upRavel in 1907 ''Miroirs'' (, ) is a five-movement suite for solo

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

written by French composer

Maurice Ravel Joseph Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 – 28 December 1937) was a French composer, pianist and conductor. He is often associated with Impressionism in music, Impressionism along with his elder contemporary Claude Debussy, although both composer ...

between 1904 and 1905."Miroirs". Maurice Ravel Frontispice. First performed by

Ricardo Viñes Ricardo Viñes y Roda (, , ; 5 February 1875 – 29 April 1943) was a Spanish pianist. He gave the premieres of works by Ravel, Debussy, Satie, Falla and Albéniz. He was the piano teacher of the composer Francis Poulenc and the pianists M ...

in 1906, ''Miroirs'' contains five movements, each dedicated to a fellow member of the French

avant-garde In the arts and literature, the term ''avant-garde'' ( meaning or ) identifies an experimental genre or work of art, and the artist who created it, which usually is aesthetically innovative, whilst initially being ideologically unacceptable ...

artist group

Les Apaches Les Apaches (or Société des Apaches) was a group of musicians, writers and artists which formed in Paris, France, in 1903. The core was formed by the French composer Maurice Ravel, the Spanish pianist Ricardo Viñes and the writer and critic ...

."Miroirs". Piano Society. http://www.pianosociety.com/cms/index.php?section=171

History

Around 1900, Maurice Ravel joined a group of innovative young artists, poets, critics, and musicians referred to as Les Apaches or "hooligans", a term coined by

to refer to his band of "artistic outcasts". To pay tribute to his fellow artists, Ravel began composing ''Miroirs'' in 1904 and finished it the following year. It was first published by

Eugène Demets Eugène Louis Demets (6 April 1858 – 25 April 1923) was one of the most prestigious music publishers in early 20th-century Paris. Life Demets was born in Passy, west of Paris. Originally an orchestral musician, Demets set up his music publishing ...

in 1906. The third and fourth movements were subsequently orchestrated by Ravel, while the fifth was orchestrated by

Percy Grainger Percy Aldridge Grainger (born George Percy Grainger; 8 July 188220 February 1961) was an Australian-born composer, arranger and pianist who moved to the United States in 1914 and became an American citizen in 1918. In the course of a long and ...

, among others.

Structure

''Miroirs'' has five movements, each dedicated to a member of ''Les Apaches'':

Orchestrated versions

"''Une barque sur l'océan''" and "''Alborada del gracioso''" were orchestrated by Ravel himself. "''La vallée des cloches''" has been orchestrated by Ernesto Halffter for triple

woodwind Woodwind instruments are a family of musical instruments within the greater category of wind instruments. Common examples include flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon, and saxophone. There are two main types of woodwind instruments: flutes and Ree ...

, four

horn Horn may refer to: Common uses * Horn (acoustic), a tapered sound guide ** Horn antenna ** Horn loudspeaker ** Vehicle horn ** Train horn *Horn (anatomy), a pointed, bony projection on the head of various animals * Horn (instrument), a family ...

timpani Timpani (; ) or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion instrument, percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a Membranophone, membrane called a drumhead, ...

, percussion, two

harp The harp is a stringed musical instrument that has individual strings running at an angle to its soundboard; the strings are plucked with the fingers. Harps can be made and played in various ways, standing or sitting, and in orchestras or ...

celesta The celesta () or celeste (), also called a bell-piano, is a struck idiophone operated by a keyboard. It looks similar to an upright piano (four- or five-octave), albeit with smaller keys and a much smaller cabinet, or a large wooden music ...

and strings; and by

for a typical Grainger ensemble with multiple pianos and percussion, plus strings. "''Oiseaux tristes''" has been scored by for double woodwind plus

piccolo The piccolo ( ; ) is a smaller version of the western concert flute and a member of the woodwind family of musical instruments. Sometimes referred to as a "baby flute" or piccolo flute, the modern piccolo has the same type of fingerings as the ...

