Ravel - Le Tombeau de Couperin, orchestration complète

[@jamesfarrell7465]

In August 1984 I was living and working at Grand Canyon National Park. During the Perseid meteor shower I worked until midnight and walked home to my little apartment. It was a warm evening and a cloudless night. The sky was clear and the moon was nothing more than a thin crescent. There were so many meteors that when I got home I pulled my living room sofa into the yard, put my Sennheiser headphones on, and watched as hundreds of meteors each hour streaked through the sky. And all while playing Ravel and Debussy. A magical night I will remember with joy until I draw my last breath.

[@newhope1233]

Thank you so much, James Farrell, for this very fine and striking evocation!

[@stevebard2257]

It's good to share such memories ... many, many years ago I was a kid playing hooky, went to main library in Brooklyn, over to turntables, put on earphones and, somehow, played a recording of this piece ... changing my life forever, so help me ...

[@sokratisfrantzis5763]

gotta go with the sennheisers!

[@ardillavoladora5459]

Lucky you 😊🍀

[@CosmoConstant]

This is what makes music is all about; this kind of universality. Music allows us to experience what you did that night better than any shared words could.

[@ignaciohmon]

The Prelude is probably one of the most magical pieces in music history.

[@qwj68boots]

It was a dynamic discovery! My favorite composer.

[@recipoldinasty]

Ignacio Hernández it is indeed it is, i feel like flating in the sea and flying at the same time

[@victorl3969]

In my opinion, that would be the symphony renditions of 'prelude to afternoon on a faun' or 'reverie', both by Claude Debussy.

[@agustinpastorino5988]

La verdad que si

[@AsrielKujo]

The toccata also!!

[@MichaelHopcroft]

When asked why his piece wasn't as somber as much of the memorial music produced in the aftermath of the Great War, Ravel is reported to have said: "The dead have sorrow enough". Ravel was mourning the deaths of his friends, but also grateful that they had lived at all. Which may be why this music is so sprightly and optimistic.

[@TomCL-vb6xc]

Michael Hopcroft Ravel never wrote a sad piece of music in his life. Sombre and reflective works perhaps, but everything Ravel wrote always contained a Ravelian sense of life and spirit.

[@neilthomas8156]

That is incredibly profound,I’m grateful for you sharing that.Ravel goes even higher in my estimation

[@qwj68boots]

Yes, thank you for the shared Ravelian sensibility. A great trait to possess, by the way.

[@Nasfelia]

@@TomCL-vb6xc There is one thing. In 1917, shortly after coming back from the Battle of Verdun, and shortly after his mother died. He made Frontispice. It's a terrifying composition.

[@tommyvercetti1827]

@@TomCL-vb6xc pavane for a dead princess is kinda sad

[@stevecorley3625]

Ravel should be taught in every public school. Seriously.

[@chrispiazza9544]

I so agree. World peace = Ravel.

[@dijonstreak]

Fully agree !!

[@christophedesbiens4490]

Ravel is just used at school to get children running away far from music.

[@cminor3016]

DEI should so be replaced with Ravel

[@cminor3016]

@@chrispiazza9544 yes thank you

[@annemarieclaudia]

écouter la musique de Ravel c'est comme entrer dans un monde féerique rempli de magie. On ne s'en lasse pas.

[@conradsabatier5223]

Claire: magnifiquement dit!

[@rvnsef9174]

C'est exactement ça !

[@wendyscott8425]

Si vrai.

[@ufochannel2845]

@@conradsabatier5223 Conrad à raison, il y a chez Ravel cette (grosse) part de féerie ... indispensable à moi-même ...:)

[@MegaCirse]

Plutôt que de pleurer, Ravel a choisi de célébrer ses compatriotes et amis morts pendant la Première Guerre mondiale ! Pour surmonter le chagrin, nous devons remplir notre esprit de la joie que nous avons vécue naguère avec nos proches disparus 💖

[@franciscobustioscastro3964]

Totalmente de acuerdo. La ternura que pone Ravel en cada una de estas pequeñas joyas es la misma con la que uno recuerda a los propios amigos muertos, con el imborrable contenido afectivo de la verdadera amistad, que permanece a salvo del tiempo.

[@PhilippeFafiotte]

En effet, il a été vivement conspué par des critiques qui n'avaient rien compris et qui prétendaient qu'il était irrespectueux de composer une musique joyeuse à la mémoire de soldats tombés pour la France. Le surréalisme est né du besoin impérieux de sublimer et de guérir tout ce que les horreurs de la guerre, pour celles et ceux qui les avaient connues, pouvaient laisser comme blessures et comme stigmates. C'est le Cri de Munch. Et c'est le Tombeau de Couperin, un bain de lumière et un prodigieux flamboiement d'harmonie qui nous transporte, nous élève, nous fait voler au-dessus des espaces et à travers le temps, dans un miroitement de couleurs et un foisonnement d'impressions pour tous nos sens. Le génie d'un patriote ayant voulu aller sur le front et capable de transcender les souffrances vécues pour composer un hymne réparateur et un éloge à la mémoire de ses amis qui à travers sa musique comme dans la profondeur des mystères de la vie, restent présents. Rien ne meurt. Tout est vivant.

