Maurice Ravel'S Affinity For Stéphane Mallarmé

The combination of Stphane Mallarm's esoteric poetry and Maurice Ravel's elusive tonal language presents a multitude of methodological problems for both analysts and performers attempting to study the Trois pomes de Stphane Mallarm (1913). While extant analyses of these songs draw on pitch content to make observations about Ravel's interpretation of the text, they fail to consider the fundamental structural importance of Mallarm's poetry. In his autobiographical sketch, Ravel noted that Mallarm's "prciosit so full of meaning" inspired him to compose the Trois pomes. By using the archaic French word prciosit, which carries significant literary connotations, Ravel suggests that his understanding of Mallarm's prciosit served as the compositional impetus for these songs. After establishing Ravel's life-long affinity for Mallarm's Symbolist structures and formal improprieties, this book will present a detailed analysis of "Soupir" and "Placet futile." Both scholars and performers can benefit from these analyses, as they provide insight into the complex structures and symbolic content in Ravel's composition.