March 7, 1875:
22:00 Joseph Maurice Ravel is born at 12 quai de la Nivelle (27 quai Maurice Ravel) in Ciboure, Basses-Pyrénées (Pyrénées-Atlantiques), the first of two children of Pierre Joseph Ravel, a Swiss engineer and amateur pianist, and Marie Delouart, a Basque woman, the daughter of an unwed fish seller.
May 31, 1882:
Maurice Ravel (7) begins violin lessons with Henry Ghys in Paris.
November 23, 1888:
Maurice Ravel (13) meets the 13-year-old Ricardo Viñes in Paris. As a virtuoso pianist, Viñes will become a major exponent and champion of Ravel’s music.
June 2, 1889:
A recital by students of Emile Decombes at the Salle Erard, Paris sees the earliest known performance by Maurice Ravel (14). He plays an excerpt from Moscheles’ Third Piano Concerto.
July 10, 1890:
At the conclusion of his first year at the Paris Conservatoire, Maurice Ravel (15) wins second prize in the piano competition.
July 8, 1891:
Maurice Ravel (16) wins first prize in the piano competition at the Paris Conservatoire.
August 15, 1892:
Maurice Ravel (17) and Ricardo Viñes spend the day at the piano “experimenting with new chords.” Some of this will find its way into Ravel’s Habanera for two pianos.
November 1, 1896:
Maurice Ravel (21) attends a concert in Paris with his friend Ricardo Viñes. During the Prelude to Tristan und Isolde, Viñes will record, “…he who looks so cold and cynical, Ravel the super-eccentric decadent, was trembling convulsively and crying like a child, really deeply too because every now and then I hear him sobbing.” (Nichols, Ravel, 24)
March 5, 1898:
Sites auriculaires for two pianos by Maurice Ravel (22) is performed for the first time, in the Salle Pleyel, Paris. It is Ravel’s debut as a composer. The critics are unkind.
April 18, 1898:
Menuet antique for piano by Maurice Ravel (23) is performed for the first time, in the Salle Erard, Paris.
August 20, 1898:
Maurice Ravel (23) is hired as a pianist at the casino in Granville on the coast of Normandy.
May 27, 1899:
Shéhérazade, ouverture de féerie for orchestra by Maurice Ravel (24) is performed for the first time, in the Salle du nouveau Théâtre, Paris conducted by the composer. The public is mixed, the critics hostile.
January 27, 1900:
Deux épigrammes de Clément Marot by Maurice Ravel (24) for solo voice and piano is performed for the first time, at the Salle Erard, Paris. The composer performs the piano part.
December 9, 1900:
Two of the three Nocturnes, Nuages and Fêtes, by Claude Debussy (38) are performed for the first time, in Paris. Critics are generally positive. At the concert, Erik Satie (34) is introduced to pianist Ricardo Viñes by Maurice Ravel (25). Viñes will become a major exponent of Satie’s work. See 27 October 1901.
April 13, 1901:
Sérénade grotesque for piano by Maurice Ravel (26) is performed for the first time, in Paris.
June 28, 1901:
Maurice Ravel’s (26) Prix de Rome entry, the cantata Myrrha, to words of Bessier, for three solo voices and orchestra, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Conservatoire.
June 29, 1901:
Maurice Ravel (26) receives the 'deuxième second' Prix de Rome for his cantata Myrrha, behind Andre Caplet and Gabriel Dupont.
April 5, 1902:
Two piano works by Maurice Ravel (27), Jeux d’eau and Pavane pour une infante défunte, are performed for the first time, at the Salle Pleyel, Paris. See 27 February 1911.
April 30, 1902:
Pelléas et Mélisande, an opera by Claude Debussy (39) to words of Maeterlinck (abridged by the composer), is performed for the first time, at the Opéra-Comique, Paris. The production elicits arguments in the crowd, laughter, and cheers. An interested composer named Maurice Ravel (27) attends every one of the first thirty performances.
May 8, 1902:
Maurice Ravel (27) enters the Prix de Rome competition for a third time. He will fail to win a prize.
June 26, 1903:
Maurice Ravel’s (28) setting of the Prix de Rome cantata Alyssa, to words of Coiffier, for three solo voices and orchestra, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Conservatoire.