[@autumngirl951]

Probably cried, TOO.

[@didierboudet88]

on en pleure de joie et de fierté qu'un être humain ai pu atteindre ce degré de perfection.

[@jfpary7336]

Oh que vous avez raison....

[@LegitFUry]

This piece works so well with the orchestral texture, that I find it hard to believe that it was ever written for just the piano.

[@Eorzat]

Captain Stingray That’s because Ravel was a masterful orchestrator. The original piano version is pretty bare-bones in comparison, but Ravel really brought out the colors to fit the orchestra.

[@crusherjoe8519]

Ravel didn't compose many original works for orchestra: La valse; Daphnis et Chloé, a ballet score for chorus and orchestra; Shéhérazade Ouverture for orchestra; Shéhérazade song cycle for mezzo-soprano (or tenor) and orchestra; Rapsodie espagnole for orchestra; a ballet score, Boléro; Piano Concerto in G; Piano Concerto for the Left Hand; etc. Ravel orchestrated many of his and other composers' piano pieces: Ma mère l'Oye; Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition; Pavane pour une infante défunte; Une Barque sur l'océan; Menuet antique; Valses nobles et sentimentales; etc.

[@dark_donnie2176]

I prefer it on piano because normaly ravels music is very discrete and with full orchestra there is yes more colors but in piano, it's very discrete and light, sometimes a bit cold, but like ravels music.

[@emanuel_soundtrack]

very hard to separate after u master both

[@ogthekingofbashan333]

Personally, I think the piano and orchestra pieces are totally different. The piano piece has a quality to it that's very specific to the piano, and is completely lost in the orchestra version. This is in contrast to something like the Pavane, which is rather similar in both versions.

[@joluijten6313]

The prelude makes me feel like a butterfly

[@dabedwards]

Elegant, witty, beautiful....yet somehow elusive --- music that never quite gives up all its secrets.

[@hcbardes2008]

magnifique analyse ! bravo ,

[@chrispiazza9544]

so very well said.

[@GentleGiantAudio]

There is magic in this sense of mystery.

[@alexkije]

I love how it soars!

[@pierreguinot9238]

Merveille d'entendre orchestrées la fugue et la toccata en plus des autres pièces ! Ravel est si magique, si parfait et a relativement peu écrit, exigeant comme il était.

[@majorpayne8373]

When George Gershwin was in Europe he took lessons from Ravel. Ravel asked Gershwin how much money he made. After Gershwin told him Ravel said, "Perhaps I should be taking lessons from you."

[@asym52]

Apparently Gershwin went around asking everyone for lessons. Ravel turned him down, supposedly saying "Why be a second-rate Ravel when you can be a first-rate Gershwin?" It's Stravinsky who was supposed to have made the "taking lessons from you," quip, but according to The Atlantic (citing Gershwin biographer, Charles Schwartz), all of these stories were probably made up by Gershwin.

[@mirandac8712]

@@asym52 There's a similar quip attributed to Billy Wilder and Godard: "You have something I greatly envy, Monsieur Godard: artistic freedom." / "And you have something I envy: money." (I believe it's Wilder / Godard)

[@FleuveAlphee]

This is most likely made up, as many such quips are. I couldn't find confirmation in reliable sources. In any case Gershwin, regardless of his talent (and flair) is not in the same league as Ravel. He was a poor orchestrator and left most of the "arrangements" (sic) to people like Grofe.

[@ruperttmls7985]

Ravel > Gershwin

[@MeatBunFul]

@@ruperttmls7985 always

[@birgitbofarull4410]

To write such joy on the face of loss and destruction is only a sign of an absolute genius.

[@Chrispy1976]

I recorded part of this to a cassette tape as it was playing on the radio back in the early 1990's and couldn't for the life of me figure out what it was called, who it was by.. then by chance i recently discovered my old cassette tapes! and the only word I could make out from the half taped over description was *"tombeau!"* .. 2 hours later.. found it! ..and love it as I did all those years ago, a beautiful piece of music.

[@noradosmith]

I love this story. Something about cassette tapes feels already like relics from a forgotten world.

[@verdew8181]

This music feels as if I am stepping into an enchanted place.

[@wosslert]

Well put , Dorothy. It's magical music.

[@ClovisBzh]

+Dorothyellen w French composers power ! ^^

[@acla9000]

+Dorothyellen w I feel the same too...

[@NoahJohnson1810]

We aren't in Kansas any more, are we Dorothy?

[@davesmith6815]

You stepped into KZbin, where all dreams come true.

