Chopináæs Ballade is described as a story áçcarried forward by its own momentum, leaping ahead or lingering over some details but never backtracking.áè While Raveláæs Alborada del gracioso is a wild Spanish dance filled with leaps, twirls and excitement.
Frederic Chopin (1810 áV 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 áçPoet of the Piano,áè 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.
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 Chopináæs Ballade in G minor, Op23 and Raveláæs Alborada del gracioso from Miroirs, it becomes evident that Chopináæs 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...