Latest news with #Ravel
The Guardian
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
LSO/Dudamel/Rebeka review – relentless orchestral fireworks and bright moments
Launching a concert with Strauss's Don Juan makes quite a statement: those madcap opening seconds, the music scrambling from the bottom of the orchestra in a bravura sweep before blooming into an irresistibly cavalier and heroic melody. It seemed a very Gustavo Dudamel way for the starry conductor to begin his first London appearance with the London Symphony Orchestra, after concerts in Spain last week. Dudamel drove the music hard and fast: it was full of firework explosions that dissolved into sparkling blurs of light. On one level it was thrilling. On another, it soon began to feel a little narrow. Dudamel let the brightest moments scythe through the texture – an ear-splitting glockenspiel, a brief but brazen trumpet solo – and yet the general orchestral sound was so thickly blended as to be almost homogenised. There was little sense of the music bubbling with detail, and a limited depth to the sound. This might not have mattered so much had the concert not been entirely of music by Strauss and Ravel, two of the 20th century's most meticulous musical colourists. At least the opening of Ravel's Shéhérazade showed that the orchestra could still play quietly. The soprano soloist was Marina Rebeka. Spinning out long, fluid lines, she captured the languid quality of these songs beautifully but was less convincing in conveying the wordiness of their poetry or the sense of wanderlust that drives the first song in particular. Instrumental highlights included Gareth Davies's flute solos in the second movement, first energised, then returning quiet and distant at the end. The orchestral palette broadened after the interval for Ravel's Rapsodie Espagnole, with a beguiling softness to the mesmerising repeated figure in the first movement, and a sultriness in the Habanera that put the taut, shiny finale into relief. Finally there was the orchestral suite from Strauss's opera Der Rosenkavalier, in which the central waltz was full of character but the climactic music was pushed onwards relentlessly. The whole concert was pacy and entertaining, but it left the impression that the LSO is a huge paintbox, the darkest and softest colours of which Dudamel has only just begun to explore.
Times
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Times
LSO/Dudamel review — an inspired conductor finds his mojo again
★★★★★Churlishly I considered knocking a star off the rating for this gloriously exuberant fiesta of a concert because the Barbican audience weren't really given anything profound or meaty, dark or foreboding, to ponder. But honestly, who needs soul-baring symphonies when you have Gustavo Dudamel guiding, galvanising and coaxing the London Symphony Orchestra through a succession of Ravel and Strauss scores that shimmered with sensuality and showcased virtuosity all round the band? You can sometimes tell what a concert is going to be like from the first bar of music. This one was launched by a surge of notes so exhilarating yet so precisely co-ordinated that you forgot for a moment how difficult it is for some conductors to start Strauss's Don Juan at all.
Qatar Tribune
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Qatar Tribune
QPO set to celebrate French composers at Katara concert
Tribune News Network Doha The Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra (QPO) will pay tribute to the rich legacy of French classical music in a captivating performance on Monday, May 12, at 7:30 pm at the Katara Opera House. The concert, conducted by the distinguished Elias Grandy, will present a programme that journeys through evocative soundscapes, fairy-tale imagination and rhythmic brilliance. The evening opens with Georges Bizet's L'Arlésienne Suite No. 2, a vibrant selection drawn from his incidental music for Alphonse Daudet's 1872 play L'Arlésienne. Although the play closed after only 21 performances, Bizet's music gained lasting popularity. The suite, especially the spirited 'Farandole', showcases Bizet's gift for melody and his deft use of polyphonic textures, illustrating the emotional turmoil of a young man caught between love and betrayal. Next, the Philharmonic will perform Paul Dukas' The Sorcerer's Apprentice, a symphonic scherzo inspired by Goethe's 1797 poem. The work, premiered in Paris in 1897 under Dukas' own direction, narrates the comical and chaotic adventure of a young apprentice who unwittingly unleashes a magical disaster. This piece gained global fame after being featured in Walt Disney's 1940 film 'Fantasia', and remains a favourite for its dramatic tension and playful orchestration. After the intermission, audiences will be transported into a world of fairy tales with Maurice Ravel's Mother Goose Suite (Ma mère l'Oye). Originally composed as a set of piano duets for children in 1910 and later orchestrated, the suite draws inspiration from classic stories including Sleeping Beauty, Tom Thumb, and Beauty and the Beast. With delicate textures and imaginative instrumentation, Ravel's music paints a whimsical and enchanting soundscape that appeals to both children and adults alike. The concert will culminate in Ravel's Boléro, one of the most recognisable and hypnotic compositions of the 20th century. Characterised by its persistent rhythm and gradual crescendo, Boléro builds a powerful sense of anticipation that ultimately erupts in a triumphant finale. Originally composed as a ballet in 1928, it has since become a staple of orchestral repertoire and a testament to Ravel's ingenuity. With its thoughtfully curated programme and masterful performances, this Qatar Philharmonic concert promises an unforgettable evening that celebrates the timeless beauty and storytelling power of French music.
