Maurice Ravel (20th Century Composers) [Paperback]

Gerald Larner (Author)

Book Description

Series: 20th Century Composers | Publication Date: September 25, 1996

From the "Pavane pour une Infante defunte" to "Bolero", much of the music of Maurice Ravel (1875-1937) is among the most accessible of any written during the last 100 years. The man himself, on the other hand, was notoriously difficult to get to know, partly because of his natural modesty and inherent reserve, but partly also because there were aspects of his character which he preferred to conceal even from his closest friends. It is Gerlad Larner's aim in this biography to trace the development of the composer's personality not only through events in his life and in the society around him, but also through his music, which is more revealing in this respect than is generally believed. Ravel tended to reveal most of himself at times of crisis, such as the outbreak of World War I in 1914 and the death of the mother he worshipped in 1917. "Adversity", the chapter devoted to those years, is a central feature in a book which begins by evaluating the importance of Ravel's mixed Basque and Swiss heredity and which then pursues the first part of his life through his childhood in Bohemian Montmatre, his controversial activities as a student at the Paris Conservatoire, and the establishment of his career as a composer fascinatingly interlinked with that of his older contemporary Claude Debussy. A moving description of his war service as a truck driver is followed by an account of the slow recovery from the failure in his health and morale after the death of his mother, the period of conflict and reconciliation with the new post-war movement represented by Erik Satie and Les Six, and a last decade of international celebrity which coincided with the gradual onset of illness which silenced him for four years before his death in 1937. This text is part of the 20th-century composers series, examining composers in a biographical context, and offering a comprehensive study of key figures in the creation of 20th-century music. None of the books in the series presume a knowledge of specialized terms or musical notation. Each book in the series features a list of works, a bibliography, and a discography.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

He is remembered in the United States primarily for the rather banal repetitions of Bolero, but Maurice Ravel wrote a great deal of music more worthy of celebration: ballets like Ma Mere l'Oye (Mother Goose) and Daphnis et Chloe; orchestral and piano works like Pavane pour une Infante Defunte (Pavane for a Dead Princess) and the Rapsodie Espagnole; operas like L'Enfant et les Sortileges (The Child and the Enchantments); and settings of Greek and Jewish songs. British author and critic Gerald Larner offers a well-researched, well-written, accessible biography of Ravel's life and compositions that explores his music and his motivations, a part of the Phaidon Press Limited 20th Century Composers series.

From Library Journal

Ravel was always sensitive about his diminutive size and the constant comparison of his work to that of Debussy. His compositions were considered dangerously progressive by the musical establishment of the day, but his Bolero has become one of the war horses of the symphony orchestra. Music critic Larner offers this entry in Phaidon's "20th Century Composers" series as the first biography on Ravel to appear in English in nearly a decade. In this discussion of his life and works, the works come second. The analysis of the music is rather superficial, avoiding technical terms and lacking a single musical example. Illustrations and photographs, however, are excellent and abundant. This, along with the absence of footnotes, indicates that the book is intended for the general reader rather than the music student. Recommended for public and academic libraries.?Michael Colby, Univ. of California, Davis
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Phaidon Press; First Edition edition (September 25, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0714832707
• ISBN-13: 978-0714832708
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 6.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #768,952 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #25 in Books > Arts & Photography > Music > Theory, Composition & Performance > Sheet Music & Scores > Composers > Ravel

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This Book Needs A Real Review, December 2, 2010

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B26354 (Antarctica) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Maurice Ravel (20th Century Composers) (Paperback)

The Amazon description for this book is laughable as the intro begins with this sentence:
"He is remembered in the United States primarily for the rather banal repetitions of Bolero, but Maurice Ravel wrote a great deal of music more worthy of celebration." Ewwwkay. "Rather banal"? "Wrote 'a great deal' of music more worthy"? Does the idiot who wrote that even know Ravel's work or symphonic music at all? Obviously not. If you think Bolero is "banal," go see it performed by a live orchestra and don't rent the movie "10." I look forward to reading other reviews about this book written by people who know what the crap they are writing about.