Top 9 Hardest Ravel Pieces for Piano
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- Опубликовано: 26 июл 2024
- Compared to his contemporaries, Ravel didn’t leave a whole lot of piano music (hence why this list only goes up to 9), but the piano music he did leave behind is not only very difficult but some of the greatest virtuoso writing for the instrument. Building off of the pianistic traditions of Liszt and Schumann, he added an Impressionistic flair as well as elements of jazz and neoclassicism in order to create one of the truly eclectic voices of the early 20th century.
Ravel shares many of the same technical requirements as Debussy-a subtle touch, tone painting, perfect pedaling, arpeggios galore-but in his hardest works Ravel adds technical difficulties that are bordering on the absurd. A number of his works contain glissandos that can be only categorized as extreme sports; thirds, fourths, octaves, black/white keys all must be learned in glissando form if one is to play the harder Ravel pieces. Do you struggle with fast and consistent repeated notes (or maybe your piano does)? Then best of luck with works like the Toccata, Alborada del gracioso, Gaspard de la Nuit....
And despite the celebrated difficulty of works like Scarbo, some posit that his slow pieces are the true test of a pianist's technical mastery and mental willpower. If your Le Gibet doesn't sound exactly like the "corpse of the hanged one that is reddened by the setting sun", then you might be doing something wrong.
9. Jeux d'eau (7)
0:00 György Cziffra
0:33 Yvonne Lefébure
8. Sonatine (7+)
1:16 Alfred Cortot
1:41 Walter Gieseking
2:08 Abbey Simon
7. Piano Concerto in G (7+)
2:27 Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli
2:57 Marguerite Long
3:54 Monique Haas
6. Le Tombeau de Couperin (7++)
4:28 Jean-Yves Thibaudet
5:07 Samson François
5. Left Hand Concerto (8)
6:01 Jacques Février
6:24 Robert Casadesus
7:28 Samson François
4. Fragments Symphoniques from Daphnis et Chloé (8)
8:33 Florian Uhlig
9:19 Florian Uhlig
3. Miroirs (8+)
9:44 Vlado Perlemuter
10:10 Abbey Simon
10:36 Louis Lortie
11:07 Sviatoslav Richter
2. La Valse (8+, or 8++ depending on how much of it you play)
11:37 Seong-Jin Cho
12:05 David Fung
1. Gaspard de la Nuit (8++)
13:09 Minoru Nojima
14:07 Ivo Pogorelich
14:42 Martha Argerich
Honorable mentions: Nothing really...maybe playing the entire Valses nobles et sentimentales is a bit of an achievement? The Menuet antique (one of my favorite pieces) isn't easy but isn't quite virtuoso level either.
/ calebhu 
Видеоклипы
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Nowadays I'm a bit more busy than usual. But which composer(s) should I do next?
Bartok/Medtner please, either one is fine by me. By the way, do you find that Medtner's writing in his sonatas is actually quite pianistic despite being really difficult
JS Bach, Prokofiev
Alkan
Scarlatti.
Mendelssohn, Grieg, Mozart
Playing Gaspard is a blast, but learning it was pure hell
Le Gibet is the worst to read through IMO. Out of the three it was by far the biggest headache for me to digest, and so many damn big chords.
wish i could play it.. :(
@@Iumine Make goals, you'll get there someday :D
@@SCRIABINIST thanks :) im working up to it. currently im learning the last little bit of valses nobles et sentimentales
i learned it at age 13, was perfect 1 year later
thats how hard it is, took a full year
apparently Argerich said she learned Gaspard in like 8 days and didn't even realize it was supposed to be hard?????? #justmarthathings eh?
Always a good day when Caleb uploads
My current piano teacher studied under the teacher (Ms. Aiko Iguchi) about 50 years ago, where Mr. Nojima worked as an assistant teacher. Mr. Nojima passed away last year (2022). Recently his live Beethoven performance ("Emperor" concerto etc.) was issued from King label in Japan.