Korea Herald
29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
As temperatures rise, hottest pianists are coming to town
Cho Seong-jin, Lim Yunchan lead season with instantly sold-out performances With temperatures rising this summer, Korea's classical music scene will be ablaze with two of its brightest stars on the ebony and ivory: Cho Seong-jin and Lim Yunchan. Tickets for their performances sold out almost immediately upon release, highlighting the extraordinary demand for both artists and setting the stage for a landmark summer in classical music. Cho Seong-jin, practically a household name on the global stage, embarks on a major recital tour across Korea in June and July, following the worldwide release of his monumental Ravel project. Commemorating the 150th anniversary of Maurice Ravel's birth, Cho recorded "Ravel: The Complete Solo Piano Works," released in January, and an album of Ravel's two piano concertos with the Boston Symphony Orchestra conducted by Andris Nelsons, released in February. Launched at Vienna's Konzerthaus in January and passing through New York's Carnegie Hall, Los Angeles' Walt Disney Concert Hall, the Berlin Philharmonie and London's Barbican Centre, Cho's world tour is to arrive home in June. His Korean recital series will begin June 12 in Incheon and move through major cities including Seoul, Seongnam in Gyeonggi Province, Daegu and Gimhae, South Gyeongsang Province. Deeply connected to French piano music since his days at the Paris Conservatoire, Cho describes Ravel's compositions as "meticulously crafted.' 'I think Debussy, compared to Ravel, has a much freer and perhaps more romantic quality,' Cho said in an interview with Korean media in January. "On the other hand, Ravel seems more poetic than Debussy and much more of a perfectionist. He seemed to have a very clear idea of what he wanted. His music is meticulously crafted, and it feels like he tried to compose piano pieces with an orchestral sensibility. I kept those aspects in mind while recording." For his Korean audience, the winner of the 17th International Chopin Piano Competition in 2015 offers two distinct programs: The first is a daring three-hour marathon performance of Ravel's complete solo piano works. The second program explores the theme of nature through Liszt's 'Les Jeux d'eaux a la Villa d'Este,' Beethoven's Pastoral Sonata, Bartok's 'Out of Doors' and Brahms' Piano Sonata No. 3. While Cho takes on the monumental task of a full recital tour centered on Ravel and the theme of nature, Lim Yunchan, the sensation who stunned the world by winning the 2022 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition at age 18, joins forces with the Orchestre de Paris and conductor Klaus Makela for a series of high-profile concerto performances. Lim will perform three major concerts with the French orchestra under the baton of Makela, one of Europe's most acclaimed young conductors. He is to take the stage on June 11 at Seoul Arts Center, June 13 at LG Arts Center and June 15 at Lotte Concert Hall, performing Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 4 in all concerts. The program also includes Boulez's Initiale for Brass Ensemble and Berlioz's 'Symphonie Fantastique.' Meanwhile, the Orchestre de Paris and Makela will also showcase its renowned mastery of French repertoire on June 14 at Lotte Concert Hall, with a program featuring Ravel's 'Le Tombeau de Couperin' and 'Mother Goose Suite,' as well as Saint-Saens' Organ Symphony. This will be the Orchestre de Paris's fifth visit to Korea and the first in nine years, since 2016. Founded in 1967, the orchestra has been led by legendary conductors such as Charles Munch, Herbert von Karajan, Georg Solti and Daniel Barenboim.
Telegraph
27-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Follow my guide to Ravel's finest recordings
Having written about Maurice Ravel 's life just before the 150th anniversary of his birth last month, I wanted to look at recent recordings, and to recommend some from longer ago that show the composer's mastery to its utmost. One notable new recording is of his complete ballet Daphnis et Chloé, written between 1909 and 1912. By then, he had very much found his own voice, but was still under the impressionist influence of Debussy. The almost faultless new recording is compiled from two performances last year by the London Symphony Orchestra under Antonio Pappano. Pappano's immense talent as a conductor is unquestionable and there are numerous examples of the breadth of his range and depth of his insight in other recordings on the LSO Live label, whence this comes. Recently, John Wilson, another conductor who appears able to do no wrong, brought out a disc of orchestral works with the Sinfonia of London, on Chandos, which includes a stunning account of the composer's orchestration from 1919 of his piano masterpiece Le Tombeau de Couperin. Wilson, who has produced several first-rate Ravel recordings, judges the orchestral textures perfectly. He is well served, in a piece Ravel made into an instrumental showpiece, by an ensemble packed with virtuosi. As ever with Chandos, the sound engineering is superlative. The label has also issued a double album of Ravel's complete works for solo piano by Jean-Efflam Bavouzet, the Frenchman whose considerable abilities are overdue for proper recognition outside his home country. In my own extensive collection there are several Ravel recordings to which I return repeatedly, and I do not hesitate to recommend them. A rare pianist who surpasses Bavouzet is Samson François, a prodigy who died in 1970, aged just 46, after a life of excess, but whose abilities were astonishing. A six-CD box set includes not just the complete solo piano works but also Ravel's two piano concerti played by François with the Orchestre de la Société des Concerts du Conservatoire, conducted by the Belgian-born André Cluytens. The box set also includes Cluytens conducting the same orchestra in Ravel's complete orchestral works. One wants this set for François, but Cluytens's interpretations of Ravel's orchestral works are among the best available and show a deep understanding of the composer.