[@remixuereb]

Maurice Ravel nous a donné dans " Le Tombeau de Couperin" une oeuvre d'art d'une véritable élévation qui n'échappe pas à une dimension spirituelle . Il y a une douce et joyeuse présence qui habite ces danses de l'âme qui nous transportent délicatement avec infiniment de respect . Mélancolie non systématique qui n'est pas affectée mais elle témoigne d'une douleur présente qui a absorbé le deuil , en porte les traces , mais il y a en profondeur comme une résolution virile et vivifiante d'un accord avec les veines de ce qui palpite en positif dans la Vie . Ravel , le musicien des profondeurs nous réenchante, non de spectres illusoires mais nous prend doucement par la main , nous suggère , comme si l'on nous racontait de belles histoires qui éveillent de nobles sentiments et ces musiques propres à confronter avec l' univers de la nature ,sont comme une prescription de bonheur pour un coeur que l'on invite à s'emplir de simple beauté non tonitruante mais en teintes aquarellées qui soulagent l'âme et le regard parfois superficiel que l'on porte sur les choses de l'existence .

[@classic4ever780]

+remi xuereb vous avez bien résumé le propos de Ravel il me semble. Je dirai (ma modeste contribution au débat...) : une musique sans pathos et tellement "française"....

[@Jomtek]

Maurice Ravel était extrêmement différent des autres artistes compositeurs, on sent dans ses musiques qu'il débordait d'imagination, Le Tombeau de Couperin est une musique où l'on constate la saveur de l'imagination de Ravel. On sent aussi qu'il avait tellement d'imagination qu'il fallait réussir à tout incarner dans une musique sans qu'elle soit trop longue, alors il a pris ce qu'il lui semblait le plus beau, le plus délicat possible et c'est ce qui fait de cette musique une musique riche sans l'être forcément. Ravel restera l'un des plus délicat compositeur français que j'ai personnellement écouté, Debussy avait un goût tout aussi délicat, ils partageaient le même avis et le même ressenti sur La Musique. En tous cas, grosses appréciations et félicitations à Maurice Ravel pour cette magnifique oeuvre libre d'imagination.

[@wendyscott8425]

Une magnifique explication! Merci beaucoup!

[@remixuereb]

@@wendyscott8425 Merci à vous avec le retour heureux de votre avis encourageant !

[@villageguy13]

Ravel was a true genius.

[@chrispiazza9544]

one of my gods

[@jfpary7336]

Far more than a genius....

[@spactick]

how so?

[@ravelesque34]

​@@spactickbecause of his understanding of music theory, he didn't need piano in front of him to compose he had an entire orchestra fit inside his head. The greatest musical genius mankind can ever witness and still he is overshadowed by Debussy

[@danielromo3040]

@@chrispiazza9544 x2

[@charlessiewerdt2832]

This peace of Ravel is one of the saddest and most profound music pieces ever written, and nevertheless comforting and life assuring.

[@troud8888]

Ravel is the peak of music.

[@hugofernandes2930]

Both this and daphne et chloe are completely stunning

[@antinorest]

The Pavane and Ma mere l´ oye are also great musical works

[@박준형-w2g]

Totally agree

[@davidsheriff9274]

Sonatine. The second movement of The Piano Concerto in G Major and The String Quartet in F Major. All three are brilliant.

[@miguelfontesmeira]

Wow! Kocsis did a great job. I think he captured really well the soul of Ravel's orchestration.

[@chrispiazza9544]

I agree.

[@qwj68boots]

Hear, here...

[@alexkije]

YouBet!

[@johannesbluemink4581]

Some years ago I was walking in the hall of a Railway station and a pianist was playing. I recognized 'Le Tombeau' immediately. The orchestration is beautiful and exquisite.

[@simonprecheurllarena]

Some of the most refined and beautiful music ever written.

[@quanhoangclarinettist6225]

Damn, that final climax from 23:48 though, goosebumps every time. What incredible orchestration from Zoltán Kocsis.

[@MrFouloas]

ses amis morts au cours de la guerre peuvent reposer en paix , avec cet hommage musical si tendre.

[@ferdinangenius]

domage que ils ne peuvent pas ecouter

[@zigosepalum5641]

Cette œuvre magnifique transcende l'horreur de la Guerre 14-18. L'art triomphe de la barbarie.

[@MRCharlesNCharge]

I have this on CD. Some weekend mornings, if the light is right in my living room, I'll listen to it while browsing a large volume of impressionist paintings which I own. It is one of the chief delights in my life.

[@concars1234]

You sound like someone who gets roasted in a modernist novella

[@thierrychango7268]

La meilleure orchestration écoutée à ce jour...une pure merveille

[@birgitbofarull4410]

The joy versus the memory of death is only conceived in genius. This has been my perfection since I first heard it 43 years ago.

[@myn1959]

a long time ago I had to vacate my house all my life to sell it, I remember having been all the time with my dog ​​accompanying me and listening to "le tambeau de Couperin"

[@MyChannelsNameIs]

Where has this piece been all my life? I've been sitting at my computer, bored out of my mind, looking up music for a listening class. And then this came on and I actually started laughing to myself because of how cool it was.