10:34 That seamless transition 👌🏾
transition to what? it is how it was written
@@user-qn5kh2tz2r The transition between pianists. He seamlessly switched from one pianist's recording to another's for the exact same piece
@@christianvennemann9008 oh wow
Richter is such a god anyway, but how he plays those double thirds/fourths in Alborada del gracioso, and his control over the repeated notes in-between everything else is spellbinding. Mindblowing control.
Great video! (Love the “8+ or 8++ depending on how much of it you play” bit by the way. Both very true and funny)
Omg what a great selection of pianist. Finally, someone who has some good style and taste.
I love La Valse! Such an incredible piece
Scarbo makes me look under my bed before trying to go to sleep. It is an amazing tone poem.
The way the coda builds at 7:53 is just so 👌😩👌
Thank youuuu Ravel is my favorite composer ♡
my god, that François Left Hand concerto! oh la la!
And the CLARITY OF TEXTURE from Cho Seong-Jin....
10:17 and in the case of this Simon recording... a masterclass in humming as well, apparently!
YAY IM SO EXCITED THANKS!!
so here's another fun list: i've compiled the names of all the pianists that have been featured in the series so far and tallied the amount of times they've appeared! occasionally some of them appear more than once in one piece though and so i've included counts for both including and not including these "multiple entries". the format here is [including multiple entries] ([not including multiple entries]) / [# of videos they appear in], and the ordering goes from most to least entries with pianists with the same amount of entries simply listed in alphabetical order based on last names.
(note for anyone who wants to check: Kissin has two entries in Feux Follets but this was not noted in the description/timestamps of the video)
starting off with pianists with more than 2 entries (including multiple entries):
1. Sviatoslav Richter 12 (12) / 8
2. Emil Gilels 7 (7) / 4
3. Cyprien Katsaris 7 (3) / 1
4. Abbey Simon 6 (5) / 4
5. Evgeny Kissin 6 (4) / 3
6. Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli 5 (5) / 5
7. Claudio Arrau 5 (5) / 4
8. Vladimir Ashkenazy 5 (5) / 3
9. Sergei Rachmaninov 5 (5) / 3
10. Nikolai Lugansky 5 (4) / 2
11. Walter Gieseking 4 (4) / 3
12. Vladimir Horowitz 4 (4) / 3
13. Maurizio Pollini 4 (4) / 3
14. Krystian Zimerman 4 (4) / 3
15. Rudolf Serkin 4 (4) / 2
16. Seong-jin Cho 3 (3) / 3
17. Alfred Cortot 3 (3) / 3
18. Jenő Jandó 3 (3) / 3
19. Mikhail Pletnev 3 (3) / 3
20. Artur Rubinstein 3 (3) / 3
21. Alfred Brendel 3 (3) / 2
22. Nelson Freire 3 (3) / 2
23. Murray Perahia 3 (3) / 2
24. Ivo Pogorelich 3 (3) / 2
25. Florian Uhlig 3 (2) / 2
pianists who only have 2 entries so far:
26. Martha Argerich 2 (2) / 2
27. Wilhelm Backhaus 2 (2) / 2
28. Dino Ciani 2 (2) / 2
29. Solomon (Cutner) 2 (2) / 2
30. György Cziffra 2 (2) / 2
31. Monique Haas 2 (2) / 2
32. Paavali Jumppanen 2 (2) / 2
33. Zoltán Kocsis 2 (2) / 2
34. Louis Lortie 2 (2) / 2
35. Radu Lupu 2 (2) / 2
36. Benno Moiseiwitsch 2 (2) / 2
37. Ivan Moravec 2 (2) / 2
38. Minoru Nojima 2 (2) / 2
39. Noriko Ogawa 2 (2) / 2
40. John Ogdon 2 (2) / 2
41. Maria João Pires 2 (2) / 2