, two horns, two

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz musical ensemble, ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest Register (music), register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitche ...

s, percussion, harp, celesta and strings; though aimed at intermediate rather than advanced players, transposed down a

semitone A semitone, also called a minor second, half step, or a half tone, is the smallest musical interval commonly used in Western tonal music, and it is considered the most dissonant when sounded harmonically. It is defined as the interval between ...

and with some of Ravel's rhythms simplified. In 2001 American conductor Leif Bjaland orchestrated "''Oiseaux tristes''" scored for 2 flutes, 2 oboes, English horn, 2 clarinets, bass clarinet, 2 bassoons, 4 horns, harp, and strings. The earliest known orchestration of "''Noctuelles''" is by the British pianist Michael Round, an orchestration commissioned by

Vladimir Ashkenazy Vladimir Davidovich Ashkenazy (, ''Vladimir Davidovich Ashkenazi''; born 6 July 1937) is a Soviet-born Icelandic pianist, chamber music performer, and conductor. Ashkenazy has collaborated with well-known orchestras and soloists. In addition, ...

and recorded by him with the

NHK Symphony Orchestra The is a Japanese broadcast orchestra based in Tokyo. The orchestra gives concerts in several venues, including the NHK Hall, Suntory Hall, and the Tokyo Opera City Concert Hall. History The orchestra was founded as the ''New Symphony Orchestr ...

(Exton, 1993). In orchestrated form "''Noctuelles''" is scored for triple woodwind (including E clarinet) minus one

contrabassoon The contrabassoon, also known as the double bassoon, is a larger version of the bassoon, sounding an octave lower. Its technique is similar to its smaller cousin, with a few notable differences. Differences from the bassoon The Reed (mouthpie ...

; four horns, three trumpets, three

trombone The trombone (, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the Brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's lips vibrate inside a mouthpiece, causing the Standing wave, air c ...

s and

tuba The tuba (; ) is the largest and lowest-pitched musical instrument in the brass instrument, brass family. As with all brass instruments, the sound is produced by lip vibrationa buzzinto a mouthpiece (brass), mouthpiece. It first appeared in th ...

, timpani, percussion, two harps, celesta and strings. There is a more recent orchestration (2001) of "''Noctuelles''" by American composer

Steven Stucky Steven Edward Stucky (November 7, 1949 − February 14, 2016) was a Pulitzer Prize-winning American composer. Life and career Steven Stucky was born in Hutchinson, Kansas. At age 9, he moved with his family to Abilene, Texas, where, as a teenager ...

. It is published by Theodore Presser Company and is scored for 3 flutes (3rd doubling piccolo), 3 oboes (3rd doubling English horn), 2 clarinets, 3 bassoons (3rd doubling contrabassoon), 4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, 2 percussionists, celesta, two harps, and strings. In 2003 the British composer Simon Clarke made an orchestration of the three movements that Ravel did not orchestrate.

References

External links

* *Recording of ''Miroirs'', performed by

Thérèse Dussaut Thérèse Dussaut (born 20 September 1939) is a French pianist and music educator. Life Born in Versailles, the daughter of composers Robert Dussaut and Hélène Covatti, Thérèse Dussaut studied piano in France with Marguerite Long and Pier ...

, in

MP3 MP3 (formally MPEG-1 Audio Layer III or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III) is a coding format for digital audio developed largely by the Fraunhofer Society in Germany under the lead of Karlheinz Brandenburg. It was designed to greatly reduce the amount ...

format:
"''Noctuelles''"

"''Oiseaux tristes''"

"''Une barque sur l'océan''"

"''Alborada del gracioso''"

"''La vallée des cloches''"
*Recording of ''Miroirs'', performed by Felipe Sarro
Archive.org
{{Authority control Suites by Maurice Ravel 1905 compositions Solo piano compositions by Maurice Ravel Music with dedications

History

Structure

Orchestrated versions

See also

References

External links