January 16, 1904:
Trois Morceaux en forme de poire, seven pieces for piano duet by Erik Satie (37), is performed for the first time, privately at the Paris home of Paul Sordeo by Maurice Ravel (28) and Ricardo Viñes. See 18 April 1916.
February 20, 1904:
Two of the Mélodies populaires grecques for solo voice and piano by Maurice Ravel (28) are performed for the first time, in the School of Advanced Studies, Paris.
March 5, 1904:
Maurice Ravel’s (28) String Quartet is performed for the first time, at the Salle de la Schola Cantorum, Paris.
May 17, 1904:
Works by three contemporary French composers are performed for the first time at the Nouveau Théâtre, Paris. They are the symphonic prelude Résurrection op.4 by Albert Roussel (35), Shéhérazade for solo voice and orchestra by Maurice Ravel (29) to words of Klingsor, and Choral varié for saxophone and orchestra, by Vincent d’Indy (53).
May 2, 1905:
Maurice Ravel (30) fails in his third and final attempt to win the Prix de Rome.
May 12, 1905:
The Prix de Rome jury refuses to allow Maurice Ravel (30) to proceed to the final section of the competition.
September 16, 1905:
Maurice Ravel (30) authorizes the publication of his Sonatine for piano by Durand. This begins a lifelong relationship between composer and publisher.
January 6, 1906:
Miroirs for piano by Maurice Ravel (30) is performed for the first time, in the Salle Erard, Paris. See 3 February 1907 and 17 May 1919.
January 15, 1906:
After working for three years on his opera The Sunken Bell, Maurice Ravel (30) signs a contract with Durand for its publication. The composer will abandon the project in 1914 and incorporate some of the music into L’Enfant et les Sortilèges.
March 10, 1906:
Sonatine for piano by Maurice Ravel (31) is performed for the first time, in Lyon.
March 24, 1906:
Noël des jouets, a song by Maurice Ravel (31) to his own words, is performed for the first time, with the composer at the keyboard, in the Salle Fourcroy, Paris, the composer at the keyboard. See 26 April 1906.
April 26, 1906:
Maurice Ravel’s (31) orchestration of his own song Noël des jouets, to his own words, is performed for the first time, in the Salle Erard, Paris. The composer conducts. See 24 March 1906.
January 12, 1907:
Histoires naturelles, a song cycle by Maurice Ravel (31) to words of Renard, is performed for the first time, by the Société National de Musique, Paris, the composer at the keyboard. During the performance, some in the audience find it necessary to express their displeasure by emitting animal noises. The same program sees the first performance of Impromptu no.4 op.91 and Barcarolle no.8 op.96 for piano by Gabriel Fauré (61).
February 3, 1907:
Maurice Ravel’s (31) orchestral transcription of his own Une Barque sur l’océan from Miroirs, is performed for the first time, in Paris. See 6 January 1906 and 17 May 1919.
February 22, 1907:
Introduction et Allegro for harp, string quartet, flute, and clarinet by Maurice Ravel (31) is performed for the first time, at the Cercle Musical, Hôtel de la Société Française de Photographie.
May 22, 1907:
Maurice Ravel (32) and Richard Strauss (42) are invited to dinner at the Paris apartment of Jean Marnold, along with Romain Rolland. They all go off to see Pelléas et Melisande at the Opéra-Comique. Strauss is not impressed. After Act I he asks, "Is it like this all the time?" (Nichols, Ravel, 93)
May 29, 1907:
A banquet is given by Jules Ecorcheville in Paris marking the end of the five “historic concerts” of Russian music. Present in the same room are Nikolai Rimsky-Korasakov (63), Gabriel Fauré (62), Vincent d’Indy (56), Alyeksandr Glazunov (41), Albert Roussel (38), Florent Schmitt (36), Maurice Ravel (32), Fyodor Chaliapin, and Sergey Diaghilev.
June 8, 1907:
Two songs by Maurice Ravel (32) are premiered at the Cercle de l’Art moderne, Paris. They are Sainte, to words of Mallarmé and Les Grandes Vent s Venus d’outremer, to words of de Régnier. The composer plays the piano accompaniment for both.
December 12, 1907:
Sur l’herbe, a song by Maurice Ravel (32) to words of Verlaine, is performed for the first time, at the Salle de la Société Française de Photographie, Paris, the composer at the piano.
December 13, 1907:
Ralph Vaughan Williams (35) arrives at the house of Maurice Ravel (32) in Paris to begin lessons. After learning that for his first assignment Vaughan Williams is to compose a “minuet in the style of Mozart”, the Englishman summons his best French to inform his teacher that he did not give up his life in England to come to France and write minuets in the style of Mozart. After this, the two become great friends. Vaughan Williams will spend about three months studying with Ravel, learning mostly orchestration.
March 15, 1908:
Maurice Ravel’s (33) Rapsodie espagnole for orchestra is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre du Châtelet, Paris.
January 9, 1909:
Maurice Ravel’s (33) piano work Gaspard de la nuit is performed for the first time, at the Salle Erard, Paris.
January 16, 1909:
Maurice Ravel (34) writes to Charles Koechlin (41) proposing a new musical society in competition with the Société Nationale. Koechlin will respond positively. See 20 April 1910.
April 20, 1910:
At the inaugural concert of the Société Musical Indépendente at the Salle Gaveau, the song cycle La Chanson d’Eve op.95 by the society’s president Gabriel Fauré (64) to words of van Lerberghe, is given its first complete performance, the composer at the piano. Other premieres heard on this occasion are Ma mère l’oye by the force behind the new society, Maurice Ravel (35) for piano four hands, performed by two pianists aged six and ten, and Claude Debussy’s (47) D’un cahier d’esquisses, performed by Maurice Ravel at the keyboard. See 3 February 1908, 26 May 1909, and 29 January 1912.
July 2, 1910:
Anarchist Jean-Jacques Liabeuf is executed by guillotine, convicted of killing a policeman. Many people, including Maurice Ravel (35), believe that Liabeuf was convicted only because he is an anarchist.
December 19, 1910:
The first four of the Chants populaires for voice and piano by Maurice Ravel (35) is performed for the first time, in the Salle des Agriculteurs, Paris. See 23 February 1975.
January 16, 1911:
Through the efforts of Maurice Ravel (35), Erik Satie (44) is given his first important hearing at a concert of the Société Musicale Indépendente in the Salle Gaveau. Ravel premieres the Sarabande no.2 from 1887 and the Gymnopédie no.3 from 1888. Works by Claude Debussy (48) are given their first hearing: Rhapsody no.1 for clarinet and orchestra, and two of the Préludes, Book I for piano (Le Vent dans la plaine, “Les sons et les parfums tournent dans l’air du soir”). The concert proves a great success.
February 27, 1911:
Maurice Ravel’s (35) orchestration of his Pavane pour une Infante défunte is performed for the first time, in Manchester. See 5 April 1902.
March 11, 1911:
Six piano works in honor of Franz Joseph Haydn (†101) are performed for the first time, at a Société Nationale concert in the Salle Pleyel, Paris: Menuet sur le nom d'Haydn by Vincent d'Indy (59), Homage à Haydn by Claude Debussy (48), Prélude élégiaque sur le nom de Haydn by Paul Dukas (45), Menuet sur le nom d'Haydn by Maurice Ravel (36), and works by Reynaldo Hahn and Charles-Marie Widor.
April 2, 1911:
The First Suite from Maurice Ravel’s (36) yet to be performed ballet Daphnis et Chloé is performed for the first time, in Paris. See 8 June 1912.
May 9, 1911:
Valses nobles et sentimentales for piano by Maurice Ravel (36) is performed for the first time, at the Salle Gaveau, Paris. See 22 April 1912.
May 19, 1911:
L’heure espagnole, a comédie musicale by Maurice Ravel (36) to words of Franc-Nohain, is performed for the first time, at the Opéra-Comique, Paris.
June 13, 1911:
Petrushka, a ballet by Igor Stravinsky (28) to a story by Benois, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre du Châtelet, Paris. Present is Maurice Ravel (36).
January 29, 1912:
Ma mère l'oye, a ballet by Maurice Ravel (36) to his own scenario, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre des Arts, Paris. It receives almost universal praise. See 20 April 1910.
