Great Composers Codexery

Maurice Ravel

French composer known for Boléro and masterful orchestration.

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Maurice Ravel

via Wikipedia: Maurice Ravel · see source

Maurice Ravel was born in the Basque town of Ciboure, France, near the Spanish border.[1] Maurice Ravel composed the piano piece Pavane pour une infante défunte and the ballet Daphnis et Chloé.[2][3]

Life and work

Ravel's father was an engineer and inventor, and his mother's Basque-Spanish heritage strongly influenced his life and music.[1][4] Around 1900 Ravel joined the informal group Les Apaches, which included innovative young artists.[5] He made five attempts to win the Prix de Rome, and his elimination in 1905 caused a national scandal.[6][7] After the war, he moved to a small house called Le Belvédère in Montfort-l'Amaury in 1921.[8]

Having won no further prizes after 1891, Ravel was expelled from the Conservatoire in 1895.[9][10] In 1897 he was readmitted to the Conservatoire, where he studied composition with Fauré.[11] In 1928 Ravel undertook a four-month tour of North America, during which he performed with most of the leading orchestras in Canada and the US.[12]

What the cited sources add

A 2009 BBC article reports that Ravel expert David Lamaze argues a sequence of notes in Ravel's work spells the name of socialite Misia Sert.[13] The BBC article states that Lamaze believes Ravel was romantically inspired by Misia.[13] The same source notes that Ravel composed some work while staying on a boat belonging to Misia and her second husband.[13]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Maurice Ravel" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Nichols (2011), p. 1 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Maurice Ravel" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Orenstein (1991), p. 24; Nichols (2011), p. 30; Nichols (2011), p. 30; Langham Smith, Richard. "Maurice Ravel – Biography" , BBC, retrieved 4 March 2014; Larner, pp. 59–60 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Maurice Ravel" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Morrison, pp. 63–64; and Nichols (2011), p. 141 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Maurice Ravel" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Howat, p. 71 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Maurice Ravel" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Orenstein (1991), p. 28 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Maurice Ravel" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Winners of the Prix de Rome", Grove Music Online, Oxford University Press, retrieved 27 February 2015; Macdonald, p. 332; Landormy, p. 431 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Maurice Ravel" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Hill, p. 134; and Duchen, pp. 149–150; Nichols (1977), p. 32; Woldu, pp. 247 and 249; Nectoux, p. 267 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  8. Wikipedia, "Maurice Ravel" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Lesure and Nectoux, p. 45 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  9. Wikipedia, "Maurice Ravel" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Nichols (2011), pp. 11 and 390; Orenstein (1995), p. 92 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  10. Wikipedia, "Maurice Ravel" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Lesure and Nectoux, p. 9; Kelly (2000), p. 7; Kelly (2000), p. 7 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  11. Wikipedia, "Maurice Ravel" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Lesure and Nectoux, p. 9; Kelly, Barbara L "Ravel, (Joseph) Maurice", Grove Music Online, Oxford University Press, 2001; Nichols (1977), pp. 14–15; Nichols (2011), p. 35; and Orenstein (1991), p. 26; Nichols (1987), p. 178 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  12. Wikipedia, "Maurice Ravel" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Zank, p. 33; Orenstein (1991), p. 95 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  13. "Hidden clue to composer's passion", BBC, 27 March 2009. facts only, no text reused. news.bbc.co.uk

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Maurice Ravel (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

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Test yourself

Three questions drawn from this entry’s sources. Pick an answer to check it.

1. In which place was Maurice Ravel born?

Correct.

Not quite. The answer is Ciboure, France.

From the source: “Ravel was born in the Basque town of Ciboure, France, near Biarritz, 18 km from the Spanish border.”

2. In what year was Maurice Ravel born?

Correct.

Not quite. The answer is 1875.

From the source: “Joseph Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 – 28 December 1937) was a French composer, pianist and conductor. He is often associated with Impressionism along with his elder contemporary Claude Debussy, although both composers rejected the term. In t”

3. In what year did Maurice Ravel die?

Correct.

Not quite. The answer is 1937.

From the source: “Joseph Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 – 28 December 1937) was a French composer, pianist and conductor. He is often associated with Impressionism along with his elder contemporary Claude Debussy, although both composers rejected the term. In t”

Answers checked against the source article

Sources

Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.

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