42. Eliso Virsaladze 2 (2) / 2
43. Zlata Chochieva 2 (2) / 1
44. Annie Fischer 2 (2) / 1
45. Samson François 2 (2) / 1
46. Nelson Goerner 2 (2) / 1
47. Susanne Grützmann 2 (2) / 1
48. Friedrich Gulda 2 (2) / 1
49. Myra Hess 2 (2) / 1
50. Julius Katchen 2 (2) / 1
51. Éric Le Sage 2 (2) / 1
52. Maria Lettberg 2 (2) / 1
53. Peter Rösel 2 (2) / 1
54. Artur Schnabel 2 (2) / 1
55. Agustin Anievas 2 (1) / 1
56. Bernd Glemser 2 (1) / 1
57. Marc-André Hamelin 2 (1) / 1
58. Wilhelm Kempff 2 (1) / 1
59. Roger Muraro 2 (1) / 1
60. Konstantin Scherbakov 2 (1) / 1
and last but not least, pianists with only 1 entry so far:
61. Dag Achatz
62. Dmitri Alexeev
63. Géza Anda
64. Piotr Anderszewski
65. Nicholas Angelich
66. Håkon Austbø
67. Vladimir Baak
68. Gina Bachauer
69. Béla Bartók
70. Jean-Efflam Bavouzet
71. Boris Berezovsky
72. İdil Biret
73. Rafał Blechacz
74. John Browning
75. Gabriele Carcano
76. Robert Casadesus
77. Alberto Cobo
78. Nikolai Demidenko
79. Samuil Feinberg
80. Jacques Février
81. Goran Filipec
82. Leon Fleisher
83. Claude Frank
84. David Fung
85. Lukas Geniušas
86. Kiriil Gerstein
87. Jeanne Golan
88. Richard Goode
89. Stewart Goodyear
90. Percy Grainger
91. Jacob Greenberg
92. Maria Grinberg
93. Horacio Gutiérrez
94. Martin Helmchen
95. Bruce Hungerford
96. Byron Janis
97. Martin Jones
98. William Kapell
99. Freddy Kempf
100. Minkyu Kim
101. Michael Korstick
102. Frederic Lamond
103. André Laplante
104. Peter Laul
105. Yvonne Lefébure
106. Josef Lhévinne
107. John Lill
108. Dinu Lipatti
109. Marguerite Long
110. Yvonne Loriod
111. Vincenzo Maltempo
112. Leon McCawley
113. Jon Nakamatsu
114. Stanislav Neuhaus
115. Tatiana Nikolayeva
116. Guiomar Novaes
117. Masaru Okada
118. Jorge Federico Osorio
119. Cécile Ousset
120. Vlado Perlemuter
121. Nikolai Petrov
122. Jonathan Plowright
123. Beatrice Rana
124. Pascal Rogé
125. Mikhail Rudy
126. Georg Friedrich Schenck
127. Anna Shelest
128. Antii Siirala
129. Vladimir Sofronitsky
130. Roberto Szidon
131. Jean-Yves Thibaudet
132. François-Jöel Thiollier
133. Eliso Tomellini
134. Simon Trpčeski
135. Anatoly Vedernikov
136. Anna Vinnitskaya
137. André Watts
138. Alexis Weissenberg
139. Sabine Weyer
140. William Wolfram
141. Klára Würtz
142. Maria Yudina
(yes 142 different pianists have been featured thus far that's pretty crazy)
Very interesting. I definitely was going for variety lol! And it reflects my favorite pianists (Richter, Gilels, Simon) although I wasn't even consciously thinking about using them more
No Jeax Deau tremolo has been as long as Cziffra's but that was worth it.
Wow the transition from simon to lortie was amazing 10:34
Epic, all rankings are just so perfect!
And everything by Ravel, other than the Bolero, is my favourite, love them for life.
what you don't like snare drum spam
and tbf i don't think ravel himself liked it either 😂
Don’t look up La parade.
@@ilikeplayingffftonecluster851 I don't have to because I know the piece and it's not bad at all, it's actually good. Nothing's been as cringey and repetitive as the Bolero.
@@CatkhosruShapurrjiFurabji I can’t believe I’m saying this but I would take Bolero over what sounds like a bad Liszt transcription knockoff any day.