April 22, 1912:
Natasha Troukhanova performs a dance recital at the Théâtre du Châtelet to four works conducted this evening by their composers: La Peri by Paul Dukas (46), Istar by Vincent d’Indy (61), La Tragédie de Salomé by Florent Schmitt (41), and Adélaïde, ou Le langage des fleurs by Maurice Ravel (37). Dukas’ ballet is performed for the first time. Ravel’s is a premiere of the ballet, although the music is actually Valses nobles et sentimentales. See 9 May 1911.
June 8, 1912:
Maurice Ravel’s (37) symphonie choreographique Daphnis et Chloè to a scenario by Fokin after Longus, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre du Châtelet, Paris. The work is not a success. One box contains the party of Mme Ravel and her sons, along with Florent Schmitt (41) and Igor Stravinsky (29).
May 29, 1913:
Le Sacre du Printemps, a ballet by Igor Stravinsky (30) to a scenario of Roerich, is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Paris. The ballet and its music cause a riot in the theatre as proponents and opponents resort to fisticuffs to exchange opinions on the value of art. The dancers perform to music that they have to imagine, as few in the auditorium can hear it, except during certain lulls. The choreographer, Vaclav Nizhinsky, almost runs onto the stage from the wings but is physically restrained by the composer. Sergey Diaghilev, the impresario, flicks the lights several times in an effort to douse the demonstrations. Nothing works. Those participating in the discussions include Maurice Ravel (38) and Florent Schmitt (42). Camille Saint-Saëns (77) simply repeats “he’s mad, he’s mad” several times before walking out. In the audience is a young composer named Gian Francesco Malipiero (31) who was encouraged to attend by Alfredo Casella (29). “I awoke from a long and dangerous lethargy.” He decides to disown all his previous work and strike out anew. Daniel Chennevière (Dane Rudhyar) (18) calls it “a tremendous experience.”
June 5, 1913:
A version of Modest Musorgsky’s (†32) opera Khovanshchina, arranged by Igor Stravinsky (30) and Maurice Ravel (38), is performed for the first time, in the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Paris.
December 10, 1913:
Maurice Ravel's (38) piano work A la manière de... is performed for the first time, at the Salle Pleyel, Paris, played by Alfredo Casella (30). Also premiered is Reflets for voice and piano by Lili Boulanger (20) to words of Maeterlinck, the composer at the piano.
January 14, 1914:
New works are heard at a concert of the Société Indépendante in Salle Erard, Paris. They are Three Japanese Lyrics for solo voice and piano by Igor Stravinsky (31) to words translated by Brandta, Trois poèmes de Stéphane Mallarmé for solo voice and chamber ensemble by Maurice Ravel (38), Une semaine du petit elfe Ferme-l'oeil for piano duet by Florent Schmitt (43), and Erik Satie's (47) piano work Chapitres tournés en tous sens.
May 26, 1914:
The Nightingale, an opera by Igor Stravinsky (31) to words of Mitusov and the composer after Andersen, is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra. Critics, including Maurice Ravel (39), generally like the music but are mixed about the work as a whole.
June 3, 1914:
Deux mélodies hébraïques for voice and piano by Maurice Ravel (39) are performed for the first time, at the Salle Malakoff, Paris, the composer at the piano. Also premiered are the Sonata for flute and piano op.52 by Charles Koechlin (46) and the Sonata for flute and piano by Alfredo Casella (30).
August 8, 1914:
Maurice Ravel (39) writes to his brother Edouard that he has decided to enlist in the army, and that Edouard should not mention this to their mother.
January 28, 1915:
Maurice Ravel’s (39) Trio for piano, violin, and cello is performed for the first time, at the Salle Gaveau, Paris Alfredo Casella (31) at the keyboard. It is the last performance of the Société musicale indépendente for two years.
March 10, 1915:
Maurice Ravel (40) is pronounced fit for duty. He enlists in the 13th Artillery Regiment as a truck mechanic.
March 14, 1916:
World War I: British troops enter Sollum unopposed. They continue on to pursue the Senussi 40 km into Libya.
Maurice Ravel (40) is posted to the front near Verdun as a truck driver.
