Introducing Maurice Ravel’s Famous and Representative Works
Maurice Ravel, one of the most important figures in Impressionist music.
His works are meticulously crafted down to the finest details, grounded firmly in classical forms while blending in Impressionist expression.
As a result, his music has a uniquely singular character that only he could create.
He also arranged works by other composers for orchestra, and his outstanding orchestration earned him the nicknames “genius of orchestration” and “magician of the orchestra.”
In this article, we introduce Ravel’s masterpieces and signature works.
Even if you’re not familiar with classical music, there are pieces you have probably heard somewhere at least once.
Enjoy the many wonderful masterpieces of Ravel!
Playlist
| Introducing Maurice Ravel’s Famous and Representative Works | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| show_chart | Title | Playlist | Review |
| 1 | Sonatine, M. 40: II. Mouvement de MenuetMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | The Appeal of Maurice Ravel's “Sonatine” |
| 2 | SonatinaMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Ravel’s piano pieces: lyricism and elegance |
| 3 | Piano Concerto in G majorMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Ravel’s Piano Concerto: A Wealth of Varied Charms |
| 4 | La ValseMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Ravel’s fantastical and ominous ballet piece, La Valse |
| 5 | Pavane for a Dead PrincessMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Ravel’s masterpiece, captivating for its graceful melody. |
| 6 | Play of WaterMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | A masterpiece that expresses the movement of water through music |
| 7 | Ma mère l’OyeMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | An elegant suite inspired by fairy tales |
| 8 | BoleroMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Orchestral piece with a constant rhythm and two types of melody |
| 9 | Le Tombeau de CouperinMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | A memorial suite for a friend lost in the First World War |
| 10 | Rapsodie espagnoleMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Ravel’s orchestral works influenced by Spanish music |
| 11 | Gaspard of the NightMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | A masterful performance of the suite that includes the challenging piece “Scarbo.” |
| 12 | Scheherazade OvertureMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | The Enchanting Musical World of Scheherazade |
| 13 | String Quartet in F majorMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Ravel’s String Quartet dedicated to Fauré |
| 14 | A noble and sentimental waltzMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Performance of Ravel’s diverse collection of eight waltzes |
| 15 | An old-fashioned minuetMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Ravel’s immature youthful piano piece |
| 16 | Piano Concerto for the Left HandMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Piano Concerto for the Right Hand, a virtuosic masterpiece |
| 17 | mirrorMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Maurice Ravel’s piano suite “Miroirs” |
| 18 | Vocalise in Habanera FormMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Habanera songs influenced by Spain |
| 19 | Berceuse on the Name of FauréMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | A chamber work by Ravel in homage to Fauré |
| 20 | Song Cycle “Shéhérazade”Maurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Ravel’s oriental song cycle, exoticism |
| 21 | Daphnis and ChloeMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Ballet music commissioned by Diaghilev, orchestral version |
| 22 | “Ma mère l’Oye” Scene 3: Dialogue of Beauty and the BeastMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Ravel’s masterpiece that paints a fairy-tale world in sound |
| 23 | Gaspard of the Night, M. 55: II. The GallowsMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Composed by Maurice Ravel in 1908... |
| 24 | Sonatine in F-sharp minor, M. 40: II. MenuetMaurice Ravel | play_arrow | The beauty of Ravel’s piano piece “Sonatine” |
| 25 | Gaspard de la nuit, No. 1: OndineMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Maurice Ravel, of Swiss Basque descent, … |
| 26 | Suite ‘Mirrors’ No. 4: ‘Alborada del Gracioso’Maurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Maurice, a quintessential figure of Impressionist music, … |
| 27 | Pavane for a Dead Princess in G majorMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | With a style brimming with originality, many artists... |
| 28 | Minuet in C-sharp minorMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | As a practice assignment for a close composer friend in 1904… |
| 29 | Le Tombeau de Couperin, No. 2: FugueMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | A tribute to a friend who fell in World War I… |
| 30 | Grotesque SerenadeMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Around the time Maurice Ravel was about 18 years old, 18… |
| 31 | ParadeMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Powerful, as if heralding the beginning of an epic tale... |
| 32 | Suite ‘Miroirs’ No. 2 – Sad BirdsMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Ricardo, a pianist who was a fellow artist, ... |
| 33 | Suite ‘Miroirs’ No. 4 – Alborada del graciosoMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | To the comrades of the artist group “Apach”... |
| 34 | Suite ‘Mirrors’ No. 5 – The Valley of the BellsMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | The suite “Miroirs,” composed in 1905… |
| 35 | Noble and Sentimental Waltzes: No. 1, Modéré (Moderato), G majorMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | A traditional waltz with a Maurice Ravel–like touch... |
| 36 | Noble and Sentimental Waltzes: Waltz No. 2, Assez lent (fairly slow), G minorMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Music that peers deep into the heart |
| 37 | Noble and Sentimental Waltzes: No. 3 Waltz, Modéré in G majorMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Modelled after Schubert’s waltzes, mo… |
| 38 | Noble and Sentimental Waltzes, No. 4, Assez animé (fairly lively)Maurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Maurice Ravel’s homage to Schubert… |
| 39 | Noble and Sentimental Waltzes, Waltz No. 5, Presque lent in E majorMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Suite “Valses nobles et …” |
| 40 | Genteel and Sentimental Waltz: No. 6, Vif (Lively)Maurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Following Schubert’s waltzes, Maurice R… |
| 41 | Minuet on the Name of HaydnMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Piano Piece for the 100th Anniversary of Haydn’s Birth |
