Chopin and ravel

Chopin¡¦s Ballade is described as a story ¡§carried forward by its own momentum, leaping ahead or lingering over some details but never backtracking.¡¨ While Ravel¡¦s Alborada del gracioso is a wild Spanish dance filled with leaps, twirls and excitement.

Frederic Chopin (1810 ¡V 1849) and Maurice Ravel (1875 - 1937), while exhibiting considerable differences in their works, are ranked as two of the most eminent composers in their contribution to piano music. Frederic Chopin is often regarded as the ¡§Poet of the Piano,¡¨ being one of the greatest composers of piano music during the Romantic era which focuses on emotionality. The elements of his pianistic style, his sense of lyricism and unparalleled melodic ideas have produced some of the most pure and most beautiful music ever written, propelling Romantic piano music to its greatest heights. On the other hand, Maurice Ravel was influenced by new ideas and concepts in French piano music.

Portrait de Maurice Ravel (1875 - 1937)

Ballade avec un âne - 23

Ballade le long du Clain

This development was marked by a conception of music as a sonorous art rather than simply as a means of expression. This was in direct contrast to the subjective style of the nineteenth century Romantic movement, which placed emphasis on individual feelings and emotions. It can be hypothesized that Chopin remained as a proponent of the Romantic Period in his compositional style, whilst Ravel, however, writing in the twentieth century, reverted to the Classical styles on occasions to gratify his own fascinations. Through the comparison of the musical elements of Chopin¡¦s Ballade in G minor, Op23 and Ravel¡¦s Alborada del gracioso from Miroirs, it becomes evident that Chopin¡¦s work remained within the framework of the Romantic style while Ravel pursued a course which combined elements of Classicism and Impressionism.

A Ballade is an instrumental piece with an implied narrative. It has been suggested that this Ballade in...