Re: [ARSCLIST] Bolero by Ravel the definitive version?

[David S Sager <dsag@xxxxxxx>]

Reading over some postingss received from the jazz research list, I came accross mention of Léo Vauchant, who I take it to be the trombone soloist on the early (Brunswick) recording of "Bolero."  One posting said that it was Vauchant who convinced Ravel to lower the whole pice a whole step to "C" because the trombone solo was "too high."

I listened to the Brunswick recording not long ago to hear the trombonist and was shocked by the phrasing.  No other performance of "Bolero" has a trombone solo with anything closely resembling Vauchant's interpretation.

Any ideas about the genesis of that famous solo?

DS

>>> doncox@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx 08/07/03 01:59PM >>>
On 07/08/03, Russell W. Miller wrote:

> Ravel chooses a slow tempo in his recording, as does Coppola. Even in
> Ravel's day there were conductors taking the music much faster than
> the composer liked; on 78s these were the three-sided versions, such
> as Koussevitzky's. As I recall (but I don't have a copy of it here to
> check) Paray's version is one of the fast ones.

He takes 13:24, Monteux takes 15:20, Toscanini (1939) 14:16.

The Monteux seems to me to be one of his few failures, but the other
Ravel music on the same CD is excellent.

> For a recording in
> modern sound that adopts a slow tempo like the composer's, I'd go for
> Skrowaczewski and the Minnesota Orchestra on Vox, in excellent 1970s
> analog sound.

That should be good - he is an underrated conductor. Bargain price too.


Regards
--
Don Cox
doncox@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx