Prom 16 - 26.07.17: Mussorgsky – Pictures at an Exhibition

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Most postgraduates could do as "well" - more to the point, Ravel could have done much better.

Well, there are plenty more to choose from:


Mikhail Tushmalov (ca. 1886; three pictures and four Promenades omitted: recorded by Marc Andrae and the Munich Philharmonic for BASF)
Henry Wood (1915; four Promenades omitted: recorded by Nicholas Braithwaite and the London Philharmonic for Lyrita)
Leo Funtek (1922; all Promenades included: recorded by Leif Segerstam and the Finnish Radio Symphony for BIS; Also on Teldec Laser-disc with Vladimir Ashkenazy conducting the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra)
Maurice Ravel (1922; the fifth Promenade omitted)
Giuseppe Becce (1922; for "salon-orchestra". No Promenades are included at all, and only some of the Pictures.)
Leonidas Leonardi (1924; published by Breitkopf & Härtel; Leonard Slatkin has "revived" a part of the Leonardi version by using the third Promenade and "Tuileries" in his first compendium suite of Pictures at an Exhibition)
Lucien Cailliet (1937: recorded by Eugene Ormandy and the Philadelphia Orchestra for RCA and reissued on Biddulph)
Leopold Stokowski (1939; third Promenade, "Tuileries", fifth Promenade and "Limoges" omitted. Three recordings conducted by Stokowski himself: with the Philadelphia Orchestra, All-American Youth Orchestra, and New Philharmonia. His arrangement has also been recorded by Matthias Bamert, Jose Serebrier, Oliver Knussen, Gennadi Rozhdestvensky, James Sedares and Kazuki Yamada)
Walter Goehr (1942; "Gnomus" omitted; includes a subsidiary part for piano)
Sergei Gorchakov (1954: recorded by Kurt Masur and the London Philharmonic for Teldec; Also recorded with Karl Anton Rickenbacher, conducting the Cracow Radio Symphony, for the RCA Records. A live 1980 performance by the Leningrad Academic Symphony Orchestra under Konstantin Simeonov was recorded by Melodya.)
Nikolai Golovanov (A heavily edited version of Ravel's orchestration in which Golovanov omits all but the first of the Promenades was recorded for Melodya)
Lawrence Leonard (1977; for piano and orchestra; recorded by Tamas Ungar, piano, with Geoffrey Simon and the Philharmonia Orchestra for Cala)
Vladimir Ashkenazy (1982: recorded by Ashkenazy and the Philharmonia Orchestra for Decca/London)
Thomas Wilbrandt (1992)
Émile Naoumoff (ca. 1994, in concerto style with some added music, for piano and orchestra; recorded with Igor Blaschkow, conducting the Deutsches Symphony Orchestra Berlin, for Wergo)
Mekong Delta (1997; for group and orchestra)
Carl Simpson (1997; Promenade IV included in Leonard Slatkin's second compendium suite for Warner Classics and Naxos)
Chao Ching-Wen (2002; for chamber orchestra)
Jason Wright Wingate (2003; orchestra, organ and chorus)
Hidemaro Konoye (date unknown)
Leonard Slatkin Two compendium versions, the second of which he recorded with the BBC Symphony Orchestra at the BBC Proms on 1 September 2004; The other recording was with the Nashville Symphony
Clarice Assad (2008, for the New Century Chamber Orchestra)
Václav Smetáček (date unknown; a performance with Gennady Rozhdestvensky conducting the Prague Symphony Orchestra on 28 October 2004 has been issued on the Don Industriale label)
Jukka-Pekka Saraste created a performing edition of his own, combining the orchestrations of Leo Funtek and Sergei Gorchakov; He recorded it with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra for Finlandia Records, a division of Warner Music Group)
Aurélien Bello, for large orchestra (2011)
Amadeus Orchestra version, with one picture each provided by Alastair King, Roger May, Tolib Shakhidi, David Butterworth, Philip Mackenzie, Simon Whiteside, Daryl Griffiths, Natalia Villanueva, James McWilliam and Julian Kershaw. (2012, for large orchestra)
Peter Breiner (2012, for large orchestra), recorded by Breiner and the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra

I've only a few of these, but none even approach the magnificent Ravel orchestration.

As for the original, I wonder how many people would know of its existence, had it not been for the orchestrations?

