Three cheers for Ravel in his 150th year - Eva Aronian
2025 marks 150 years since the birth of Maurice Ravel, the French composer known for his exceptional contributions to classical music.
We’ve been celebrating this milestone through five concerts this season. Here, Eva Aronian, violinist with Royal Northern Sinfonia, shares her thoughts on what makes Ravel’s music so special.
What drew you to Ravel’s music?
The first piece I truly fell in love with was his String Quartet. I constantly listened to the Quatuor Ébène recording as a teenager and throughout college. When I first read through the piece, I was shocked at the number of layers and details in each bar. Ravel’s music is very evocative and often has so much interplay between elements such as pizzicato, sul ponticello, harmonics, lush melodies, the use of mutes, polyrhythms, and percussive textures… the list goes on. He creates vivid musical landscapes, constantly pushing the boundaries of what players and their instruments can do.
Do you have a standout memory of performing Ravel with Royal Northern Sinfonia?
A few come to mind! One is Tombeau de Couperin with Thomas Zehetmair conducting. I remember it very clearly. It was my first few months with Royal Northern Sinfonia in 2021 and my first time working with Thomas. The writing for wind is very demanding in that piece, but our players made it sound effortless. I also played the String Quartet with Maria, Mike, and Dan in Sage Two alongside some other gorgeous French music. I enjoyed that performance so much, and the intimate atmosphere in Sage Two was perfect. Last but not least, performing Introduction and Allegro in No. 10 Downing Street with my colleagues a few months ago was one for the books.
Your orchestra friends are playing Tzigane on 19 April with Maria Włoszczowska in Sage Two. Where might the music transport the audience?
Ravel composed Tzigane in 1924, right in the middle of “les années folles,” (the “crazy years”). Across the ocean, America was in the Jazz Age and Roaring Twenties, which later greatly inspired Ravel to incorporate jazz elements into his writing. Tzigane is no exception – it’s fiery and completely dazzling, especially when Maria is performing it!
“Listening to his music is like stepping into a painting or being dropped into a story, so just let yourself drift away.”
The Ravel celebrations continue when Dinis conducts Mother Goose on 16 May. What are the trickier moments to play in Ma Mére I’Oye?
Ravel said about Mother Goose, “The idea of evoking in these pieces the poetry of childhood naturally led me to simplify my style and to refine my means of expression.” Each movement is its own enchanting fairytale and requires nuance and seamless transitions from the orchestra. For example, in Petit Poucet, Ravel uses flitting harmonics in the solo violin and trills in the flute to evoke birds. Throughout the piece, there’s a constant duality between light and dark, shimmering and rich, delicate and triumphant, transparent and lush. It’s a beautiful work to play and to listen to.
What’s needed as a violin player to bring out the jazz influences in Piano Concerto in G major?
Ravel visited New York in 1928 and spent several nights in nightclubs with George Gershwin listening to jazz. He’s also said to have seen Duke Ellington play at a club during this visit, so the first step would probably be context and inspiration, followed by rhythmic precision and a strong sense of pulse, extended techniques, sharpness and reactivity to harmonic shifts, subtlety and nuance – all whilst staying cool and effortless!
What would you say to someone who’s never listened to Ravel before?
Listening to his music is like stepping into a painting or being dropped into a story, so just let yourself drift away.
