Ravel, M :: Valses Nobles et Sentimentales. Part IV

Musicians Publications presents Maurice Ravel's 'Valses Nobles and Sentimentales, Part 4' which includes Waltz 8 arranged and transcribed for woodwind quintet by Bill Holcombe and Bill Holcombe Jr. Scored for flute, oboe, clarinet, French horn, and bassoon, this arrangement also includes a bass clarinet part to substitute for the bassoon when desired.

'The eight Valses nobles et sentimentales for piano were first performed in May 1911, at a 'Concert sans noms d'auteurs,' a kind of concert quiz show not unlike Name That Tune, where audience members were asked to guess the composer of each piece on the program. Ravel's Valses were variously attributed to Kodaly, Satie, Chopin, and Gounod, among others, although apparently no one suggested Schubert. However, according to Ravel, 'a minute majority' correctly identified his music.

The following year, Ravel agreed to orchestrate the waltzes as a ballet score for which he supplied the title Adelaide and the scenario a series of fleeting romantic encounters during a party in Adelaide's Paris salon. Adelaide is no longer staged, but Ravel's music, newly attired in shimmering orchestral colors, quickly found a home in concert halls.'

- Philip Huscher, 2010