The Greatest Piece of Piano Impressionism: Ravel's Miroirs set (complete)-Performance and analysis

Maurice Ravel's Miroirs (Mirrors), published 1906:
0:00 “Noctuelles” (“Moths”)
5:14 “Oiseaux tristes” (“Sad Birds”)
9:56 “Une barque sur l’océan” (“A Boat on the Ocean”)
17:02 “Alborada del gracioso” (“Aubade of the Jester”)
23:54 “La vallée des cloches” (“The Valley of Bells”)
In my opinion, the single greatest set of pieces written in the style usually referred to as "Impressionism."
You can also find my commentaries on each individual piece here:
Noctuelles (Moths): • Ravel: Noctuelles from...
Oiseaux tristes (Sad Birds): • The saddest piece ever...
Une barque sur l'océan (A Boat on the Ocean): • A Boat on the Ocean: R...
Alborada del gracioso (Aubade of the Jester): • The hardest repeated n...
La vallée des cloches (The Valley of Bells): • Ravel Miroirs: La vall...
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[@sparkle1272001]

Thank you for putting the entire Miroirs collection videos together, this is truly inspirational, and an amazing performance! :)

[@TheIndependentPianist]

Thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed it!

[@rodion_dyubenko]

The analysis and sheet music going parallel with the video is brilliant

[@notrueflagshere198]

Awesome! I've never enjoyed Ravel so much as this. There's more to his compositions than I realized.

[@grahamtwist]

An absolute feast of virtuoso piano playing, Cole! To hear the complete set played by you in this upload is a magical treat indeed. I've read that one of the greatest aspects of “impressionistic” music is its capacity for variety in effect and interpretation. It certainly is the case that Ravel (and Debussy) sought this level of expression as they transformed the vague imagery of Symbolist poetry into music. Greater than the suggestive power of words, however, this music, as is so apparent in 'Miroirs', has the ability to both veil its meaning, as well as make it indescribably tangible at the same time - the genius of the man! I'm reminded of a comment made about Ravel’s originality, which can go unnoticed because, in the words of New York Times critic Alex Ross: “He could not help pleasing the ear even as he set out to shock it”. And boy, do you please our ears with this recording. B R A V O !

[@TheIndependentPianist]

Thank you Graham! Always another great quote that I haven't heard before... 🙂

[@supasayajinsongoku4464]

One of your best videos yet

[@NSKS52]

Wonderful music and sublime performance!

[@cupcakemuffin8104]

This is so wonderful! I've learned a few of these pieces myself, and I have to say it's no easy task-- I commend you for all of the effort that was put into this video, and I'm excited to see more in the future! Will be subscribing

[@LioMcAllisterMusic-sw4vj]

Wonderful interpretation! This is the best version I have heard. The way you set up the sound of the instrument makes the listening experience very intimate, almost like you are being serenaded into a dream. Any chance you might be doing Gaspard de la Nuit or Le Tombeau de Couperin in the future?

[@tommyjosey3284]

Good job! I've played the second and third movements, and learned a bit of the fourth. Lots of fun.

[@hx0ad5]

really beautiful performance, i'm jealous of your hand agility. i have to say i usually don't get anything out of piece analysis but 'a boat on the ocean' absolutely justifies it, one of the best examples of musical storytelling there is (and a very good way of showing it here!)

[@shelleybinkley4266]

Bravo! Sublime.❤

[@JakobArnar]

You’re a gift that keeps giving! having really much trouble with finding fingering for both this and rach 1 but i can always check what you did lol, thank you!

[@TheIndependentPianist]

Haha, well that was one of my original intentions with the overhead views-I'm glad someone is getting some (hopefully) good fingerings from these videos!

[@brittonday1645]

Hey Cole, I remember you from Oberlin! I’ve been watching a bunch of your videos. Thanks for putting such thought into them! Beautiful playing

[@Toussaint-yt3zu]

Beautifully played

[@Quotenwagnerianer]

My pianos' keys don't even react fast enough to play the tremoli in Alborada. ;)

[@TheIndependentPianist]

Haha, yes that can be a problem!

[@cgnotes]

i wasn't expecting to watch this whole thing when i clicked on it but that was a marvelous performance :]

[@CrystalJumbo2]

素晴らしい！

[@eddieandmaxie]

YOU DID NOT JUST PLAY THE FULL THING!! Edit: WHATT

[@benjaminmoreno7178]

fantastic bro... really well done, u gain a new sucriber, how did u study piano? i need some book referencies to study... nice video men i really like ravel

[@TheIndependentPianist]

Glad you enjoyed it! I've studied piano for a long time. I got really serious when I was about 13 or so, and I was lucky enough to have a series of wonderfully dedicated teachers to help me along my way. It's been a lot of work over many years to reach my current level of accomplishment (such as it is).