[underthecountertenor]

That muted trumpet passage in one of the movements, can't remember which one it's called, he sounded well pushed. Or rushed, as we say in the trade.

Samuel Goldenberg and Schmuÿle, perhaps? It sounded as if he/she was struggling in that movement. I thought I detected some dodgy ensemble in other fast movements as well (Limoges in particular IIRC), but I was listening in the car so may have been mistaken.

Alternatively I may be mis-remembering the score. It's been so long since I last heard the Ravel orchestration that the Mussorgsky original has now supplanted it in my mind, where the former is unfaithful to the latter. Used to be the other way round: when I attempted to play the original in my youth I incorporated a number of Ravel's 'wrong' notes in my playing, overlooking the fact that the piano score was different. Then when I first heard a recording of the original, I wondered why the pianist was making such obvious mistakes.

[underthecountertenor]

I could occasionally hear some kind of electronic buzz from the RAH tonight as well.

Listening in the car, I was distracted by a high-pitched whistle in some of the quieter passages of Pictures. Sounded to me as if there was a dodgy hearing aid in the Hall.

[Alain Maréchal]

Alternatively I may be mis-remembering the score. It's been so long since I last heard the Ravel orchestration that the Mussorgsky original has now supplanted it in my mind, where the former is unfaithful to the latter. Used to be the other way round: when I attempted to play the original in my youth I incorporated a number of Ravel's 'wrong' notes in my playing, overlooking the fact that the piano score was different. Then when I first heard a recording of the original, I wondered why the pianist was making such obvious mistakes.

According to the publicity at the time of the original LP issue, Lorin Maazel (Philharmonia recording) considered the divergences errors caused by Ravel's having a faulty edition of the piano score, and he "corrected" Ravel's orchestration. This may be mentioned in the Gramophone review, if anybody cares enough to check.

[underthecountertenor]

According to the publicity at the time of the original LP issue, Lorin Maazel (Philharmonia recording) considered the divergences errors caused by Ravel's having a faulty edition of the piano score, and he "corrected" Ravel's orchestration.

I didn't know that. Thanks, AM. I was never a big fan of Maazel, but might have to give that one a listen.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

As for the original, I wonder how many people would know of its existence, had it not been for the orchestrations?

Using the same argument;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOXYlPpRLmM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lJa1HuynIA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CMSjI-Znc4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMnxemtUZfg

... not to mention:

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Using the same argument;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOXYlPpRLmM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lJa1HuynIA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CMSjI-Znc4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMnxemtUZfg

... not to mention:

That's a bit extreme. One may not like the orchestrations but they were never intended to cheapen the music, whereas all of those examples do exactly that. Furthermore, every one of those works were widely known and performed long before being exploited for money.

[greenilex]

Having unravelled the Moose, I feel Kiev is too political to mention these days...

[jayne lee wilson]

That's a bit extreme. One may not like the orchestrations but they were never intended to cheapen the music, whereas all of those examples do exactly that. Furthermore, every one of those works were widely known and performed long before being exploited for money.

[Sir Velo]

Using the same argument;

Quite right! After all what did Ravel know about orchestration anyway?

[gradus]

I heard most of the Pictures but only on a portable radio, thought the performance ok but ultimately underwhelming - The Great Gate of Kiev seemed more like the front door of Kiev, somewhat diminished by the fast seeming tempo and lack of relish for Ravel's magnificent peroration.
It's just a personal view.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Quite right! After all what did Ravel know about orchestration anyway?

I think he looks down from a great height on most other great orchestrators.

[cloughie]

I think he looks down from a great height on most other great orchestrators.

...and RVW who probably knew a bit about it went to see MR to learn more and though I am not an expert in these matters, as ferney no doubt will tell me, I think the lessons were useful!

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

Rimsky-Korsakoff was a pretty good orchestrator, too; and he, too, no doubt had the very best intentions of "popularising" Musorgsky's Music when he mucked up Boris amd the Night on the Hirsutely Challenged Mountain. Thankfully, Musicians have seen the light, and no longer touch Rimsky's bowdlerisations.