April 24, 1916:
World War I: Maurice Ravel (41) writes home from the front that while he was driving his truck, a shell exploded 30 meters away.
June 7, 1916:
After the Ligue Nationale pour la Défense de la Musique Française desires to ban all music by German and Austrian composers not in the public domain, a truck driver in the French army named Maurice Ravel (41) writes to express his repugnance towards the idea, refusing to join the organization.
September 6, 1916:
World War I: Romanian troops take Hermannstadt (Sibiu), capital of Transylvania.
Maurice Ravel (41) is removed from the front and sent to Châlons-sur-Marne with dysentery.
September 30, 1916:
Army truck driver Maurice Ravel (41) is operated on in Châlons-sur-Marne for a hernia.
January 5, 1917:
Maurice Ravel’s (41) mother, Marie Delouart Ravel, dies at the age of 76. From here to the end of his life, his musical output is seriously reduced.
February 7, 1917:
After convalescing, Maurice Ravel (41) returns to Châlons-sur-Marne and is given a temporary discharge from the army.
June 1, 1917:
Maurice Ravel (42) is granted a second “temporary discharge” from the French army.
October 11, 1917:
Trois chansons pour choeur mixte sans accompagnement, by Maurice Ravel (42) to his own words, are performed for the first time, in Paris.
December 28, 1917:
Maurice Ravel (52) sails from Le Havre aboard the SS France making for New York.
November 11, 1918:
Maurice Ravel (43) undergoes an operation for tubercular ganglions.
December 2, 1918:
Incidental music to Méral’s play Le Dit des Jeux du Monde by Arthur Honegger (26) is performed for the first time, at the Théâtre du Vieux Colombier, Paris. It causes a scandal, complete with whistles, cheers, clapping, screaming, and fighting. Among the audience are Maurice Ravel (43), Florent Schmitt (48), Albert Roussel (49), Pablo Picasso, and Jean Cocteau. Honegger is now famous.
April 11, 1919:
Le Tombeau de Couperin for piano by Maurice Ravel (44) is performed for the first time, in the Salle Gaveau, Paris. See 28 February 1920 and 8 November 1920.
May 17, 1919:
Alborada del gracioso, an orchestral work by Maurice Ravel (44), transcribed from the movement of the same name from his piano work Miroirs, is performed for the first time, in Paris. See 6 January 1906 and 3 February 1907.
January 16, 1920:
On a country visit to the home of Ferdinand Hérold, Maurice Ravel (44) learns that he is to be awarded Chevalier in the Legion of Honor by reading it in a newspaper.
January 17, 1920:
Maurice Ravel (44) writes to Roland-Manuel asking help in removing his name from the nominees for the Legion of Honor.
February 28, 1920:
Le Tombeau de Couperin by Maurice Ravel (44) is performed for the first time, in a setting for orchestra, in Paris. See 8 November 1920.
April 2, 1920:
The nomination of Maurice Ravel (45) to be Chevalier of the Legion of Honor is formally revoked by order of President Paul Deschanel. The honoree doesn’t want it.
April 17, 1920:
Deux mélodies hébraïques for voice and orchestra by Maurice Ravel (45) is performed for the first time, in Paris. See 3 June 1914.
May 15, 1920:
Maurice Ravel (45) signs a contract with the Aeolian Company of London to make piano rolls on their DUP-ART device.
October 23, 1920:
La Valse by Maurice Ravel (45) is performed for the first time, in a two-piano arrangement, at the Kleiner Konzerthaussaal, Vienna. Alfredo Casella (37) and the composer are at the keyboards.
November 8, 1920:
A ballet to Maurice Ravel’s (45) Le tombeau de Couperin is performed for the first time, in the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Paris. See 28 February 1920 and 11 April 1919.
December 12, 1920:
La Valse, by Maurice Ravel (45), is performed for the first time in its orchestral setting, in Paris. See 23 October 1920, 12 January 1929, and 23 May 1929.
April 16, 1921:
Maurice Ravel (46) buys Le Belvédère in Montfort L’Amaury, southwest of Paris, for FF20,000.
April 22, 1921:
Five Orchestral Pieces by Arnold Schoenberg (46) is performed in Paris. Maurice Ravel (46) and Francis Poulenc (22) are among the listeners. During the fourth movement a brawl breaks out in the audience involving Florent Schmitt (50) who leaves with a swollen face.
