all is. I will definitely use it." The modern iron tread and the rattle of metal can be heard in one of the most dramatic works of the composer - Concerto for the left hand, written for the Austrian pianist P. Wittgenstein, who lost his right hand in the war.

The creative heritage of the composer is not striking in the number of works, their volume is usually small. Such miniaturism is associated with the refinement of the statement, the absence of "extra words". Unlike Balzac, Ravel had time to "write short stories". We can only guess about everything that is connected with the creative process, because the composer was distinguished by secrecy both in matters of creativity and in the field of personal experiences, spiritual life. No one saw how he composed, no sketches or sketches were found, his works did not bear traces of alterations. However, the amazing accuracy, the accuracy of all details and shades, the utmost purity and naturalness of the lines - everything speaks of attention to every "little thing", of long-term work.

Ravel is not one of the reforming composers who consciously changed the means of expression and modernized the themes of art. The desire to convey to people that deeply personal, intimate, that he did not like to express in words, forced him to speak in a universal, naturally formed and understandable musical language. The range of topics of Ravel's creativity is very wide. Often the composer turns to deep, vivid and dramatic feelings. His music is always surprisingly humane, its charm and pathos are close to people. Ravel does not seek to solve philosophical questions and problems of the universe, to cover a wide range of topics in one work and to find the connection of all phenomena. Sometimes he focuses his attention not on just one - a significant, deep and multifaceted feeling, in other cases, with a hint of hidden and piercing sadness, he speaks of the beauty of the world. I always want to address this artist with sensitivity and caution, whose intimate and fragile art has found its way to people and won their sincere love.

V. Bazarnova

Compositions:

operas- (L'heure espagnole, comic opera, libre by M. Frank-Noen, 1907, set in 1911, Opera Comic, Paris), (L'enfant et les sortilèges, lyrical fantasy, opera- ballet, libre G. S. Colet, 1920-25, set in 1925, Monte Carlo); ballets- (Daphnis et Chloé, choreographic symphony in 3 parts, lib. M. M. Fokine, 1907-12, set in 1912, Châtelet, Paris), Florina's Dream, or (Ma mère l'oye, based on piano . of plays of the same name, lib. R., post. 1912 "T-r of the Arts", Paris), Adelaide, or the Language of Flowers (Adelaide ou Le langage des fleurs, based on the piano cycle Noble and Sentimental Waltzes, lib. R ., 1911, post. 1912, shopping mall "Chatelet", Paris); cantatas- Mirra (1901, not published), Alsion (1902, not published), Alice (1903, not published); for orchestra- Scheherazade overture (1898), (Rapsodie espagnole: Prelude of the night - Prélude à la nuit, Malagenya, Habanera, Feerie; 1907), (choreographic poem, 1920), Jeanne's fan (Leventail de Jeanne, enter. fanfare, 1927), (1928); concerts with orchestra- 2 for piano (D-dur, for the left hand, 1931; G-dur, 1931); chamber instrumental ensembles- 2 sonatas for violin and piano (1897, 1923-27), Lullaby in the name of Faure (Berceuse sur le nom de Faure, for violin and piano, 1922), sonata for violin and cello (1920-22), piano trio (a-moll, 1914), string quartet (F-dur, 1902-03), Introduction and Allegro for harp, string quartet, flute and clarinet (1905-06); for piano 2 hands- Grotesque Serenade (Sérénade grotesque, 1893), Antique Minuet (Menuet antique, 1895, also orc. version), Pavane of the deceased infante (Pavane pour une infante défunte, 1899, also orc. version), Playing water (Jeux d'eau, 1901), sonatina (1905), Reflections (Miroirs: Night butterflies - Noctuelles, Sad birds - Oiseaux tristes, Boat in the ocean - Une barque sur locéan (also an orc. version), Alborada, or Jester's morning serenade - Alborada del gracioso (also Orc version), The Valley of Ringings - La vallée des cloches; 1905), Gaspard by Night (Three poems after Aloysius Bertrand, Gaspard de la nuit, trois poémes daprés Aloysius Bertrand, the cycle is also known as Phantoms of the Night: Ondine, Gallows - Le gibet, Scarbo; 1908), Minuet in the name of Haydn (Menuet sur le nom dHaydn, 1909), Noble and sentimental waltzes (Valses nobles et sentimentales, 1911), Prelude (1913), In the manner of ... Borodin, Chabrier (A la maniére de... Borodine, Chabrier, 1913), Suite Couperin's Tomb (Le tombeau de Couperin, prelude, fugue (also orchestral version), forlana, rigaudon, minuet (also orchestral version), toccata, 1917); for piano four hands- My mother goose (Ma mère l'oye: Pavane to the Beauty sleeping in the forest - Pavane de la belle au bois dormant, Thumb boy - Petit poucet, Ugly, empress of the Pagodas - Laideronnette, impératrice des pagodes, Beauty and the Beast - Les entretiens de la belle et de la bête, Fairy Garden - Le jardin féerique; 1908), Frontispiece (1919); for 2 pianos- Auditory landscapes (Les sites auriculaires: Habanera, Among the bells - Entre cloches; 1895-1896); for violin and piano- concert fantasy Gypsy (Tzigane, 1924; also with orchestra); choirs- Three songs (Trois chansons, for mixed choir a cappella, lyrics by Ravel: Nicoleta, Three beautiful birds of paradise, Don't go to Ormonda's forest; 1916); for voice with orchestra or instrumental ensemble -