Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)
   Complete Solo Piano Music

Serenade grotesque (1893)
Menuet antique (1895)
Pavane pour une infante defunte (1899)
Jeux d'eau (1901)
Miroirs (1905)
Sonatine (1905)
Gaspard de la nuit (1908)
Menuet sur le nom d'Haydn (1909)
Valses nobles et sentimentales (1911)
A la maniere de Borodine (1912)
A la maniere de Chabrier (1912)
Prelude (1913)
Le Tombeau de Couperin (1915-1917)

Angela Hewitt, piano
Recorded March 2000 and August 2001
Released May 2002
Hyperion 67341/2 [138:11]

Heidi Lowy, piano
Recorded May 2001 and May 2002
Released September 2003
Bayer 100344/45 [2cds - 126:07]
(Serenade grotesque not included)

Alexandre Tharaud, piano
Recorded January and April 2002
Released December 2003
Harmonia Mundi 901811/12 [2cds - 138:00]
(includes La parade and Menuet in C sharp minor)

Complete Set Comparisons:
Robert Casadesus (Sony 633160)
Philippe Entremont (Sony 53528)
Walter Gieseking (EMI 74793)
Monique Haas (Erato 94826)
Werner Haas (Philips 438353)
Pascal Roge (Decca 440836)
Abbey Simon (Vox Box 5012)
Jean-Yves Thibaudet (Decca 433515)

Individual Performance Comparisons:
Serenade grotesque - Thiollier/Naxos

As part of my preparation for this review project, I read a host of
other reviews of Ravel piano discs and sets in addition to material
of a biographical nature.  Upon reflection, I don't believe I've ever
encountered such a wide difference of reviewer opinion as with Ravel's
piano music.  Angela Hewitt's set is declared sublime and illuminating
from some, totally out of the ballpark by others.  Most reviewers don't
appear enchanted by Lowy's recordings, but a small number consider her
set fully competitive with the best on record.  Even the highly acclaimed
Walter Gieseking gets plenty of complaints.

What to make of it?  I think it reasonable to assume that the reviewers
have different expectations from a Ravel interpretation.  Some want and
expect an impressionist type of music along the lines of Debussy; others
expect a rather neo-classical or neo-baroque interpretation with cleaner
lines than usually found in Debussy's music.  Then there's the matter
of a romantic performance in contrast to a relatively modernistic one.

 From my perspective, the lumping together of Debussy and Ravel is a
poor decision to make.  Reference materials clearly indicate that Ravel
was more of a 'back to basics' composer than Debussy, possessing a strong
preference for the musical styles of past generations.  Of course, Ravel
hardly was a copycat in his music; he was one of the supreme leaders of
taking classical music out of its romantic shell and using unique rhythms
and sudden changes in dynamics and tempo to bring the world of music
into the 20th century.

With the above in mind, this reviewer is perhaps looking for more of a
modernistic and less of a romanticized set of interpretations in Ravel's
music.  If one wants romantic music, there's Liszt, Chopin, Schumann,
and dozens of others to fall back on.  If impressionistic music is wanted,
one only needs to hop on the Debussy bandwagon.  Ravel is his own man
with his own unique style.

Now I'll cover each piece of music based on chronological order except
for the two short unpublished pieces that will conclude the review:

Serenade grotesque - Because this early Ravel piece was not readily
accessible nor published until 1975, most 'older' sets do not include
it; only the Thibaudet of the sets listed in the heading programs the
work.  As for Lowy leaving it out of her Bayer set, I can't think of any
good reason to do so.  She may not care for the piece, but its inclusion
in most other modern-day sets is a black mark for Lowy.

In looking over other reviews of the piece in magazines and on the
internet, I am struck by how little comment it receives as if not worthy
of mention.  I find this odd, because the Serenade is a wonderful short
piece full of varied colors and architecture.  The music is quite dissonant
for its time and conveys an environment/personality of a distinct
topsy-turvy nature with sprinklings of poetic utterances strategically
placed.  This is impetuous music with sudden shifts in mood and structure.

Although relatively slow versions can be treated impetuously, quick
tempos resulting in readings of about 3 minutes do lend themselves to
this required effect.  Tharaud is in the 3 1/2 minute range, and he has
his slack moments; most damaging, he does not highlight the impetuous
nature of the music, preferring to take a smooth and romantic slant.
Angela Hewitt extends the music to 4 minutes with a highly cultured
performance that likely is not idiomatic of Ravel's intentions.  Still,
she offers greater propulsion than Tharuad and is preferred by a small
margin.

