Maurice Ravel

Le Tombeau de Couperin (Suite d'Orchestre)

Ravel's multi-layered homage in the 'Breitkopf Urtext' In his homage Le Tombeau de Couperin, Ravel turns less to Couperin himself than to French music of the 18th century. On the other hand, editor Jean-Francois Monnard explains in his foreword how Ravel reacts in a very personal way to the events of the First World War in this multi-layered work. The starting point for the orchestral version is his own piano suite of the same name (1914-17). In 1919, Ravel selected four movements from this original, orchestrated them with all the artistry that contrasts charmingly with the pseudo-baroque musical language and arranged them in a new, effective order. The work achieved great popularity immediately after the concert premiere when the three dance movements of the orchestral suite were included in a ballet production. The edition supervised by Monnard is based on the most important sources. The preface contains numerous notes on the interpretation and performance history of the work. This publication marks the fifth major Ravel work in the 'Breitkopf Urtext'.