[@BenjaminGessel]

+MyChannelsNameIs Maurice Ravel is one of a kind. Often admired, emulated, adored, etc. But few composers really are of his stature and imaginative genius... His music is SO unique and unmistakable.

[@phyllispetras3821]

and he ADORED Siamese cats!!! His house is filled with toys....oh blessed man...

[@davesmith6815]

+MyChannelsNamels - You appear young so, you have many experiences just like that awaiting you if you keep exploring. I'm 58 and I still have those amazing moments! Keep it up.

[@nakedmambo]

What the hell is a 'listening class'?

[@nakedmambo]

A silent class? What are they listening to then? Is this a John Cage concept?

[@michaeldonovan504]

Composed between 1914 and 1917, given in first hearing in April 1919 by Marguerite Long, the suite for piano The Tomb of Couperin comprises six pieces, Prelude, Fugue, Forlane, Rigaudon, Menuet and Toccata, dedicated to the memory of friends fallen during the First World War. Ravel later orchestrated four of these pieces, heard for the first time in this form in February 1920 and played in the following order: Prelude, Forlane, Menuet and Rigaudon. Almost 80 years later, Hungarian pianist and conductor Zoltán Kocsis set about orchestrating the two remaining pieces, Fugue and Toccata. It is this complete orchestral version that can be heard here, performed by the Hungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Zoltán Kocsis (the image on the video is a partial view of a drawing by Ravel on the original score). Follow one another as follows: [00:00] Prelude ("in memory of Lieutenant Jacques Charlot"); [03:08] Fugue ("In memory of Second Lieutenant Jean Cruppi"); [06:20] Forlane ("in memory of Lieutenant Gabriel Deluc"); [12:23] Rigaudon ("in memory of Pierre and Pascal Gaudin"); [15:24] Menuet ("in memory of Jean Dreyfus"); [20:32] Toccata ("in memory of Captain Joseph de Marliave")

[@wendyscott8425]

Thanks! I wondered about those two pieces Kocsis had orchestrated. Beautiful!

[@jeanattali4005]

Merci ! Thank you also for mentioning the names of those for whom the pieces were dedicated. Listening to this music three days before Remembrance Day is particularly moving.

[@aryehfinklestein9041]

I can honestly say of no composer other then the sublime Ravel that he wrote not a single note of which I disapprove. His entire oeuvre a wondrous gift.

[@dabedwards]

Yes agreed, I am always aware that his music has an self-assurance borne of near perfection.

[@RationalThinker1859]

You like his eggs?

[@Jomtek]

Have you heard about Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto 3 ?

[@feinburger5404]

Bach?

[@feloria1862]

Bach and Mozart have always sounded kinda boring to me i think its because of the limited Orchestra they had to work with.

[@arielluva]

this piece was my companion when i sat alone at lunch in 9th grade. lunch was just long enough to almost listen to this twice, and by the time the toccata started playing for the 2nd time i knew lunch would be over soon love this piece to death and especially the fugue its just. so good

[@jokiro7777]

R.I.P Zoltán Kocsis who orchestrated the Fugue and the Toccata in this suite.

[@KenKen3593]

Are these the movements that were initially left out of the orchestral version?

[@click.advance]

KenKen3593 Yes

[@LandOnBolts]

Why was it left out? Maybe it was either too hard to orchestrate or he just didn’t get around to doing it

[@eschiss1]

@@KenKen3593 Only the Fugue and Toccata were left out. The first two movements are really one, considered as a Prélude and Fugue of a Baroque suite :)... The remaining four are in the orchestral version- in a different order (the minuet and rigaudon are switched. The difference between Prelude and Fugue in e - Forlane in e - Rigaudon in C - Menuet in G - Toccata in e , and Prélude - Forlane - Menuet - Rigaudon is pretty substantial in _effect_, though (when the menuet is as ethereal and the Rigaudon as robust as these are.)

[@eschiss1]

@@LandOnBolts I don't know. It can't have been just that. After all, he switched two of the movements in the orchestration, and that after leaving out the finale (which means the orchestral version ends in C whereas the piano version ends in the tonic - e/E - which matters, it does. Practicality? Don't know.)

[@StephanieHughesDesign]

Le orchestration est plus que beau et comme si chaque mouvement ! Chapeau a Ravel que est un grande maestro ! Mon favori pour Ravel.

[@slaimramirezmejia4872]

Me alegra ver que esta obra de Ravel es más apreciada hoy en día. Ravel era mucho más que solo el Bolero. Personalmente esta obra ha sido una de mis favoritas desde la primera vez que la escuché por accidente en la radio.

[@friday3829]

this makes me feel like i'm in a magical fairy tale... i feel very inspired to draw something like that listening to this

[@charlesflett2818]

Menuet. Such beauty. Leaves me breathless at its closure.

[@franciscobustioscastro3964]

The Menuet is also my favorite piece!

