(1875 - 1937)
Joseph-Maurice Ravel was born in France near the Spanish border, to Swiss and Basque parents. His father's engineering work soon brought the family to Paris and the young man entered the Paris Conservatory at age 14. He enrolled as a pianist but switched to composition under Gabriel Fauré and André Gedalge. Ravel was a less radical a composer than Claude Debussy but rebellious in his own way. Where Debussy could write pieces to please the Conservatory masters and win a Prix de Rome, Ravel refused to be bound by the school's composition rules. His failure to win prizes did not endear him to his masters, even though he wrote successful pieces early on, including his Violin Sonata (1897) and Shéhérazade (1898). Given those successes, his failure to win the Prix de Rome in 1905 led to a public scandal and a change in the Conservatory directorship.
Maurice Ravel Composition Timpani and Percussion Requirements
Alborado del Gracioso
Timpani
Int'l 32/29/26 Prem 32/30/28
6 percussion
Orchestral bass drum, clash cymbals, A crotale, triangle, tambourine, castanets, xylophone, snare drum
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Bolero
Timpani
Int'l 32/29/26 Prem 32/30/28
4 percussion + celeste
2 snare drums, tam tam, orchestral bass drum, clash cymbals, celeste
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Daphins et Chloe Complete Ballet
Timpani + 8 percussion + keyed glockenspiel
1) snare drum, 2) glockenspiel, xylophone, 3) tambour, 4) glockenspiel 2, suspended cymbal, 5) castanets, tam tam, crotales B C C# E F, 6) tambourine, wind machine, 7) clash cymbals, suspended cymbal, 8) orchestral bass drum, 9) triangle
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Daphnis et Chloe (1st Suite)
Timpani
Int'l 32/29/26 Prem 32/30/28
8 percussion
Orchestral bass drum, clash cymbals, suspended cymbal, 2 snare drums, triangle, hi crotales & 1 low B, castanets, xylophone, triangle, tambourine, 2 glockenspiels, wind machine, tam tam
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Daphnis et Chloe (2nd Suite)
Timpani + 9 percussion
1) glockenspiel 1, 2) snare drum, 3) tenor drum, 4) tenor drum, 5) triangle, 6) orchestral bass drum, 7) clash cymbals, suspended cymbal, 8) glockenspiel 2, 9) castanets
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Jeux D'eaux
Timpani + 2 percussion
1) triangle, 2) suspended cymbal
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L'enfant et les sortilèges
Timpani + 6 percussion
1) triangle, wood block, whip, swanee whistle, 2) snare drum, small drum in D, wind machine, 3) tam tam, guiro, ratchet, pair of crotales in A, 4) xylophone, suspended cymbal, 5) clash cymbals, suspended cymbal, 6) orchestral bass drum
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L'heure espagnole
Timpani + 7 percussion
3 real metronomes onstage (speeds 40 / 100 / 232)
Glockenspiel, tubular bells, whip, xylophone, orchestral bass drum, sleigh bells, clock spring, tam tam, ratchet, triangle, snare drum
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La Valse
Timpani
Int'l 32/29/26 Prem 32/30/28
6 percussion
Snare drum, triangle, glockenspiel, C crotale, tam tam, orchestral bass drum, clash cymbals, castanets, tambourine, suspended cymbal
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Mother Goose (Ballet)
Timpani
Int'l 32/29/26 Prem 32/30/28
4 percussion
Tam tam, orchestral bass drum, clash cymbals, suspended cymbal, triangle, glockenspiel, xylophone, snare drum (possible keyed glockenspiel)
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Mother Goose (Suite)
Timpani
Int'l 32/29/26 Prem 32/30/28
3 percussion
Tam tam, orchestral bass drum, clash cymbals, triangle, glockenspiel, xylophone (possible keyed glockenspiel)
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Piano Concerto for the Left Hand
Timpani + 5 percussion
Wood block, snare drum, triangle, tam tam, orchestral bass drum, clash cymbals
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Piano Concerto in G
Timpani + 3 percussion
Whip, snare drum, tam tam, orchestral bass drum, clash cymbals, triangle
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Rhapsody Espagnol
Timpani + 5 percussion
Castanets, tambourine, triangle, tam tam, orchestral bass drum, clash cymbals, xylophone, snare drum
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Scheherezade
Timpani
Int'l 29/26 Prem 30/28
3 percussion
Snare drum, orchestral bass drum, clash cymbals, triangle, tam tam, glockenspiel, snare drum, tambourine
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Tzigane
No Timpani + 1 percussion
Triangle, clash cymbals, F# note (glock/crotale)
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Valses nobles et sentimentales
Timpani + 6 percussion
1) glockenspiel, 2) snare drum, 3) clash cymbals, suspended cymbal, 4) orchestral bass drum, 5) tambourine, 6) triangle, suspended cymbal
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