@@CatkhosruShapurrjiFurabji That being said, I don’t mind the repetitive nature of Bolero after my exposure to hip hop. Still think it gets far more attention than it deserves when the same composer wrote everything in this video. Sad that Ravel is mostly known for that by the mainstream.
incidentally if anyone here is a fan of the Pogo rendition of the Gaspard featured here (which i think is his studio recording), then i highly recommend checking out his live rendition, Tokyo 1983, which you can find on youtube! there he plays it with slightly less clarity and articulation perhaps, but with more intensity and sweeping tempos, and also sharper bass and attacks overall. heck in fact if you have time you should check out the recital in its entirety, it's exciting stuff. the Chopin 3rd sonata from that same recital is one of my absolute faves
11:37 Cho's glissandi go brrr (but I find Chung's more "percussionist").
For a "next composer", what about doing the accompaniments to the Hindemith instrumental sonatas?
Most are at least difficult. Some of them are absolute *beasts*.
It's very effective writing, especially considering Hindemith was a violist. I paid my way through college playing the piano parts of Hindemith's sonatas. Nobody wanted to take them on, and I actually *like* Hindemith (even though my own music sounds nothing like his). The craftsmanship in Hindemith's music is undeniable.
Another idea: the piano in chamber ensembles.
8:33 sorbj
love this list of every one of ravel’s piano pieces😍
I mean there are some easier ones
@@calebhu6383 yeah like 3😅
@@themagicducc2777 valse nobles et sentimentales, menuet antique, pavane pour une infante defunte, serenade grotesque, prelude in g, a la maniere de, etc. etc. yea no there are still plenty more its just most of them arent really well known
@@GICM yes 3 is an exaggeration, but there are only 10 piano pieces on this list, 8 if you count the piano from daphnis et chloé as one “piece” like he did with miroirs
The Abbey interpretation of mirroir is insane
it would not be a caleb list video without a Schumann reference or Richter
After years of playing as an amateur, finally decided to learn a really difficult Ravel piece, and chose "Une Barque". And I conquered it! Much to my satisfaction. Deciding what to learn next (still not mentally ready for "Gaspard" though).
Thanks for the shout out for Minoru Nojima. His Ravel is chilling, what a great pianist. And for recognizing gifted Jean Yves Thibaudet, still in his prime.
You should try Jeux d'eau after Une Barque
@@calebhu6383 Thanks! I was considering it!
Do you mean Une barque sur l'océan ?
@@arielorthmann4061 Yes
@@BuddyDean Try an obscure work of Ravel’s - his “Frontispiece”! He wrote it in 1918, right after his mother died.
I read that Ravel never was married and I don’t think he had any really serious relationships with anyone who is very dedicated to his art is art was so romantic yet he never really had a serious relationship with anyone that was documented
Hardest Prokofiev or Mozart pieces Would Be Nice
OHO
haha i knew it was gonna be hard to find 10 hardest ravel pieces
Yeah
What are the hardest Ravel piano pieces? *All of them.*
10:36 yey more smooth transitions
Yeah I like that one
5:34 it's hard not to love Ravel (as a person), isn't it?
Jeux D'eau easier than the sonatine? I always thought it was rather like an etude-compilation in comparison.
Also, the piano trio man.
not including chamber music. sonatine was put higher because its longer
6:09 but..... think of all the memes!
