Maurice Ravel (1875 - 1937)
Piano Concerto in G major
I. Allegramente
II. Adagio assai
III. Presto

A native of the Basque country of south-west France, Ravel is usually coupled with Debussy as the main "French Impressionist" composers. He is best known for his piano music such as the Pavane pour une Infante Defunte, and his ballet scores such as Daphnis and Chloe. He wrote relatively few works for orchestra, of which Bolero is by far his most popular. Although Ravel was only 13 years younger than Debussy, that difference was crucial at a time when music was changing rapidly, and in some ways Ravel's music is more obviously 20th century than Debussy's, incorporating influences such as jazz. Late in his life Ravel's style became more clean and simple, perhaps influenced by the work of Stravinsky.

Despite writing a great deal of music for solo piano. Ravel wrote only two piano concertos. They were his last major compositions, and he worked on them simultaneously in 1930 and 1931. One was commissioned by the Austrian pianist Paul Wittgenstein (brother of the famous philosopher) who had lost his right arm in the first World War, and so is for left hand alone. The other, this concerto in G, was for Ravel himself to play. Both concertos were premiered in January 1932.

Compared with the concerto for left hand, which is a dark, brooding piece, richly scored for large orchestra in one movement, the concerto in G seems simple and normal. It is in three movements, is scored for a small-ish orchestra, and is much more transparent in its sound. While the outer movements show the influence of jazz (and Gershwin in particular), the central adagio has a simplicity and purity that cost Ravel much effort to achieve.

The first movement opens briskly with a tune on the piccolo, while a slower section which follows sounds influenced by Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue. After another fast section with a brief piano cadenza (blink and you'll miss it) a second slow section is very delicate, with unusual sounds for the harp. The momentum is soon regained and the close is energetic.
The slow movement begins with a long tune for the solo piano, deceptively simple and child-like, which seemingly cannot decide if it is in two beats or three. There are two rather abrupt key changes which coincide with increasingly rapid notes in the piano, and the opening theme later appears on the cor anglais, sustained and lyrical. The ending is very calm.

The finale is fast and brittle, with echoes of the first movement in its use of slapstick and trumpet. It is very short!