November 30, 1921:
Maurice Ravel (46) is presented with the Diploma of Honor of the Swedish Academy of Music in Stockholm.
December 6, 1921:
Composer and pianist Jean Wiéner opens his Concerts Wiéner new music series in the Salle des Agriculteurs, Paris. He programs an hour of jazz with Billy Arnold and his band, a player piano version of Le Sacre du Printemps, and Darius Milhaud’s (29) Sonata for flute, oboe, clarinet, and piano op.47. Aaron Copland (21) is in the audience. Wiéner will recall that Maurice Ravel (46) enjoyed the performance very much but that Albert Roussel (52) walked out in protest.
April 6, 1922:
Maurice Ravel’s (47) Sonata for violin and cello is performed for the first time, in the Salle Pleyel, Paris. Also premiered is the String Quartet no.5 by Darius Milhaud (29).
October 19, 1922:
Maurice Ravel’s (47) orchestration of Modest Musorgsky’s (†41) piano suite Pictures at an Exhibition is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra.
November 1, 1922:
Berceuse sur le nom de Gabriel Fauré for violin and piano by Maurice Ravel (47) is performed for the first time, in Milan.
April 26, 1924:
Two new works by Maurice Ravel (49), Tzigane, Rapsodie de concert for violin and piano, and Ronsard à son âme for voice and piano, are performed for the first time, in Aeolian Hall, London the composer at the keyboard for the latter. See 30 November 1924 and 17 February 1935.
November 30, 1924:
Tzigane, rapsodie de concert, in the version for violin and orchestra, by Maurice Ravel (49), is performed for the first time, in Paris. See 26 April 1924.
March 21, 1925:
Maurice Ravel’s (50) fantaisie lyrique L’enfant et les sortilèges to words of Colette is performed for the first time, in Monaco.
July 6, 1925:
The remains of Erik Satie are buried at Cimitière d'Arcueil-Cachan in Arcueil, Val-de-Marne, attended by Charles Koechlin (57), Albert Roussel (56), Maurice Ravel (50), Arthur Honegger (33), Germaine Tailleferre, Darius Milhaud (32), Georges Auric, Jean Cocteau, and Pierre Templier (his publisher and Mayor of Arcueil). But there are far more local townsfolk on hand than celebrities. One wreath of violets carries the inscription: “To M. Satie from his fellow tenants.”
March 4, 1926:
At the Théâtre de la Monnaie in Brussels, Maurice Ravel (51) is decorated by King Albert as a Chevalier of the Order of Leopold.
May 8, 1926:
Chansons madécasses for voice, flute, cello, and piano by Maurice Ravel (51) to words of de Forges is performed for the first time, privately in the American Embassy in Rome, Alfredo Casella (42) at the keyboard. See 16 May 1926.
May 16, 1926:
Chansons madécasses for voice, flute, cello, and piano by Maurice Ravel (51) is performed publicly for the first time, in Brussels. See 8 May 1926.
March 19, 1927:
Rêves for voice and piano by Maurice Ravel (52) to words of Fargue, is performed for the first time, in the Théâtre du Vieux-Colombier, Paris the composer at the keyboard.
May 23, 1927:
Sur une poésie de Toulet op.104/1 for voice and piano by Charles Koechlin (59) is performed for the first time, in Salle des agriculteurs, Paris. Also premiered is Réponse d’une épouse sage for voice and piano by Albert Roussel (58) to words of Roché (after Giles), Maurice Ravel (52) at the piano.
May 30, 1927:
Maurice Ravel’s (52) Violin Sonata is performed for the first time, at the Salle Erard, Paris. Georges Enesco is the violinist while the composer performs at the keyboard. After playing through it once with Ravel, Enesco has memorized it.
June 2, 1927:
Maurice Ravel (52) and Manuel de Falla (50) are at the same dinner party given by Henri Prunières in Paris. They probably meet here for the first time.
