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Richard Yates' Classical Guitar Transcriptions |
RAVEL, Maurice
(1875-1937)
Prelude by
Maurice Ravel. Originally for piano solo. [1 page, 60KB]
The
place was Paris, France; the date, April 20, 1910; the event, the inaugural
concert of the Société Musicale Indépendente; the music, the world premier of
piano duets by the foremost composer of his day, Maurice Ravel. In spite of the
enormous pressure on the players in this situation, the composer was greatly
pleased by the performance. He wrote to one of the pianists, "Mademoiselle,
when you are a great virtuosa and I either an old fogey, covered with honors,
or else completely forgotten, you will perhaps have pleasant memories of having
given an artist the very rare joy of hearing a work of his, one of a rather
special nature, interpreted exactly as it should be. Thank you a thousand times
for your child-like and sensitive performance . . . " The pianist who
received this lavish praise? Jeanne Leleu, age seven! Mlle. Leleu was
apparently not a child prodigy, but she did later have a career as a concert
pianist. Three years after this recital, Ravel wrote a brief prelude that he
dedicated to her and which is the featured transcription of this installment of
The Transcriber's Art [see GFA Soundboard Spring 1998]. It is charming
miniature, rarely heard, and I believe not previously transcribed for guitar.
It is guitar-sized for the most part, although the range is a bit wider than we
guitarists are comfortable with - more on this problem soon. Ravel's comments
on the music for Mlle. Leleu's recital might well have been made about the Prélude:
"My intention of awakening the poetry of childhood in these pieces
naturally led me to simplify my style and thin out my writing."