lol actually would've been pretty funny if you included it and roasted it like how you roast Czerny
11:07 kinda wish it was Katsaris here, but then again i wouldn't sacrifice a Richter spot for anything either
14:07 been a while since we had a Pogo entry
UPDATED COMPLETE LIST:
89. Chopin Étude Op. 25 No. 11 "Winter Wind" (7)
88. Debussy Pour Le Piano L. 95 (7)
87. Chopin Scherzo No. 4 Op. 54 (7)
86. Ravel Jeux d'eau M. 30 (7)
85. Debussy L'isle Joyeuse L. 106 (7)
84. Debussy Images Book II L. 111 (7)
83. Debussy Images Book I L. 110 (7)
82. Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 23 Op. 57 "Appasionata" (7)
81. Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 31 Op. 110 (7) 80. Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 26 Op. 81a "Les Adieux" (7)
79. Chopin Étude Op. 25 No. 6 "Thirds" (7+)
78. Ravel Sonatine M. 40 (7+)
77. Rachmaninoff Étude-Tableaux Op. 39 No. 6 "Little Red Riding Hood" (7+)
76. Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 5 Op. 73 "Emperor" (7+)
75. Ravel Piano Concerto in G Major M. 83 (7+)
74. Debussy Preludes Book I L. 117 (7+)
73. Chopin Ballade No. 2 Op. 38 (7+)
72. Chopin Polonaise-Fantaisie Op. 61 (7+)
71. Chopin Piano Concerto No. 2 Op. 21 (7+) 70. Chopin Piano Concerto No. 1 Op. 11 (7+)
69. Schumann Piano Concerto Op. 54 (7+)
68. Brahms Piano Sonata No. 2 Op. 2 (7+)
67. Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 30 Op. 109 (7+)
66. Brahms Variations on a theme of Schumann Op. 9 (7+)
65. Brahms 8 Klavierstücke Op. 76 (7+)
64. Brahms 5 Studies Anh. 1: Study No. 1 on Chopin Étude Op. 25 No. 2 "Bees" (7++)
63. Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 2 Op. 18 (7++)
62. Scriabin Fantaisie in B Minor Op. 28 (7++)
61. Chopin Ballade No. 4 Op. 52 (7++)
60. Rachmaninoff Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini Op. 43 (7++)
59. Ravel Le Tombeau de Couperin M. 68 (7++)
58. Scriabin Poeme Op. 72 "Vers La Flamme" (7++)
57. Chopin Piano Sonata No. 2 Op. 35 "Funeral March" (7++)
56. Schumann Carnaval Op. 9 (7++)
55. Schumann Humoreske Op. 20 (7++)
54. Schumann Piano Sonata No. 1 Op. 11 (7++) 53. Schumann Piano Sonata No. 3 Op. 14 "Concerto Without Orchestra" (7++)
52. Debussy Preludes Book II L. 123 (7++)
51. Brahms Piano Sonata No. 1 Op. 1 (7++)
50. Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 4 Op. 58 (7++)
49. Rachmaninoff Variations on a Theme of Corelli Op. 42 (8)
48. Chopin Piano Sonata No. 3 Op. 58 (8)
47. Scriabin Étude Op. 65 No. 1 "Ninths" (8)
46. Scriabin Piano Sonata No. 9 Op. 68 "Black Mass" (8)
45. Scriabin Piano Concerto Op. 20 (8)
44. Scriabin Piano Sonata No. 10 Op. 70 (8)
43. Schumann Fantasie in C Major Op. 17 (8)
42. Schumann Symphonic Études Op. 13 (8)
41. Schumann Toccata Op. 7 (8)
40. Ravel Piano Concerto for the Left Hand Alone M. 82 (8)
39. Ravel Fragments Symphoniques from Daphnis et Chloé M. 57a (8)
38. Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 1 Op. 1 (8)
37. Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 4 Op. 40 (8)
36. Debussy Transcription (only original version) of Ballet "Khamma" L. 125 (8)
35. Beethoven Variations on a Theme of Diabelli Op. 120 (8)
34. Schumann Kreisleriana Op. 16 (8)
33. Schumann Davidsbündlertänze Op. 6 (8)
32. Brahms Piano Concerto No. 1 Op. 15 (8) 31. Brahms Piano Sonata No. 3 Op. 5 (8) 30. Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 28 Op. 101 (8) 29. Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 32 Op. 111 (8) 28. Liszt Transcendental Étude S. 139 No. 5 "Feux Follets" (8+)