[@Marsday7]

2:22 that final crescendo is so magical, you feel like you are about to fly!!

[@laurennelson4983]

Many thanks to Ravel for giving oboists a piece of their own. What a pleasure and privilege to play.

[@conradsabatier5223]

The Menuet is the most perfect wake-up music. Just sublime! Ease you gently into the day. 😊

[@ilovenycsomuch]

Why is the piece/composer not more famous? I've never heard of him & yet I've stumbled upon a most beautiful masterpiece like no other

[@Barde_Jaune]

Ravel is quite famous actually, but I guess you meant not as famous as Beethoven or Mozart.

[@TomCL-vb6xc]

Angela Wilson Most composers born after the mid 1800s are pretty unknown in general. There are a few exceptions of course but for the most part, “classical composers” are generally seen to consist of composers from the baroque, classical and romantic periods.

[@williamsheppard3219]

Ravel's Bolero is one of thd most recognized pieces of music. But his other compositions are not as well known.

[@Hailey_Paige_1937]

Please, absolutely give more of Ravel’s music a listen if you haven’t already! Some pieces to try: Daphnis et Chloé (The “Sunrise” Movement is STUNNING) La Valse Miroirs Gaspard de la Nuit Ma Mére l’Oye His two Piano Concertos Introduction et Allegro String Quartet in F Major Piano Trio In A Minor

[@ravelesque34]

You are right, people are stuck in Beethoven, Mozart and Chopin while the greatest musical genius Ravel is unknown. They were kids in front of him whether in terms of technique Or in knowledge of harmony. The man was an entire orchestra

[@Likes_Trains]

I forgot how cheeky the forlane is I can't hear the prelude without crying. This really is the pinnacle of orchestration

[@MrPiano1994]

I had an outer body experience listening to the end of this. I was stoned.

[@davesmith6815]

+Taner Kemirtlek - The term is out-of-body. Just thought you might like to know.

[@conradsabatier5223]

Dave Smith: Yes, quite right. Also sometimes abbreviated (or "acronymized") as an "OBE". Yes, this music, while not overtly declaring itself as such, is indeed "transcendental". Just amazing, nearly indescribable, in fact. An extraordinary work by a most unique composer. None of the usual appellations really fit, do they? "Impressionist" (which he is often referred to as), "Post-Romantic", etc., etc. -- none of these seem quite suitable. Ravel simply defies categorization; he is his own genre, all unto himself. A truly remarkable composer who doesn't get anywhere near the recognition he deserves, nor the number of performances, either. In the annals of musical history, he stands alone as a peerless original, a truly unique voice. There's simply no one else like him. One of the all-time greats. Brilliant!

[@kateshadow155]

I purchased a laptop online recently which, when it arrived in the post, would not boot. Round and round I went, trying to choose my language and add my microsoft account to get it started, all to no avail. After a day spent trying to sort it out with a bot on the Microsoft online chat support, I sent the laptop back to the vendor, who wrote on my file that the laptop was returned owing to a 'faulty OBE'. Knowing this only as either (a) an honour bestowed by the Sovereign, or (b) an experience one has when listening to RVW when stoned (Cf, this thread), I was happy to learn the third definition relating to products, both working and (more usually) kaput: (c) out-of-the-box. Now I know.

[@conradsabatier5223]

Pebbledash Wales: Thanks for sharing your "out-of-the-box experience". That was really funny! 😁

[@areirving]

@@davesmith6815 actually I think Tanner May have had an outer body experience.

[@MegaCirse]

Quand le monde fléchit autour de soi, quand les structures d’une civilisation vacillent, il est bon de revenir à ce qui, dans l’histoire, ne fléchit pas, mais au contraire redresse le courage, rassemble les séparés, pacifie sans meurtrir. Il est bon de rappeler que le génie de la création est lui aussi, à l’œuvre dans une histoire vouée à la destruction 💥

[@juliancochran]

I played it many years ago but had not heard the fugue (orch.) before (not orchestrated by Ravel) and the orchestration is so effective and touching with woodwind and harp. The coda is magical.

[@areirving]

This music brings me joy, not unlike seeing something wonderful in nature.

[@montelatte]

ron genauer f

[@contactkeithstack]

Agreed, I always felt music grew like plants. Perfect expressions of the world around and before them. This one is so exotic and spell binding. Reminds me of the ghost orchid from Adaptation.

[@eugenesheshenin2060]

Ravel's music is a marvel and delight, rigor and depth - all at once. What is buffling - this undying idiotic notion present in academic assessment of his oevre that it lacks in feeling. What he does is hard to pinpoint and categorize. Habitually he is lumped with Debussy, but he is not impressionist per se - there is a lot of structure in his writing. He is fluid, unpredictable and unexpected - annoying qualities for academic handling. That is exactly what I love about him! Ravel is atypical in everything - he was a dandy, a worldly sophisticated if remote man, he was discreet and exceedingly polite, though opinionated and professionally he was a thoughtful perfectionist insisting on compositional and sonic polish of his every piece. That is an image that induces envy in clumsy bohemian types and uptight academics. The utmost elegance of expression in his writing is so compelling and moving. I agree, he was ahead of his time and remains so relevant in my opinion due to the brilliance of compositional structure and innovative approach to harmonics. Bach was after the same things. That's a very good company.

