History Music / MauriceRavel

Notable pieces include ''Jeux D'Eau'', ''Theatre/DaphnisEtChloe'', ''Music/PavanePourUnInfanteDefunte'', ''Music/LeTombeauDeCouperin''[[note]]A neo-classical example[[/note]], and the Concerto in G for piano and orchestra[[note]]Influenced by Jazz[[/note]]. He wasn't quite prolific, but was able to build international fame because most of his music was widely acclaimed, both by serious critics and popular listeners.One of the last great composers faithful to the old classical style before everything classical becomes either atonal, serial, or minimalist. He was also a great supporter of Jazz, considering it to be worthy of being an artful musical genre, and the national music of the United States. As an atheist, Ravel disliked the religious themes of his colleagues and, as such, never composed any religious compositions. After the death of Debussy, he was the greatest French composer of his period.

Notable pieces include ''Jeux D'Eau'', ''Theatre/DaphnisEtChloe'', ''Music/PavanePourUnInfanteDefunte'', ''Music/LeTombeauDeCouperin''[[note]]A neo-classical example[[/note]], and the Concerto in G for piano and orchestra[[note]]Influenced by Jazz[[/note]]. He wasn't quite prolific, but was able to build international fame because most of his music was widely acclaimed, both by serious critics and popular listeners. One of the last great composers faithful to the old classical style, before everything classical becomes either atonal, serial or minimalist. He was also a great supporter of Jazz, considering it to be worthy of being an artful musical genre, and the national music of the United States. After the death of Debussy, he was the greatest French composer of his period.

He was also an accomplished orchestrator, considered one of the best in the history of western music; his orchestration of Music/ModestMussorgsky's suite ''Music/PicturesAtAnExhibition'' is [[AdaptationDisplacement arguably better known]] than the piano-only original.

!!Tropes that apply to Maurice Ravel's life and work include:
* AllAPartOfTheJob: The composer volunteered for duty in UsefulNotes/WorldWarOne despite his advanced age. He was assigned the job of munitions truck driver, which frequently put him in harm's way, yet he never complained about this.
* AmbiguouslyGay: Nothing is known about Ravel's sexual orientation, though he does show up on some lists of famous homosexual composers. He assiduously concealed any details about his personal life, and though he had close personal friends of both sexes, Ravel had no known romantic relationships, which seems to point toward him being UsefulNotes/{{Asexual}} (which would be ironic, given that ''Music/{{Bolero}}'' is often taken to be a very sexually-charged piece of music).

* Myth/ClassicalMythology: The inspiration for the ballet (and two concert suites) ''Theatre/DaphnisEtChloe'', based on a romance by the Greek writer Creator/{{Longus}} dating from the second century AD.

* DudeWheresMyReward: Despite being the most talented young French composer of his time, Ravel never won the Prix de Rome prize despite applying five times, getting no closer than Second Prize (on his second try). The third and fourth times, he was eliminated in the first round because the judges suspected Ravel was making fun of them by submitting cantatas so academic in style that they came across as parodies. When he was again eliminated in the first round in his last eligible year, it was discovered that the only finalists were students of jury member Music/CharlesLenepveu. When Lenepveu insisted this was a coincidence, it ignited a furor in the press and among other composers, including those unsympathetic to Ravel's music. It led to the forced retirement of UsefulNotes/ParisConservatoire president Music/TheodoreDubois and a revamping of the prize-awarding process.

* ScatterbrainedSenior: Already showing increased signs of absent-mindness, Ravel sustained a blow to the head in a taxi accident at age 57. Not long after, he additionally began to demonstrate symptoms of aphasia and eventually stopped composing altogether. Brain surgery designed to correct the issue five years later proved unsuccessful, and Ravel lapsed into a coma and died shortly after. It is unclear what sort of malady the composer suffered from, though some form of dementia has been hypothesized.

* AmbiguouslyGay: Nothing is known about Ravel's sexual orientation, though he does show up on some lists of famous homosexual composers. He assiduously concealed any details about his personal life, and though he had close personal friends of both sexes, Ravel had no known romantic relationships.

* In Creator/BlakeEdwards' film ''Film/{{Ten}}'', ''Music/{{Bolero}}'' is used for a seduction scene.

* StandardSnippet: Applies to ''Music/{{Bolero}}'' of course, which has been quoted or invoked in movies such as ''Film/{{Ten}}'' and ''WesternAnimation/AllegroNonTroppo''. His music is also clearly the model for many film scores, given their vibrant scoring and polished yet non-academic sounding melodies and harmonic language.