June 16, 1927:
L’éventail de Jeanne, a ballet with scenario by Franck and Bourgat, and music by Albert Roussel (58), Florent Schmitt (56), Maurice Ravel (52), Jacques Ibert (36), Roland-Manuel (36), Darius Milhaud (34), Marcel Delannoy (28), Francis Poulenc (28), Georges Auric (28), and Pierre-Octave Ferroud (27), is performed for the first time, at the home of Jeanne Dubost in Paris. See 4 March 1929.
October 18, 1927:
The new (third) Salle Pleyel is opened in Paris with a grand concert. Maurice Ravel (52) conducts his La Valse and Igor Stravinsky (45) conducts his 1919 Firebird Suite.
January 4, 1928:
Maurice Ravel (52) arrives in New York for a four month tour of North America. Stops on the tour include Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland, Vancouver, Denver, Omaha, Minneapolis, New Orleans, Houston, Arizona, Buffalo, and Montreal.
January 12, 1928:
Maurice Ravel (52) conducts the Boston Symphony Orchestra at Sanders Theatre of Harvard University, his American conducting debut.
March 7, 1928:
At a party celebrating the 53rd birthday of Maurice Ravel in the New York home of Eva Gauthier, George Gershwin (29) meets the French composer for the first time. When Ms. Gauthier asked Ravel if there was anything he wanted he replied, “to meet George Gershwin.” Gershwin asks to study with Ravel, but the Frenchman politely declines. He doesn’t want Gershwin to end up writing “bad Ravel.”
March 8, 1928:
Maurice Ravel (53), in New York, writes to Nadia Boulanger (40) in Paris. “There is a musician here endowed with the most brilliant, most enchanting, and perhaps the most profound talent: George Gershwin (29). His worldwide success no longer satisfies him, for he is aiming higher. He knows that he lacks the technical means to achieve his goal. In teaching him those means, one might ruin his talent. Would you have the courage, which I wouldn't dare have, to undertake this awesome responsibility?" She will politely decline.
April 21, 1928:
Maurice Ravel (53) boards the liner SS Paris in New York after a four month performing tour of North America and sails for France.
April 27, 1928:
Maurice Ravel (53) arrives in Le Havre after a four-month tour of North America.
October 18, 1928:
The newly restored Salle Pleyel reopens in Paris. Maurice Ravel (53) conducts his La Valse and Igor Stravinsky (46) conducts his Firebird Suite.
October 23, 1928:
Maurice Ravel (53) is awarded an honorary doctorate by Oxford University.
November 22, 1928:
Maurice Ravel’s (53) sensually stimulating ballet Boléro is performed for the first time, at the Paris Opéra. Also premiered is Arthur Honegger’s (36) ballet Les noces d’amour et de psyché to a scenario by Rubinstein, and Darius Milhaud’s (36) ballet La bien-aimée. See 11 January 1930.
January 12, 1929:
Maurice Ravel’s (54) orchestral work La Valse is staged as a ballet for the first time, in the Théâtre de Monte Carlo, as a try out for the Paris premiere on 23 May. See 12 December 1920.
March 4, 1929:
L’Eventail de Jeanne, a ballet to a scenario by Franck and Bourgat, and music by Albert Roussel (59), Florent Schmitt (58), Maurice Ravel (53), Jacques Ibert (38), Roland-Manuel (37), Darius Milhaud (36), Marcel Delannoy (30), Francis Poulenc (30), Georges Auric (30), and Pierre-Octave Ferroud (29) is performed publicly for the first time, at the Paris Opéra. See 16 June 1927.
May 23, 1929:
Maurice Ravel’s (54) orchestral work La Valse is staged as a ballet in the Paris Opéra. See 12 December 1920 and 12 January 1929.
January 11, 1930:
The first concert performance of Boléro by Maurice Ravel (54) takes place in Paris, the composer conducting. See 22 November 1928.
August 24, 1930:
The town of Ciboure in French Basque country changes the name of the rue du Quai to quai Maurice Ravel. A plaque is placed on no.12 to mark the house where Maurice Ravel was born 55 years ago. The composer is present for the day full of festivities (although not while the plaque is unveiled).
January 5, 1932:
Piano Concerto for the Left Hand by Maurice Ravel (56) is performed for the first time, by the one-armed pianist who commissioned it, Paul Wittgenstein, in Vienna.