I'll stick with the quicker versions by Thibaudet on his Decca set and
Louis Lortie in Volume 1 of his Ravel piano works traversal on Chandos.
Best of all is the entirely uncultured and driven performance by
Francois-Joel Thiollier on Volume 1 of his Ravel set on Naxos.  The
differences between his reading and Hewitt's are immense.  His impetuosity,
primitive appeal, and sudden changes in tempo/dynamics are just the
ticket to do full justice to this unique work.  Hewitt's approach attempts
to give the piece a sultry nature that I find oppositional to the music's
construction, but I can't deny that her reading is quite effective for
its type unlike the Tharaud which lands with a thud.

Menuet antique - Hard sex, primitive sex, comforting sex.  Wherever
you travel in this ABA constructed piece of music, sex is what's on
the table.  This is largely due to Ravel's fascination with the Greek
mythological figure "Pan" who was at heart a primitive creature with a
sexual appetite second to none.  Pan was also a lover of the dance and
music, and Ravel set down the Menuet antique that highlights all three
features.  The 1st Section is hard driving, full of vigor, and often
abrasive; in the 2nd Section, Ravel gives us the most comforting sexual
urges and releases you would want to experience.

There are many exceptional versions including those from Robert Casadesus,
Pacal Roge, Philippe Entremont, and Monique Haas.  Their common attributes
consist of rough-hewn and vibrant 1st Sections with gorgeous and luxurious
2nd Sections.  I should note that Haas is quite slow in the 1st Section
yet maintains a primitive stance through her strong projection and
accenting; her 2nd Section is likely the most beautiful and comforting
I have ever heard.

Of the three versions for review, Heidi Lowy's is the one that offers
full satisfaction.  Her 1st Section is 'rough and tough', the 2nd is
a lovely affair.  Angela Hewitt again is quite a slow-poke, making the
music as pretty as possible to the detriment of Pan's ravenous desires;
needless to say, this makes for reduced contrast when the sublime 2nd
Section enters.  Tharuad is again a little sluggish and romantic in tone.
Both Hewitt and Tharaud certainly offer attractive readings, but they
pale next to the better recordings and essentially miss the 1st Section's
primitive nature.  Up to this point, Hewitt's cultured performances have
sapped Ravel's music of it's bite.

As an aside, there is a recorded version infinitely less appealing than
any other I know.  It's from Sigurd Slattebrekk on Simax.  He's not slow
by any means, just completely undernourished to the point that all he
shoots are 'blanks'.  Playing the 1st Section as if it's picnic time is
the kiss of death for this music.  I assume that Slatterbrekk wanted to
be 'different', but he neglected to take the composer with him on his
quest for distinction.

Pavane pour une infante defunte - After composing this piece, Ravel came
to the conclusion that he had not provided sufficient development of its
primary theme.  Actually, the music tends to be monothematic, so Ravel's
admonition is right on target.  However, there is opportunity for a
pianist to highlight the different colors of the work, and Angela Hewitt
is superb in this regard.  Further, she applies subtle changes in rhythmic
patterns and wonderfully highlights the polyphony to keep the music
sounding fresh throughout.  This is a once-in-a-lifetime performance
that I urge readers to investigate.  My previous favored version from
Roge is now a distant second.

I continue to be highly impressed with the playing of Heidi Lowy.  She
has one of the quicker versions at about six minutes, but she has a way
of tugging at her notes that makes the playing sound quite concentrated
and distinctive.  Tharaud shaves thirty seconds off Lowy's timing, and
it's just too fast for music that needs to be savored to at least a
decent extent.  I feel the same about the Casadesus performance that
also is lacking in sufficient emotional flavor.

Update: I think this is a good time to conclude Part 1.  I have covered
two Ravel works with plenty of energy and bite as well as the "Pavane"
that is a rapturous piece of subtle emotion.  Angela Hewitt does not
fare well so far with Ravel music requiring momentum and edge, and
Alexandre Tharaud is either sluggish or insufficiently poignant in the
three works reviewed up to this point.  Heidi Lowy is the impressive
artist; she displays abundant drive and bite when needed while also fully
delivering the emotional depth of Ravel's music.

Of course, there is much more music to review, and Part 2 will begin
with a review of Jeux d'eau, Ravel's first piano piece of a strong
impressionistic nature.  See you soon.

Don Satz
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