* IronicallyDisabledArtist: Ravel's "Piano Concerto for the Left Hand" was commissioned by concert pianist Paul Wittgenstein[[note]]older brother of the philosopher Creator/LudwigWittgenstein[[/note]], who had his right arm amputated after a gunshot wound in UsefulNotes/WorldWarOne. (When pianist Alfred Cortot [[CompletelyMissingThePoint made an arrangement of the concerto for two hands]], Ravel was furious and wrote letters to every orchestra in Europe forbidding them to play it.)

* IronicallyDisabledArtist: Ravel's "Piano Concerto for the Left Hand" was commissioned by concert pianist Paul Wittgenstein[[note]]older brother of the philosopher Creator/LudwigWittgenstein[[/note]], who had his right arm amputated after a gunshot wound in UsefulNotes/WorldWarOne.

%%* ProgressiveInstrumentation: ''Music/{{Bolero}}'' starts with a flute and keeps adding more and more instruments, in essence just two swapped-off melodies repeated over and over again for 15 minutes.

* In the [[UsefulNotes/OlympicGames 1984 Winter Olympics]], British figure skating duo Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean skated to ''Music/{{Bolero}}'' in the free dance. It won them the gold medal, having been awarded 12 perfect 6.0s and 6 5.9 scores, which included artistic scores of 6.0 from all judges.

* IronicallyDisabledArtist: Ravel's "Piano Concerto for the Left Hand" was commissioned by concert pianist Paul Wittgenstein, who had his right arm amputated after a gunshot wound in UsefulNotes/WorldWarOne.

* BrokenRecord: "Bolero" repeats the same melody again and again, with only very subtle and gradual changes in the orchestration each time around. The snare drum has it the worst, repeating the exact same two-measure pattern nonstop for the entire piece.

* MundaneMadeAwesome: His ''Music/{{Bolero}}'' in essence consists of two swapped-off melodies repeated over and over again in varied instrumentations for 15 minutes, but it's nevertheless one of Ravel's most popular compositions and plenty exciting.

Notable pieces include ''Music/JeuxDEau'', ''Theatre/DaphnisEtChloe'', ''Music/PavanePourUnInfanteDefunte'', ''Music/LeTombeauDeCouperin''[[note]]A neo-classical example[[/note]], and the Concerto in G for piano and orchestra[[note]]Influenced by Jazz[[/note]]. He wasn't quite prolific, but was able to build international fame because most of his music was widely acclaimed, both by serious critics and popular listeners. One of the last great composers faithful to the old classical style, before everything classical becomes either atonal, serial or minimalist. He was also a great supporter of Jazz, considering it to be worthy of being an artful musical genre, and the national music of the United States. After the death of Debussy, he was the greatest French composer of his period.

* NurseryRhyme: Forms the basis of the ballet suite ''Theatre/MaMereLOye'' aka "Mother Goose."

* TravelogueShow: Or travelogue work, in this case. Like several French composers, Ravel found Spanish culture exotic and alluring. Examples include the orchestra works ''Music/{{Bolero}}'' and ''Music/RapsodieEspagnol'', the "Alborada del grazioso" movement from ''Music/{{Miroirs}}'' for piano solo, and the opera ''Theatre/LHeureEspagnol''. Other pieces explored such exotic venues as Madagascar (''Music/ChansonsMadecasses''), China ("Laideronnette, impératrice des Pagodes" from ''Theatre/MaMereLOye''), and the Middle East (''Music/{{Sheherazade}}'').

Joseph Maurice Ravel is a French composer (7 March 1875 -- 28 December 1937), [[SmallReferencePools best known for his]] ''[[Music/{{Bolero}} Boléro]]'', despite his considering it a minor piece of work and joking that it had "no music in it".

Notable pieces include ''[[Music/JeuxDeau Jeux d'eau]]'', ''[[Theatre/DaphnisEtChloe Daphnis et Chloe]]'', ''[[PavanePourUnInfanteDefunte Pavane pour une infante défunte]]'', ''[[Music/LeTombeauDeCouperin Le Tombeau de Couperin]]''[[note]]A neo-classical example[[/note]], and the ''[[Music/ConcertoInG Concerto in G]]'' for piano and orchestra[[note]]Influenced by Jazz[[/note]]. He wasn't quite prolific, but was able to build international fame because most of his music was widely acclaimed, both by serious critics and popular listeners. One of the last great composers faithful to the old classical style, before everything classical becomes either atonal, serial or minimalist. He was also a great supporter of Jazz, considering it to be worthy of being an artful musical genre, and the national music of the United States. After the death of Debussy, he was the greatest French composer of his period.