[@jtdumee]

What a beautiful understanding and writing about Ravel Eugene. I could not have written it better!! Bravo!

[@conradsabatier5223]

@@jtdumee Yes, a great appreciation of one of the greatest composers ever! It's such a shame that he's not more well-known and appreciated.

[@matthewsonnenberg303]

A thorough, well-researched assessment.

[@mohhingman]

we need more comments like this in youtube.

[@chrispiazza9544]

There is no category for him. How sad it drives the categorizers crazy. Oh well.

[@kaelonroache8240]

Ravel is amazing. From 20:09-20:28, just this outro of the Menuet is so beautiful it managed to publicly put me in tears, the way the melody just trickles down and rests, then to come up again in resolution, gives me serious goose bumps, and all in just 19 seconds, damn. Try listening at x75 speed, it transforms the music

[@LaPrezDeLot]

Amazing suite! The rigaudon is very uplifting and has an 'instructing' vibe, which I love. Thanks for sharing this majestic pieces with us all and I wish a fantastic time to anyone reading this!

[@guscairns1]

I love both the piano and the orchestral version. The prelude feels to me like a walk on the hills on a windy day...

[@verdew8181]

This music should be prescribed listening for depression.

[@alexplenka1260]

Dorothyellen w best comment ever!

[@mirandac8712]

Music should be prescribed for depression.

[@andrewlankford9634]

The music has an ethereal (escapist?) giddyness about it, yet it's easy to tell just from the music alone that the subtext is profound sorrow and loss. It was written in wartime, in part to memorialize the war dead (perhaps to play for them as the name suggests), but there's no hint of "rally round the flag" or "we're all in this together" . It seems like the feeling Ravel wanted to convey was a desperate wish to be happy, to remember some idealized past or imagine a life affirming future, in spite of the very real present.

[@MeatBunFul]

I've been listening to this for too long now. It's just too good.

[@maydaaf9379]

Lol listening to this is my way to self medicate.

[@johnnybombz8262]

I've been listening to this recording for years; still pulls on my heartstrings. Timeless masterpiece!

[@phyllispetras3821]

LOVE all these comments......I learned so much.....

[@georgenussbaum4486]

This piece plays much better as a piano solo, rather than orchestral. G Nussbaum, Casselberry, Fl

[@chrispiazza9544]

Me too

[@cminor3016]

Rather than mourn, Ravel choose to celebrate his compatriots and friends who died in WW1! To move past grief, we must fill our minds with the joy that we experienced with our loved ones who passed on❤

[@patrickabois]

I first discovered this gift about 10 years ago. At the time, I was fairly bipolar with regards to my mental state, and had been listening to classical for a few years to try to offset it, among other things like drugs and god knows what else. I was at a pretty low point, and I had just seen The Tree of Life, by Terrence Mallick. That film blew me away because that troubled, middle-child in the film, played by Sean Penn, that was me: the black sheep. But I loved the music, and one piece that had me in tears was Les barricades mysterieuses by Francois Couperin. I don't know why, but, it touched me to the core of my soul. I had just returned from China from teaching in a big city where I was pretty much the only white person in a sea of millions of strangers. I had no direction whatsoever in life after returning from China, even with a master's degree in something socially and culturally inapplicable like the humanities. At any rate, there was this day where I'm moving into a new apartment because I had just gotten kicked out of my folks' place. I was at a dangerous low with this bipolar mind of mine, and while I was painting, I turned on the radio, and Julie Nezrallah on CBC radio 2 (Tempo) started talking about this work. I listened to it in its entirety and just bawled my eyes out. It was so beautiful. I couldn't believe how beautiful it was, and how at some points, I noticed how it was tinged with this sweet melancholy that not everyone is privy to. I then learned of the title and smiled from ear to ear, since tombeau means tombstone. For years now, since I learned about classical music in a faraway humanities class (god bless you, Richard Teleky), whenever darkness is made visible, whenever the black dogs come barking, whenever the noonday demon feels like dining with me, I play something like this, like The Four Last Songs by Strauss. No one can remain in a bad mood with this piece by Ravel. Pure soul panacea, pure genius! No one does music like this anymore. Blessings to you all for noticing and appreciating it, you're such a lovely crowd because your souls have all been touched by it... this is such a beautiful rendition.

[@kevinskiles2033]

Patrick, As a fellow sufferer, I agree with you about the benefits of great music. It reminds us of the beauty in the world, and guides us back to it out of the darkness. All the best to you!

[@patrickabois]

@DeGrate1896 I've come out completely of my suffering, actually. All gone! Hallelujah. Thanks for your beautiful wishes. May we all walk the straight and narrow path of love and light.