Ravel is a superb orchestrator - and I would be very interested in hearing his arrangement(s) of Khovanschina - which is why his substandard effort with the Pictures can only be an intentional satire, pointing out the stupidity of the very idea of altering the piano original. If it did bring greater to attention to a work not previously as well-known, then it has served its purpose - as did Mr Whale's popularising of Mrs Shelley's novel - and it's time to let the originality of the original take its place and to honour both Ravel and Musorgsky by putting the orchestrations to rest; they bring credit to nobody.

[jayne lee wilson]

Rimsky-Korsakoff was a pretty good orchestrator, too; and he, too, no doubt had the very best intentions of "popularising" Musorgsky's Music when he mucked up Boris amd the Night on the Hirsutely Challenged Mountain. Thankfully, Musicians have seen the light, and no longer touch Rimsky's bowdlerisations.

Ravel is a superb orchestrator - and I would be very interested in hearing his arrangement(s) of Khovanschina - which is why his substandard effort with the Pictures can only be an intentional satire, pointing out the stupidity of the very idea of altering the piano original. If it did bring greater to attention to a work not previously as well-known, then it has served its purpose - as did Mr Whale's popularising of Mrs Shelley's novel - and it's time to let the originality of the original take its place and to honour both Ravel and Musorgsky by putting the orchestrations to rest; they bring credit to nobody.

AS you see from this wiki list...

18, Olympia, opera after E. T. A. Hoffmann's The Sandman (1898–99), sketches destroyed except for a Symphonie horlogère incorporated into the opening of L'heure espagnole
49, La cloche engloutie, planned opera (1906–12), destroyed by Ravel
52, L'heure espagnole, opera with libretto by Franc-Nohain (1907)
57, Daphnis et Chloé, ballet (1909–12)
62, Ma mère l'Oye, ballet expanded from orchestral suite no. 60 (1911–12), with two pieces and interludes added
71, L'enfant et les sortilèges, lyric fantasy after Colette with 21 roles for sopranos, mezzos, tenors, and basses, mixed and children's choirs, and orchestra (1917-1925)
80, Fanfare, from the collaborative ballet L'éventail de Jeanne (1927)
85, Morgiane, oratorio-ballet for soloists, choir, and orchestra (1932), sketches only
Orchestral[edit]
7, Menuet antique for orchestra (1929)
17, Shéhérazade, ouverture de féerie for orchestra (1898)
19, Pavane pour une infante défunte for orchestra (1910)
43a, Miroirs, orchestration of selected pieces from no. 43
Une barque sur l'océan (orchestrated 1906)
Alborada del gracioso (orchestrated 1918)
54, Rapsodie espagnole for orchestra (1907)
Prélude à la nuit
Malaguena
Habanera (orch. version of the 1895 Habanera for two pianos)
Feria
57a, Daphnis et Chloé Suite No. 1 for orchestra (1911)
Nocturne avec choeur a capella ou orchestration seulement
Interlude
Danse guerrière
57b, Daphnis et Chloé Suite No. 2 for orchestra (1912)
Lever du jour
Pantomime
Danse générale
60, Ma mère l'Oye (Mother Goose), after the tales of Perrault and Mme. d'Aulnoy, orchestral version (1911)
Pavane de la belle au bois dormant
Petit poucet
Laideronnette, impératrice des pagodes
Les entretiens de la belle et de la bête
Le jardin féerique
61, Valses nobles et sentimentales for orchestra (1912)
68a, Le tombeau de Couperin, orchestration of selected pieces from no. 68 (1919)
Prélude
Forlane
Menuet
Rigaudon
72, La valse, choreographic poem for orchestra (1919–20)
Pictures at an Exhibition, orchestration of Mussorgsky's piano suite (1922)
81, Boléro for orchestra (1928)

....The Pictures orchestration was a relatively late orchestral work in Ravel's oeuvre. Why, in your personal opinion, (as distinct from those sweeping, negative, unevidenced judgements we've had from you so far) did he suddenly forget all he knew, as one of the most exquisite orchestral composers/arrangers in history, when he came to write it? Or do you you think he did a bad job on - Barque, Alborada, Rapsodie Espagnole...?

(And not to forget the most obvious point of all.... the orchestral piece has an independent existence now. Surely most listeners don't hear the Ravel Pictures as an "orchestration", sitting in judgement on the skill of its arranger; they hear it as an orchestral work with a life of its own, free of its source. That's certainly how it is for me. It has passed into the realm of myth, and too many people love it, for it ever to disappear.)