Maurice Ravel

by Gerald Larner

Examines Maurice Ravel (1875-1937), composer of works such as Boléro and Pavane pour une Infante défunte, as both a composer and a man

Genres: Music, Biography

240 pages, Paperback

First published September 25, 1996

Reviews

[Marianna · Rating 3 out of 5]

On the one hand, this book is recently written and offers some wonderful images of Ravel that I haven't seen anywhere else. It's also very accessible and tidily constructed - a nice change of pace from the standard, dry, dense, dated biographies you typically find on composers.

At the very end the author goes on a small query into Ravel's sexuality that is, as I see it, unnecessary and unsatisfying. The fact that he brings the composers sexual preferences into question with so little 'evidence' to discuss is odd, but the fact that he brings up the subject, and then provides very little clarity on it is the real head-scratcher.

Overall, it's another interesting look at Ravel's person that provides some new insight, but it fumbles at the end while lacking the touch of humanity other biographers have given Ravel and his works.

3.5 stars out of 5, rounded up to 4.

[Daniel Millward · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although I am no classical music aficianado, I love Ravel's works, in particular his long compositions for solo piano, I found it very enlightening to read about the texts and inspirations that he based his music on. His (at times) parallel development with Debussy in terms of the similarity of the sources that encouraged them to develop the pioneering impressionistic techniques used in the music and the artistic debt they owed each other was interesting as I have felt a strong connection to the music of both artists. I also really enjoyed reading about Ravel's early years - the cafe culture in Paris, Moulin Rouge and the bustling atmosphere and music scene in the last decade or so of the 19th century. His early years learning at the Conservatoire, where his compositional style and piano skill was still developing, was fascinating to read about. He did not excell in classes and was in fact banned from attending composition class a few times, his music that he entered in various prestigious compositions was deemed at times too complicated as well as too progressive for the likes of his instructors. His associations with other musicians and composers such as Satie, Faure, Stravinsky and Gershwin (during his tour of the United States later in his life) also make for entertaining reading.

I felt that Ravel's true characteristics were not really dug into deeply enough. In the book, the author says Ravel could come across as cold and artificial, had a thing about his short stature and had an intriguingly consistent air of ambiguity even so far as to his sexual preference. This latter is only really touched upon briefly in the beginning and epilogue of the book, it would have been very interesting to have learnt more about his personal relationships. It is fascinating to think that he never really had a romantic relationship in his life despite gaining such success and fame and later becoming (it seems) a bit of a socialite. Although excerpts from interviews with friends and musicians he collaborated with paint a light portrait of the many sides of his personality my main gripe with the book was the lack of depth in this department.

I felt this biography was good but a bit dry, especially considering I read this immediately after finishing the brilliant Beethoven biography written by Edmund Norris which I highly recommend as a passionate, concise and informative yet brief affair.

[Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

This biography of Ravel provided a good introduction to his life and music. However, both Ravel and his music remain somewhat of a cipher to me. I do like a lot of Ravel's music, particularly his opera L'Enfant et Les Sortileges, but I've never been able to absorb it the way I do that of other composers. As I learned from this book, Ravel himself was a bit like this, too. He seemed to have a full life and to have been happy for a lot of it, yet he was also kind of aloof and did not appear to have any passionate relationships.
It was also pretty interesting to have read this book so soon after a biography of Poulenc, since he and Ravel are peripheral figures in each others' lives. Now that I've read about a few modern French composers, I'm kind of fascinated by the way they all fit together, and the picture of French musical life in the 20th century that I'm starting to form.

[Gijs Grob · Rating 3 out of 5]

Een degelijke, zij het wat gemakkelijke, chronologische biografie met gelukkig veel aandacht voor de muziek. De auteur kondigt in het begin aan de seksualiteit van Ravel te willen ontsluieren (schijnt te moeten in een biografie), maar daar rept hij pas eigenlijk in het slothoofdstuk pas weer over. In de tussenliggende hoofdstukken blijft Ravel een enigma, maar is de auteur wel in staat om het scheve plaatje van een kinderlijk moederskindje recht te zetten.

[Michael Thompson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a huge fan of Ravel's music and I wanted to find out more about him than his wikipedia article offered. In addition to a fairly thorough biography, this book has many rare photos of him from his childhood and young adult life, which is really neat to see. There are plenty of excerpts from letters that he wrote and conversations. There are some dull parts, as there are in all biographies, but overall I thought it was a pretty good read.