[@patrickabois]

@@kevinskiles2033 Thank you, brother! Best to you too, and Happy Easter!

[@marshanovita9263]

Music is the best gift to a person lost in darkness. I forget where I saw this but it stuck in my mind because music is also the thing in my life that saved me. I am so glad you are doing ok now. I could really identify with what you wrote about depression as I suffered with it growing up.

[@chillhouse8327]

I just found out about this a month ago and I still haven't gotten it out of my head since.

[@stynway59]

Do listen, if you haven't, in its original form, for the solo piano

[@ulysseargoud3276]

But you will still have this piece in 10 years

[@edwindizer1495]

I didn't know about Zoltán Kocsis' additional 2 arrangements for this suite. But he has done a fantastic job - it stands up with Ravel's own sublime orchestration!

[@bringoawfuttery2525]

That prelude is absolutely magical... I haven't even finished the whole piece yet, but I have a feeling it's gonna feel magical 😂💖

[@Josep489]

What a incredible job Kocsis did with Toccata, just amazing.

[@johnlunnun9769]

One of the most beautiful pieces of music ever written ! ❤❤❤❤

[@fcamiola]

Never heard the orchestrated Fugue and Toccata before! I wonder why Ravel didn't do those himself? Menuet is one of my favorite pieces EVER by anybody. It embodies the French countryside itself, even though it had different intentions.

[@renatomelllo]

Ravel extracted everything from the Orchestra on this fine piece of Music. Came here today to listen it after a lonh while... What a beauty Le Tombeau encloses...

[@NeilRaouf]

A pure joy to listen to this magnificent piece of art. I very much adore Maurice‘s work. His music does good things to my body and soul.

[@ilprofessore10012]

The two piano pieces that Ravel chose not to orchestrate--the fugue and toccata--have been arranged previously for small woodwind quintet and saxophone ensembles, but Kocsis' orchestral additions, although not quite as brilliant as the composer's, do seem to fit. As this is one of the most gorgeous pieces in the repertoire, famed for its oboe solos, let's hope more conductors add Kocsis to their performances. Twenty four and half minutes of enchantment!

[@GentleGiantAudio]

Kocsis did a spectacular job.

[@Lockmeupforthatbanger]

Nobody will ever be able to have the same touch that Ravel seemed to have for orchestration in my opinion, but I do agree Kocsis still did a great job

[@KingRagink]

Forlane sounds like a dungeon from Dragon quest. Love the whole piece.

[@GentleGiantAudio]

I hear Ravel in a great many of Sugiyama's orchestral works. It's the cadences, the orchestration and the tone. Lots of touch points there.

[@j-mv.3602]

Hommage à vous,Maurice. Vous avez souffert à quelques kilomètres de mon lieu de vie, 35 ans avant ma naissance. Dieue sur Meuse.30.06.1953. JM

[@jorgsattelmacher2676]

Ich hatte diese Musik bei einer Reise an die Nordsee um 1990 im Ohr, weil ich sie davor oft gehört habe. Wenn ich mir das Stück heute anhöre kommen mir immer noch die Bilder von der Reise damals in den Sinn. Die Klangfarben und das wechselhafte Nordseewetter passen wohl perfekt zusammen.

[@lynnetopping9608]

Ja, genau. Ich habe oft an die Nordsee gereist, und immer geht die Musik mit.

[@ImagineJenny20]

the oboe solo gives me life.

[@Ichikue]

Not when you've got to learn it though

[@robrohr]

:D love it

[@BenjaminGessel]

I could see that going either direction... The music "gives" life, but the oboist quite literally may be "expending" life, dependant on getting rid of that stale air buildup... :-D

[@sleepylagoon1310]

I comprehend that, Ms. Gao. ~ So mellow that it stirs the depths of one's soul. Heaven on earth! ~

[@camilorojas1744]

Jenny Gao. So, you play the oboe...

[@Lonigo77]

Menuet is almost unbearably beautiful. Thank you so very much! Ravel is like an old friend.

[@mohhingman]

Lump in my throat every time. Beyond incredible. Ravel is the master

[@opalfirefly88]

Sounds like a fast-moving stream. Very lively! This has always been my favorite recording of this piece.

[@jimstokes6742]

Yes!

[@PM-rp4bl]

This and The Moldau are my favorite pieces, maybe because they have that certain flow, I dunno...

[@DianaPhoenix]

Part of this sounds mischievous to me, & I've enjoyed it since I was a child.Bravo, Mr. Ravel! You are among my favorite composers.

[@frenchieseverine4514]

Me too ..i've enjoyed Ravel since i was a teenager but i discovered this piece of music later..Pure poetry.I have gooseflesh each time i listen to this music and i can imagine a bird which flies happily and then struggles to go on living and becomes a bird from heaven singing gloriously . .The clarinet is awesome!

[@DianaPhoenix]

Merci, Frenchie. Very exciting music. I love it!

