Ravel left and right

Synopsis

On today’s date in 1932, Maurice Ravel’s Concerto for Piano Left Hand received its public premiere in Vienna. It was one of several concertos for piano left hand commissioned by Paul Wittgenstein, a wealthy Austrian pianist who lost his right arm during World War I. He also commissioned concertos from Richard Strauss, Prokofiev, Korngold, and Britten.

In the fall of 1931, Ravel presented Wittgenstein with the score of his new concerto, and together they gave it a private read-through with Ravel playing the orchestra part on one piano, and Wittgenstein the solo part on another. At first he was not impressed and offended Ravel by suggesting a few changes, which Ravel flatly refused to make. “Only after I had studied the concerto carefully did I realize what a great work it was,” he said. Wittgenstein performed the premiere with the Vienna Symphony led by Robert Heger.

A few days later, on January 14th that same year, Ravel himself conducted the premiere of his other piano concerto, this one written for the two hands of French pianist Marguerite Long. In stark contrast to the brooding Concerto for Wittgenstein, the Concerto for Long is light-hearted, with a blues-y slow movement inspired by the Harlem jazz sampled by Ravel during a visit to New York in 1928.

Music Played in Today's Program

Maurice Ravel (1875-1937): Piano Concerto for the Left Hand; Leon Fleisher, piano; Baltimore Symphony; Sergui Commissiona, conductor; Philips 456 775

Piano Concerto in G Krystian Zimerman, piano; Cleveland Orchestra; Pierre Boulez, conductor; DG 449 213

On This Day

Births

• 1792 - American composer Peter Wolle, in New Herrnhut, St. Thomas, West Indies

• 1871 - American composer Frederick Shepherd Converse, in Newton, Massachusetts

• 1880 - Russian composer and pianist Nicolai Medtner, in Moscow (Julian date: Dec. 24, 1879)

• 1881 - Russian composer Nicolai Roslavetz, in Dushatino, Chernigov region, Ukraine (Julian date: Dec. 24, 1880)

Deaths

• 1869 - Russian composer Alexander Dargomizhsky, 55 (Gregorian date: Jan. 17)

• 1970 - Catalan-born British composer Roberto Gerhard, 73, in Cambridge, England

• 1979 - American jazz composer and bassist Charles Mingus, 56, in Mexico City

Premieres

• 1677 - Lully: opera Isis, in Paris

• 1727 - Bach: Sacred Cantata No. 58 (Ach Gott, wie Manches Herzeleid II) performed on the Sunday after New Year’s Day as part of Bach’s third annual Sacred Cantata cycle in Leipzig (1725/27)

• 1745 - Handel: musical drama Hercules at the King’s Theater in London (Gregorian date: Jan. 16)

• 1868 - Bruch: Violin Concerto (final version), in Bremen, with Karl Martin Rheintahler conducting and Joseph Joachim the soloist. An earlier version of this work had been premiered on April 24, 1866, which Bruch substantially revised with the assistance of Joachim.

• 1884 - Gilbert & Sullivan: operetta, Princess Ida, at the Savoy Theatre in London

• 1932 - Ravel: Piano Concerto for the Left Hand, in Vienna, with Vienna Symphony conducted by Robert Heger, with Paul Wittgenstein (who commissioned the work) as soloist

• 1941 - Mark Blitzstein: opera No for an Answer, in New York City

• 1949 - Henry Cowell: Symphony No. 5, at Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C., by the National Symphony, Hans Kindler conducting

• 1949 - Morton Gould: symphonic suite, Fall River Legend, Pierre Monteux conducting San Francisco Symphony Orchestra

• 1961 - Easley Blackwood: Symphony No. 2, in Cleveland (commissioned by music publisher G. Schirmer to celebrate its centenary)

• 1962 - Ross Lee Finney: Piano Quintet No. 2, in Los Angeles

• 1973 - Pierre Boulez: …explosante/fixe at a concert by the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center in New York City