27. Debussy Etudes Book I L. 136 (8+)
26. Ravel Miroirs M. 43 (8+)
25. Debussy Transcription of Ballet "Jeux" L. 126 (8+)
24. Debussy Etudes Book II L. 136 (8+)
23. Rachmaninoff Piano Sonata No. 1 Op. 28 (8+)
22. Rachmaninoff Variations on a Theme of Chopin Op. 22 (8+)
21. Scriabin Piano Sonata No. 6 Op. 62 (8+)
20. Scriabin Piano Sonata No. 7 Op. 64 "White Mass" (8+)
19. Brahms Variations on a Theme of Handel Op. 24 (8+)
18. Ravel Transcription of La Valse M. 72b (8++, but also might be 8+ depending on how much you play)
17. Liszt Réminiscences de Don Juan S. 418 (8++)
16. Liszt Grande fantaisie de bravoure sur La clochette S. 420 (8++)
15. Liszt Réminiscences de Lucrezia Borgia S. 400 (8++)
14. Rachmaninoff Piano Sonata No. 2 Op. 36 1st (1913) version (8++)
13. Scriabin Piano Sonata No. 8 Op. 66 (8++) 12. Scriabin Piano Sonata No. 5 Op. 53 (8++)
11. Ravel Gaspard de La Nuit M. 55 (8++)
10. Liszt Beethoven Symphony No. 7 (Op. 92) Transcription S. 464 (8++)
9. Liszt Étude d'exécution transcendante d'apres Paganini S. 140 No. 4b (8++)
8. Liszt Große Konzertfantasie über Spanische Weisen S. 253 (8++)
7. Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 3 Op. 30 (8++)
6. Brahms Piano Concerto No. 2 Op. 83 (8++)
5. Brahms Variations on a Theme of Paganini Op. 35 (8++)
4. Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 29 Op. 106 "Hammerklavier" (8++)
3. Liszt Beethoven Symphony No. 3 "Eroica" (Op. 55) Transcription S. 464 (8++)
2. Liszt Berlioz Symphonie Fantastique (Op. 14) Transcription S. 470 (9)
1. Liszt Beethoven Symphony No. 9 (Op. 125) "Choral/Ode to Joy" Transcription S. 464 (9)
(note for anyone curious: if you wanna know more about the rating system, Caleb has a pretty in depth explanation of it in his channel 'About' page)
Nice list
@@GICM Oh yeah, I changed Hammerklavier to 8++ but it's a very high 8++
@@calebhu6383 whoops i think i copied an outdated list could've sworn i already had hammerklavier at 8++
@@calebhu6383 what do you think of Mereaux's Scherzo alla Napolatina?
you know i think Uhlig hasn't released any recordings recently, maybe he's working on a complete Liszt cycle next (i mean someone has to dethrone Leslie Howard at some point right)
Ravel/Maltempo is also insanely hard
Wait to see Ravel/Sorabji ( he transcribed the Spanish Rhapsody for solo piano)
My first violin student is learning Jeux D'eau for about half a year now. God help him.
i feel like most top tier pianists are crazy former child prodigies though, even people in the old gang
True, but a lot of them don't go noticed until later
I've always been curious why you had Scarbo ranked higher than Le Preux. I actually managed to get a response from Seonyong Hwang about this, and he said Le Preux was harder. But they are so different it's probably a matter of opinion since they are similar in level
I cant play either so i don't have much of a say though
I don't have Scarbo ranked higher than Le Preux? Le preux is like 8++ borderline 9
@@calebhu6383 i think they meant in the top 100 hardest video the whole gaspard was ranked higher than le preux
@@GICM Gaspard as a whole would be harder than Le Preux.
@@AllNewYear i guess. but idk how to judge difficult by length u know, it seems like cheating. like i could say playing fur elise 10000000x in a row is harder than sorabji symphonic variations
@@ryzikx well you're not playing the same thing over and over again so its not really cheating
Caleb Hu.