* Myth/ClassicalMythology: The inspiration for the ballet (and two concert suites) ''[[Theatre/DaphnisEtChloe Daphnis et Chloe]]'', based on a romance by the Greek writer Creator/{{Longus}} dating from the second century AD.
* DudeWheresMyReward: Despite being the most talented young French composer of his time, Ravel never won the Prix de Rome prize despite applying five times, getting no closer than Second Prize (on his second try). The third and fourth times, he was eliminated in the first round because the judges suspected Ravel was making fun of them by submitting cantatas so academic in style that they came across as parodies. When he was again eliminated in the first round in his last eligible year, it was discovered that the only finalists were students of jury member Music/CharlesLenepveu. When Lenepveu insisted this was a coincidence, it ignited a furor in the press and among other composers, including those unsympathetic to Ravel's music. It led to the forced retirement of UsefulNotes/ParisConservatoire president [[Music/TheodoreDubois Théodore Dubois]] and a revamping of the prize-awarding process.

* GenreMashup: Applies to the jazz-influenced ''[[Music/ConcertoInG Concerto in G]]'' for piano and orchestra, as well as the second movement of his ''[[Music/SonataInGMajor Sonata in G major]]'' for violin and piano, titled "Blues."

* MundaneMadeAwesome: His ''[[Music/{{Bolero}} Boléro]]'' in essence consists of two swapped-off melodies repeated over and over again in varied instrumentations for 15 minutes, but it's nevertheless one of Ravel's most popular compositions and plenty exciting.
* MusicGenreDissonance: Ravel's music is frequently lumped together with that of Music/ClaudeDebussy as "Impressionist." The latter did not consider himself as such, while Ravel thought the label applied to Debussy but not himself. ''[[Theatre/DaphnisEtChloe Daphnis et Chloe]]'' is the only Ravel work that arguably even fits the genre description at all.
* NameAndName: ''[[Theatre/DaphnisEtChloe Daphnis et Chloe]]''.
* NurseryRhyme / FracturedFairyTale: Forms the basis of the ballet suite ''[[Theatre/MaMereLoye Ma Mère l'Oye]]'' aka "Mother Goose."
* OlderIsBetter: Like Debussy, Ravel generally avoided standard 18th and 19th century structures, though he did write pieces patterned on Baroque forms such as the suite (see ''[[Music/LeTombeauDeCouperin Le Tombeau de Couperin]]'', consisting of a "Prélude," "Fugue," "Forlane," "Rigaudon," "Menuet," and "Toccata") as well as the piano piece ''Music/MenuetAntique''.
* PosthumousCollaboration: Ravel orchestrated Music/ModestMussorgsky's solo piano work ''[[Music/PicturesAtAnExhibition Pictures at an Exhibition]]'' long after the latter's death. It is in fact far better known in this version than the original piano work or re-scoring attempts made by other composers are.
%%* ProgressiveInstrumentation: ''[[Music/{{Bolero}} Boléro]]'' starts with a flute and keeps adding more and more instruments, in essence just two swapped-off melodies repeated over and over again for 15 minutes.

* StandardSnippet: Applies to ''[[Music/{{Bolero}} Boléro]]'' of course, which has been quoted or invoked in movies such as ''Film/{{Ten}}'' and ''WesternAnimation/AllegroNonTroppo''. His music is also clearly the model for many film scores, given their vibrant scoring and polished yet non-academic sounding melodies and harmonic language.
* TravelogueShow: Or travelogue work, in this case. Like several French composers, Ravel found Spanish culture exotic and alluring. Examples include the orchestra works ''[[Music/{{Bolero}} Boléro]]'' and ''Music/RapsodieEspagnol'', the "Alborada del grazioso" movement from ''Music/{{Miroirs}}'' for piano solo, and the opera ''[[Theatre/LheureEspagnol L'Heure Espagnol]]''. Other pieces explored such exotic venues as Madagascar (''[[Music/ChansonsMadecasses Chansons madécasses]]''), China ("Laideronnette, impératrice des Pagodes" from ''[[Theatre/MaMereLoye Ma Mère l'Oye]]''), and the Middle East (''[[Music/{{Sheherazade}} Shéhérazade]]'').

* Music/FrankZappa named him in his influences list on his ''Music/FreakOut'' album. He also covered ''[[Music/{{Bolero}} Boléro]]'' on his album ''Music/TheBestBandYouNeverHeardInYourLife'' (1991).
* ''[[Music/{{Bolero}} Boléro]]'' is the SignatureScene of the animated classic ''WesternAnimation/AllegroNonTroppo'', where it depicts the evolution of dinosaurs all marching to the boléro (a spoof of ''WesternAnimation/{{Fantasia}}''[='=]s sequence for ''Theatre/TheRiteOfSpring'').
* In Creator/BlakeEdwards' film ''Film/{{Ten}}'', ''[[Music/{{Bolero}} Boléro]]'' is used for a seduction scene.