January 14, 1932:
Piano Concerto in G by Maurice Ravel (56) is performed for the first time, in the Salle Pleyel, Paris under the baton of the composer.
October 8, 1932:
Maurice Ravel (57) suffers injuries to the face and throat when the taxi in which he is riding collides with another vehicle at the intersection of rue d’Amsterdam and the rue d’Athènes in Paris. At a nearby clinic he receives stitches for two facial wounds and complains of chest pains. The wounds are not life threatening but they may aid the progression of his illness which has recently manifested in involuntary body movements and the inability to put thought into words.
February 6, 1934:
Maurice Ravel checks into a rest home “Mon repos” at Mont Pèlerin near Vevey, Switzerland suffering from “insomnia, memory lapses, fatigue, concentration deficiencies, anxious condition, orthographic failure…” He will not improve. (Mawer, 2010, 193)
December 1, 1934:
Don Quichotte à Dulcinée, three songs for voice and orchestra by Maurice Ravel (59) to words of Morand, is performed for the first time, in the Théâtre du Châtelet, Paris.
February 17, 1935:
Ronsard à son âme for voice and orchestra by Maurice Ravel (59) to words of Ronsard, is performed for the first time in this orchestral setting, at the Opéra-Comique, Paris. It is the last premiere of a work by Maurice Ravel. See 26 April 1924.
December 17, 1937:
Maurice Ravel (62) undergoes exploratory brain surgery at a clinic on the rue Boileau in Paris.
December 19, 1937:
After initial consciousness following a brain operation two days ago, Maurice Ravel (62) lapses into a coma, never to awaken.
December 28, 1937:
03:30. Joseph Maurice Ravel dies in a clinic on the rue Boileau in the 16th Arrondissement, Paris, Republic of France, after an unsuccessful brain operation to treat apraxia and dysphasia, aged 62 years, nine months, and 21 days. The exact cause of death is unknown.
December 30, 1937:
The earthly remains of Maurice Ravel are interred in Cimitière de Levallois-Perret, Haute-de-Seine, beside those of his parents. Among those attending are Igor Stravinsky (55), Arthur Honegger (45), Darius Milhaud (45), Francis Poulenc (38), and Benjamin Britten (24).
April 28, 1938:
Festival Fanfare for brass and percussion by Howard Hanson (41) is performed for the first time, in Eastman Theatre, Rochester, New York the composer conducting. Hanson also conducts the premiere of Elegy in Memory of Maurice Ravel for brass, harps, and percussion by David Diamond (22).
November 6, 1939:
Elegy in Memory of Maurice Ravel by David Diamond (24) in the version for string orchestra and percussion is performed for the first time, in New York. See 28 April 1938.
March 31, 1966:
Copies of Maurice Ravel’s (†28) Piano Concerto in G are confiscated from the Joffrey Ballet in City Center, New York by lawyers representing the publisher. The Joffrey has been using the music illegally for a choreography called Sea Shadow by Gerald Alpino. Michael Colgrass (33) offers to provide suitably ocean-like improvisations for the performance and he is shown a film of the ballet. Upon seeing the film, Colgrass thinks a new score would be required. Robert Joffrey asks Colgrass to come up with a ballet by rehearsal at 12:30 tomorrow. After being promised all the copyists he needs, Colgrass agrees.
February 23, 1975:
Several works by Maurice Ravel (†37) are performed for the first time, in Colden Auditorium, Flushing, New York during the centennial year of the composer’s birth: Ballade de la Reine morte d’aimer for voice and piano to words of de Marès (1893), Sérénade grotesque for piano (1893), Sonata for violin and piano (1897), Chanson du rouet for voice and piano to words of de Lisle (1898), Si morne! for voice and piano to words of Verhaeren (1898), and Chanson hébraïque for voice and orchestra, a 1924 transcription of one of the Chansons populaires of 1910. See 19 December 1910.
July 19, 1987:
Signets, hommage à Maurice Ravel for piano by Betsy Jolas (60) is performed for the first time, in Montpellier, France.
September 16, 1987:
Matinée en Provence for soprano, chorus, and orchestra by Maurice Ravel (†49) is performed for the first time, in Turin. It was a required preliminary choral work for Ravel’s Prix de Rome attempt of 1903.