Exercises In Orchestration

I bought this cd of Ravel Orchestral Works for the selection of repertoire that it contained rather than for the performers. Bernard Haitink and the Boston symphony Orchestra might not be considered to be Ravel specialists but they perform perfectly adequately. The main piece on the cd is the ballet suite Ma Mere L'Oye ( Mother Goose )Also included are the early work Menuet Antique, Rhapsodie Espagnole and La Valse. The Spanish piece is often considered alongside similar pieces by Chabrier and Rimsky Korsakov but Ravel's basque background gives him an advantage in producing a more convincing and musical evocation of Spain. La Valse is programmed so often on radio and in the concert hall ( probably simply because the length and forces required are so suitable for a filler ) that it is easy to forget what a subversive take on the waltz it is. The Mother Goose work began as a piano piece that Ravel later used to demonstrate his considerable orchestrating skills. It shows the childhood innocence of a fairy tale but there are interesting oriental gamelan influences too.