For #6, should have included that nasty fugue
I think Jeux d'eau is more difficult than the Sonatine. Also, the Left Hand Concerto difficulty is underrated. It is top 3. Both for technical and ensemble difficulties. Not that a ranking even matters. Some pieces I am not fond of or are played in an unsatisfying way too often (Gaspard and La Valse). It often induces "me too" eye rolls from me (they've are playing it primarily to prove they can, Gaspard deserves so much better). I would rather hear the Valses Nobles, LH Concerto, Jeux d'eau, Le Tombeau or the Sonatine played with inspiration. I also love the majesty, charm and warmth of the Menuet Antique. Difficulty does not correlate to value.
I think technically Jeaux d'eau has a higher ceiling, but with everything factored in (interpretation, length, etc.) Sonatine edges it out.
It's much easier to play the Sonatine on a bad piano than Jeux d'eau. I think Jeux d'eau requires an improvisatory musical approach at times and a very fine control of the sound. It's easier to give a really mediocre performance of Jeux d'eau.
@@calebhu6383 I will never understand where the ideas of “interpretive” or “musical” difficulty came from. I used to nod along with the idea but then I’ve come to think it’s a little BS
@@nicb4589 I do think people underrate how much musicality has to do with fine muscle control rather than your maturity or mental state. Also people overrate the musical difficulty of works that are lyrical or slow-for me, the easiest works musically are those with a nice melody. The hardest works musically are works that have less memorable melodies, very little going on, or those that have too much going on and require good voicing. Schubert's Sonata D.784 is an example of a work that is genuinely very difficult musically, and Chopin's Ballade No.1 is probably the most overrated in terms of being musically difficult.
@@calebhu6383 Exactly, so I believe it all falls under the category of technical challenges, since it has to do with fine motor control. I believe that a given musician’s maturity shows through anything they play, and it’s independent from the pieces themselves. A piece that is more “mature” is a piece with more technical challenges, which get in the way of making free musical choices. This is why technical difficulty is the only thing to consider. I just feel like its a misnomer.
One small concession: Interpretive difficulty exists, but probably only like a pre-college level, where students have yet to go into fugues, sonata forms, or how Brahms constructs pieces from melodic cells. Once someone has an education/experience, I think that difficulty dissipates. The only exception would be pieces with important historical contexts or programmatic meaning, which is solved with a cursory search.
seems like Ravel brings something out of Cziffra that we don't normally see of him. who would've thought that his recording of the Toccata is one of the warmest ones out there (contrast with his recording of the Schumann Toccata)?
even warmer than Gilels in fact, somewhat amusingly
Right. His Feux Follets is also more withdrawn
@@calebhu6383 to be fair with Feux Follets he _might've_ just simply found it too difficult to play fast, where as with the Toccata im quite certain it was a deliberate interpretive choice
i had the impression that between the impressionists Debussy was the more popular composer, but looking at opinions from various videos and comments it seems like people actually tend to prefer Ravel. anyone else seeing this?
General public prefers Debussy, difficulty junkies prefer Ravel
Ravel just opens up a different world that’s so unique. ❤ He’s technically brilliant and deserves to be known for more than Boléro and Une Barque sur l’Ocean. 🤷🏻♀️ His Introduction et Allegro is miles above Debussy’s Chamber Music in general, IMO.
FINALLY BRUH
La valse is NOT showpiece. That's because it is so hard to understand its aesthetical meaning. It is a parody about Strauss, a waltz without melody, an irony. Many pianists and conductors are unable to play it correctly. Check Biret or Lortie.
12:18 what the fuck ive never heard one handed octave glissandi sound like that
Check the last mvt of Beethoven's Waldstein sonata
@@brianzayman2228 those dont sound anything like this
btw how is Pascal Rogé in Ravel?
Out of interest have you seen this ridiculous key signature or anything like it barring more modern music? ruclips.net/video/WEumkZvmB0A/видео.html
Anyways, I think I’ve always found Ondine to be Ravel’s most difficult piece for piano solo.