[@maryfreebed9886]

This reminds me of running happily through Ross Bay Cemetery on a bright Saturday afternoon, occasionally pausing to inhale the fragrance of the boxwood, and perhaps sitting down on one of the tombs to enjoy a chocolate cookie and a soda.

[@maryfreebed9886]

On that note, I need to go do that ASAP, probably tomorrow, actually. It has been way too long and I am torn and frayed.

[@moop.3549]

*my mind cannot even begin to comprehend the genius of ravel.*

[@conradsabatier5223]

Few, if any, can! He was definitely in a league of his own.

[@kwabzycomposer]

Woodwinds are my love.

[@joaomarcelo3539]

This fugue is so beautiful in piano and it got even more beautiful ❤️

[@myn1959]

Algo tiene esta obra que llena de encanto. No lo sé que es . Es simplemente maravillosa. La he escuchado 1 millón de veces.

[@wendyscott8425]

Entiendo que quiere decir.

[@zoltankelemen4999]

The middle part of the Rigaudon is my life. Thank you

[@SuperJacob1989]

This takes me back to my GCSE studies... I found an old box of LPs and turn table in our garage, there was a La Valse LP that I listened to for dayyyys, so I went out and got a full works CD box set from the dusty classical section of HMV, the guy at the till was so intrigued and exited I picked it out to buy, the 5 section reminded me of my awakening to Ravel. The composer's of early 20th century films would of struggled without these great harmonious expressions and melodic themes... I can hear scores from bible epics, musicals and film hours echoing through all of Ravels work... Love this peice.

[@lucianedamestois]

A stupendous piece of music. It should please everyone that hears it.

[@zeppy13131]

A wonderful performance of a matchless work... Thank you! Un merveilleux spectacle d'une œuvre incomparable ... Merci!

[@frenchieseverine4514]

A masterpiece! Un chef d'oeuvre tout simplement pour qui aime la musique classique et la poésie..

[@tashaschneider1419]

So wonderful to hear these beautiful pieces orchestrated! Love the harps! In his piano compositions, Ravel was capable of making pianos nearly sound like harps.

[@russellhepplewhite3156]

Totally exquisite orchestration!

[@jimstokes6742]

Yes, indeed!

[@lexevan9619]

It's such a beautiful composition from a brilliant composer. Forlane will always be my favourite movement, the woodwinds are simply hauntingly pretty.

[@brandonmacey964]

This is one of the most amazing recordings I have ever heard

[@pasqualepellicano5929]

non conoscevo questa composizione, straordinaria!!

[@GentleGiantAudio]

Incredible arrangement. I am sure Ravel would deeply approve!

[@andrewterrien9818]

This will always be my favorite orchestral piece. Simply divine

[@jphayward2011]

One of the little things I love about this piece: some of the single chords that end the various sections are so beautiful that I'm like, "I want to hear more of this!!!"

[@shin-i-chikozima]

Comfort and gracefulness and Wonderfulness of Ravel’s music is off the charts Emotion is in my heart , and

[@craxanshards3139]

great to hear the fugue and the toccata!

[@virtuousvibes2852]

this piece makes me feel like taking a hike up on a beautiful forest trail in autumn

[@photoxlo]

Such a delicate quality to this piece. Paints vibrant, imaginative pictures.

[@Sun22070]

Simply Ravel :)

[@Mezzotenor]

What I love particularly in the Toccata movement (20:32) is that Kocsis resists making it a note-for-note transcription -- which Ravel avoided in orchestrating his own works -- and finds tantalizingly brief moments of delicious tone color -- which Ravel gave us with shocking prodigality. I hope this recording will get re-licensed by a new company if Hungaraton doesn't care to re-release it. THANKS for posting!

[@luisamezcua6020]

Ravel es grande, al oir su musica entras en otra dimension , en un mundo increible

[@TakatoEndou]

That last movement Toccata gives me goosebumps. Overally beautiful and colorful music, a true masterpiece rom Ravel.

[@paulkudish3017]

All six give me the same reaction

[@dylanl.3366]

What really caught my attention is the fugue (although all of them are fantastic), I haven't ever really been into Bach fugues and I thought those were the only ones of the genre. It's been a real eye-opener to me.

[@giovannismartini479]

Composition très impressionnante,si on cherche plus loin que le Boléro, on trouve des choses vraiment formidables :) !

[@Planthier76]

une forlane à vous faire dresser poils de bras par exemple !

[@giovannismartini479]

paul lanthier Exactement !:)

[@frenchieseverine4514]

paul lanthier Oui!! J'ai aussi la chair de poule et l'émotion a fleur de peau quand j'écoute ce Forlane..C'est superbe ..a la fois léger et grave..léger au début comme un oiseau volant tranquillement et allégrement dans un ciel sans nuage puis menacé et se battant frénétiquement pour vivre..Mais le prélude est grandiose aussi,la paix puis la guerre qui commence..en avant combattants! Et Rigaudon et le menuet sont aussi très beaux.