* In the [[UsefulNotes/OlympicGames 1984 Winter Olympics]], British figure skating duo Jayne Torvell and Christopher Dean skated to ''[[Music/{{Bolero}} Boléro]]'' in the free dance. It won them the gold medal, having been awarded 12 perfect 6.0s and 6 5.9 scores, which included artistic scores of 6.0 from all judges.
* The ballets "[[https://youtu.be/hQntEkpCgmY Walking Mad]]" and "[[https://youtu.be/hCt6vIAWCjo Fandango]]" are performed to ''[[Music/{{Bolero}} Boléro]]''.

* The "Boléro" is the SignatureScene of the animated classic ''WesternAnimation/AllegroNonTroppo'', where it depicts the evolution of dinosaurs all marching to the boléro (a spoof of ''Disney/{{Fantasia}}''[='=]s sequence for ''Theatre/TheRiteOfSpring'').

* In Creator/BlakeEdwards' film ''Film/{{Ten}}'' the "Boléro" is used for a seduction scene.

Notable pieces include ''Jeux d'eau'', ''Daphnis et Chloe,'' ''Pavane pour une infante défunte'', ''Le Tombeau de Couperin''[[note]]A neo-classical example[[/note]], and the Piano Concerto in G Major[[note]]Influenced by Jazz[[/note]]. He wasn't quite prolific, but was able to build international fame because most of his music was widely acclaimed, both by serious critics and popular listeners. One of the last great composers faithful to the old classical style, before everything classical becomes either atonal, serial or minimalist. He was also a great supporter of Jazz, considering it to be worthy of being an artful musical genre, and the national music of the United States. After the death of Debussy, he was the greatest French composer of his period.

Joseph Maurice Ravel is a French composer (7 March 1875 -- 28 December 1937), [[SmallReferencePools best known for his ''Bolero'']], despite his considering it a minor piece of work and joking that it had "no music in it".

He's a cornerstone in the Impressionist movement of music, along with his fellow composer, Music/ClaudeDebussy. Though both of them never considered themselves as Impressionists, and were actually offended by the label. Nevertheless, his music is considered to contain very colourful tones and sounds, flows very freely, and is very atmospheric, like a piece of Impressionist painting. He also wrote other pieces that are considered best as Neo-Classical[[note]]Classical music which follows traditional structure, but has modern harmonic elements in it[[/note]]. Regardless, he's considered as one of the major figures of early 20th century classical music, and is widely popular among classical music listeners for his lush and beautiful, yet controlled[[note]]Unlike his fellow Claude Debussy[[/note]] musical landscapes.

Notable pieces include ''Jeux d'eau'', ''Daphnis et Chloe,'' ''Pavane pour une infante défunte'', ''Le Tombeau de Couperin''[[note]]A neo-classical example[[/note]], ''Piano Concerto in G Major''[[note]]Influenced by Jazz[[/note]]... He wasn't quite prolific - but was able to build an international fame due to the fact that most of his music was widely acclaimed, both by serious critics and popular listeners. One of the last great composers faithful to the old classical style, before everything classical becomes either atonal, serial or minimalist. He was also a great support of Jazz, considering it to be worthy of being an artful musical genre, and the national music of the United States. After the death of Debussy, he was no doubt the greatest French composer of his period.

He was a fairly reticent individual, like his music. Interestingly known to have no (known) romantic or sexual relationships, much to the composer's chagrin and loneliness, although he was surrounded by a rather large circle of faithful friends and followers, who would later support his last 4 years when he was affected by a neurological illness that prevented him from playing or writing any other music. After a failed operation, he died after falling into a coma. His death was greatly and unanimously grieved in the artistic circle - a year after his death, the ''Revue Musicale'' published a special edition containing around 100 articles paying homage to the late composer.

* The "Boléro" is the SignatureScene of the animated classic ''WesternAnimation/AllegroNonTroppo'', where it depicts the evolution of dinosaurs all marching to the boléro.

* In the [[{{UsefulNotes/OlympicGames}} 1984 Winter Olympics]], British figure skating duo Jayne Torvell and Christopher Dean skated to ''Boléro'' in the free dance. It won them the gold medal, having been awarded 12 perfect 6.0s and 6 5.9 scores, which included artistic scores of 6.0 from all judges.