| 42 | Sonatina Op. 40, Movement II: MinuetMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | I wrote it for a composition competition hosted by a certain magazine... |
| 43 | Le Tombeau de Couperin, No. 3: ForlaneMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Maurice Ravel was killed in action in World War I… |
| 44 | In the style of ChabrierMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Maurice Ravel titled it “In the style of …” |
| 45 | In the style of BorodinMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Richard Wagner and Claude Debu... |
| 46 | Gaspard de la nuit, No. 3: ScarboMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Among Ravel’s works, it is one of the most challenging pieces… |
| 47 | Daphnis and Chloe, Suite No. 2Maurice Ravel |  play_arrow | It is often performed as the free-choice piece in competitions... |
| 48 | Sonatine in F-sharp minor, M. 40 — I. ModeratoMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Ravel’s delicately melancholic masterpiece |
| 49 | Little Boat on the Ocean from the Suite ‘Mirrors’Maurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Maurice Ravel you’ll want to listen to on a hot day… |
| 50 | Children and MagicMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | The opera “L’enfant et les sortilèges,” Ravel’s fantastical work |
| 51 | Sonatina Op. 40, 1st movementMaurice Ravel | play_arrow | Among Maurice Ravel’s works, there are pieces that… |
| 52 | From the suite “Ma mère l’Oye,” No. 3: “Laideronnette, Empress of the Pagodas”Maurice Ravel |  play_arrow | A renowned world of fairy tales imbued with an Oriental ambiance unfolds… |
| 53 | From the suite ‘Ma mère l’Oye’: No. 4, ‘Dialogue of Beauty and the Beast’Maurice Ravel |  play_arrow | A piano inspired by the fairy tale 'Beauty and the Beast'... |
| 54 | The Fairy Garden, No. 5 from the suite “Ma mère l’Oye”Maurice Ravel |  play_arrow | The world of tones woven by four hands is Maurice… |
| 55 | Toccata from Le Tombeau de CouperinMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Ravel’s masterpiece commemorating World War I, an innovation in Baroque style |
| 56 | Two Hebrew SongsMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Songbook of Jewish music, mystical melodies |
| 57 | When in SpainMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Recorded at the Paris National Opera in Spanish time |
| 58 | TziganeMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Ravel’s masterpiece depicting the musicality of the Roma |
| 59 | piano trioMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | An original suite inspired by the Basque region |
| 60 | Sonata for Violin and CelloMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Hungarian-style sonata, four-movement structure |
| 61 | Violin SonataMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Ravel’s Violin Sonata |
| 62 | Introduction and AllegroMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | A chamber music piece that conveys the charm of the harp |
| 63 | Mother Goose Suite, No. 5: The Fairy GardenMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | ...from the piano four-hands suite “Ma mère l’Oye”... |
| 64 | Gaspard de la nuit No. 3: ScarboMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | This, which includes meanings such as demon and mischievous fairy… |
| 65 | Suite Ma mère l’Oye, No. 1: Pavane of the Sleeping BeautyMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | The traditional British fairy tale “Ma…” |
| 66 | Overture “In Spain”Maurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Maurice Ravel, a composer of French Impressionist music… |
| 67 | Prelude (I) from Le Tombeau de CouperinMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | To my acquaintances who were sacrificed in the First World War… |
| 68 | Le Tombeau de Couperin No. 4: RigaudonMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Maurice, who lost many acquaintances in the First World War, ... |
| 69 | Le Tombeau de Couperin, No. 5: MenuetMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Maurice Ravel was killed in action in World War I... |
| 70 | Le Tombeau de Couperin, No. 6: ToccataMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | “The Tr…” imbued with the tragedy of war and the preciousness of friendship |
| 71 | Sonatina, Movement IIMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Ravel’s evocative piano suite |
| 72 | Ballet music “Daphnis and Chloé” Suite No. 2Maurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Composed by the French composer Ravel... |
| 73 | From the ballet music Ma mère l’Oye: 5. The Fairy GardenMaurice Ravel | play_arrow | Maurice Ravel, one of France’s most representative composers... |
| 74 | PreludeMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | The Conservatoire de Paris’s sight-reading performance exam for pieces has... |
| 75 | Boléro with Japanese musical instruments and Nihon buyō (Japanese classical dance)Maurice Ravel |  play_arrow | A unique quality that starts quietly and gradually builds up… |
| 76 | Gaspard de la nuit, No. 3: ScarboMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Ravel’s Gaspard de la nuit is a difficult piece that demands both technique and expressive power. |
| 77 | Piano Concerto in D major for the Left HandMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Pavane for a Dead Princess and Jeux d’eau… |
| 78 | String Quartet in F Major, Second MovementMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Known for works like “Daphnis et Chloé” and “Boléro,” … |
| 79 | Suite ‘Mirrors’ No. 3 ‘A Boat on the Ocean’Maurice Ravel |  play_arrow | The musical world of Ravel, a master of Impressionism |
| 80 | Pavane of the Sleeping Beauty, from the suite Ma mère l’Oye (Mother Goose), No. 1Maurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Composed based on a traditional English nursery rhyme… |
| 81 | BoleroMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Ravel’s masterpiece Boléro by the French composer |
| 82 | “Gaspard de la nuit” — “The Gallows”Maurice Ravel |  play_arrow | The piano work “Gaspard de la nuit” based on poems by Ravel |
| 83 | Pavane for a Dead QueenMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | When asked about masterpieces of piano works, many people... |
| 84 | Don Quixote, who has set his heart on Princess DulcineaMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Vocal piece for a film, not used |
| 85 | Three SongsMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | A Collection of Unaccompanied Mixed Choir Pieces Composed by Ravel |
| 86 | Three Poems by Stéphane MallarméMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Musical works based on the poems of Mallarmé |
| 87 | Song of the People of MadagascarMaurice Ravel |  play_arrow | Buddhist song “Three Poems,” singing the anti-colonial spirit |