On January 4, 5 and 6, Jeffrey Kahane returns to Jones Hall to play and conduct not only Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, but also Ravel’s Piano Concerto in G. In this post, learn more about this enchanting work, one of Ravel’s final masterpieces. Get tickets and more information about the concert here.
Ravel had long toyed with the idea of composing a work for piano and orchestra, but he would not complete his two piano concertos (one for the left hand alone and this one for both hands) until he was in his mid-fifties. A triumphant tour of the United States in 1928 had solidified his reputation as one of the world’s greatest living composers, and he began work on his Piano Concerto in G the following year. He planned to play it himself on an even grander world tour that would include not only Europe and the United States, but also South America and East Asia.
It is thus easy to hear the concerto as a sort of musical self-portrait, a manifesto of Ravel’s artistic aims and beliefs. Reacting against the heroics and bombast of many 19th-century concertos, Ravel said that his new work was “[…] a concerto in the truest sense of the word: I mean that it is written very much in the same spirit as those of Mozart and Saint-Saëns. The music of a concerto should, in my opinion, be lighthearted and brilliant, and not aim at profundity or at dramatic effects. It has been said of certain great classics [specifically Brahms] that their concertos were written not ‘for,’ but ‘against’ the piano. I heartily agree. I had intended to entitle this concerto ‘Divertissement.’ Then it occurred to me that there was no need to do so, because the very title ‘Concerto’ should be sufficiently clear.”
In place of heavy, emotionally intense Sturm und Drang, Ravel wrote music with a lightness of touch that delights the mind and senses. Lest one misinterpret his rejection of “profundity,” however, it bears mentioning that Ravel’s music—like Mozart’s—often reveals depths of feeling beneath its glittering surfaces.
The Music
The concerto famously opens with the crack of a musical whip:
The piano begins in an accompanying role as the piccolo and trumpet introduce the playful main theme of the movement. A more meditative piano solo is interwoven with a new, jazzy motif in the clarinet, trumpet and piccolo. The soloist then introduces a broadly lyrical secondary theme, but the melody is interrupted by short, tart, repeated notes. The bassoon takes up the theme, leading to a series of fast, virtuoso passages for the pianist and the reappearance of the jazzy motif. These dazzling runs double as both the conclusion of the second theme and the development—Ravel chooses to omit a more lengthy traditional development, perhaps in his pursuit of a more “lighthearted and brilliant” concerto.
The solo pyrotechnics lead to a reprise of the main theme, this time played by the piano. The following piano solo then morphs into an entrancing passage for the harp featuring airy harmonics. The return of the lyrical second theme doubles as the movement’s cadenza, an extended solo for the piano alone. The tart interruptions are now gone; instead the melody is accompanied by delicate, expressive trills. The strings slip back in almost imperceptibly, completing the theme as the piano returns to the virtuoso runs which now bring the movement to a close.
The slow second movement is one of the most poignant and beautiful pieces of music ever written. It begins with a long melody for solo piano that has an almost improvised quality. Despite its apparent spontaneity, Ravel confessed: “That flowing phrase! How I worked over it bar by bar! It nearly killed me!” Part of its secret is that the simple, pulsing accompaniment is in 6/8 (one-and-a-two-and-a) while the melody is in 3/4 (one-and-two-and-three-and). The two meters tug against each other, creating a subtle tension beneath the music’s tranquil surface. The melody itself displays great rhythmic subtlety, frequently evading strong beats with suspensions and other ornaments. It is no wonder that Ravel, ever the consummate craftsman, labored so long over one of his most perfect creations. The 6/8 accompaniment continues throughout the entire movement, only resolving to 3/4 in the penultimate measure.
After the piano’s initial melody, a contrasting middle section begins as the orchestra enters. The woodwinds engage in an intimate conversation with the soloist, who then begins a wandering, Bachian melody. The piano’s ornamental figuration becomes faster as the harmonies become more emotional and intense, reaching an exquisite climax. The opening melody then returns in the English horn as the piano embellishes it with delicate, music box-like figuration. The woodwinds return in a brief coda as the music dies away.
The finale returns to the effervescent humor of the first movement. A kaleidoscopic array of fragmentary motifs rotate throughout this sprightly music, beginning with the pert chords that begin it. Two other ideas play important roles: a march-like melody based on three descending notes and brassy fanfares. These and other ideas compete throughout the movement amid the pianist’s virtuoso passages. In a characteristic witty twist, the movement ends exactly as it began.
Ravel’s Farewell
Though Ravel diligently practiced etudes by Chopin and Liszt to prepare himself to play his concerto, ill-heath prevented him from performing the piece. Instead, his friend the pianist Marguerite Long played the solo part and Ravel conducted the orchestra at the premiere in Paris in 1932. The world tour did not materialize either; instead Ravel had to be content with a more modest European tour with Long during which the concerto was hailed as a masterpiece at every stop.
Sadly, this would be one of Ravel’s final completed works. He would fall silent after 1932, afflicted with a neurological disease that made it difficult for him to write, speak and coordinate his movements. He could still hear music in his head, but was unable to communicate it to the outside world. He passed away after an unsuccessful brain operation in 1937. With its refinement, understatement and irrepressible joy, the concerto is a fitting testament to Ravel’s unique genius.
Don’t miss Ravel’s Piano Concerto in G major on January 4, 5 & 6, 2019! Get tickets and more information at houstonsymphony.org.