How about Messiaen?
i gotta say though Richter is really buggy in Noctuelles isn't he
i gotta say though is it just me or does it feel like it's not that hard to find good Gaspard recordings, at least compared to a lot of other 8++ (standard repertoire) pieces like Bruhms Pag, Don Juan, Scriabin 5, even Islamey, which Ravel intended to beat in difficulty with Scarbo?
also hammerklavier at written tempo i guess, but then again slow hammerklavier isn't necessarily bad either
Lol true. I think Gaspard and Hammerklavier are the most popular of these because of their scope and artistic/virtuosic combination being perfect for competition. Like you can find way more strong Rach 3 recordings than Bartok 2
Based!
stop trying to beat me as the guy who comments the most
@@GICM bruh lol
and..... 1k comments.
@David Hu what was it that im supposed to be getting after hitting 1k comments?
(srsly tho what am i doing with my life lol)
You are contributing to society in a unique way
Ravel wrote so little piano music that it's almost likely that the first piece by him that you learn to play is on this list
That isn’t true. A lot of people get started with the pavane since it’s both very approachable technically and musically and it’s a good crowdpleaser
@@emielgeerts but not everyone's gonna like pavane, which is kinda my point, there's not a lot to choose from compared to other composers. also pavane is not really the most comfortable beginner's piece to play; you need to separate the voices in one hand, there are some relatively big chords especially towards the end, and also the piece is not exactly short either. especially if you compare with Debussy for example who has pieces like the Arabesques and Reverie (or Le Petit Negro as recommended by piano teachers) in terms of technical requirements those pieces are more appealing than pavane. so unless you really like Ravel and not really any other composers or you just really like pavane you'd probably be more inclined to wait until you're at an intermediate level to play his pieces
I personally feel that the Pavane, Minuet in the Name of Haydn, the 2nd Movement to Sonatine, and the 5th Movement to the Miroirs Suite are all very approachable, but at an intermediate level.
hmm are none of the other transcriptions that Ravel wrote worth mentioning though?
Not really, not that difficult or I couldn't find music for it
btw so 7 is the minimum difficulty rating of a piece being featured in the list?
Yeah just about, since that's professional level difficulty
what do you make of Rana + Ravel?
Haven't heard it yet
@@calebhu6383 oh, have you heard Roge's Ravel then?
@@GICM Yes, it is quite good
the album with miroirs, firebird, petruschka, and la valse is so epic
Gaspard as a whole is 8++. But how hard are the 3 movements individually?
Ondine is like 7++ or 8? Le gibet probably around 6-7. Scarbo 8+ or 8++. Not too sure because I never played it.
@@calebhu6383 Ondine is actually not that hard technically speaking (excluding the double notes, which are still very tame compared to Op.25 No.6)
I have practiced it for a couple days and it is much more tame compared to La Campanella or Chopin Sonata 2.
@@zswu31416 Ok cool. I think I rated it very hard because I find the quiet double notes to be extremely difficult. But I think someone who is good at impressionism won't find it to be too difficult.
@@calebhu6383 Oh, it probably is very easy because of the piano I am using. On an upright you just hold down una corda and you can play very softly.
@@calebhu6383 Henle rates both Ondine and Scarbo as 9,(highest in its rating system)Le Gibet is 8+..Musically,Le Gibet is hardest..
999....
Caleb, no Le Gibet?
its in Gaspard de La Nuit my guy, just that no excerpts from it are shown in the video
@@GICM that's why I asked
@@neo-eclesiastul9386 probably no recording that he particularly wanted to show with Le Gibet
Kapustin perhaps?
twas what i said, but scores might be hard to find apparently
@@GICM rip
yes but the waltzer nobles et sentimentales
check the description
At 12:48 is he seriously suggesting a 2 slide?
not really sure what you mean
@@GICM The second bar of the second system in the excerpt has a 2-2 slide from F#-G. It's not terribly difficult, considering it's a slide from a black key to a white one.
@@Vincent_Xia ah i see
@@Vincent_Xia you’re right, I like it now haha
hey guys guess how many comments i have right now
jeux d'eau is more difficult than the sonatine.