I went to my nephews’ concert yesterday. Their piano accompanist wrote that Maurice Ravel was “inspired by Lizst’s Sonnet 104 del Petrarca, S. 161/5” He implied that Ravel was inspired by Liszt to write a later presented Jeux d’eau, M. 30.
Their pianist wrote of Ravel that he was inspired to write a song with “ innovative harmonies and figurations.” From my murky memories of music class, they didn’t seem alike.
I’d be grateful if someone else could please show pieces from the two guys that are similar. Actually I’ll bet there’s an article from a music comp journal somewhere that explains this viewpoint. To a casual listener like me, it’s not so obvious but I want to figure it out.
Ravel’s Jeux d’eau (1901), often regarded as his first major piano masterpiece, draws inspiration from Liszt’s Les jeux d’eaux à la Villa d’Este (from Années de pèlerinage). Both compositions evoke the movement of water through flowing arpeggios and delicate pedal work. Ravel acknowledged Liszt’s influence on the piece, particularly in terms of pianistic technique.
Which means that some particular techniques inspired the Ravel piece, but the harmonies and melodies could be entirely different. That’s why you don’t necessarily hear the similarity.
Tibby and Moonrise, it was so keen of you to exchange with me about this. I see what you mean about the similar titles and themes from Liszt to Ravel. I’m going to listen to the two that Tibby mentioned today to detect the inherited traits.
If you’re looking for another comparative piano work to explore, Gaspard de la nuit (1908) is a good choice. While it’s best known for its connection to the poetry of Aloysius Bertrand, it’s also a technical marvel, pushing piano virtuosity to almost supernatural levels—reminiscent of Liszt at his most demanding. The third movement, Scarbo, in particular, is known for its sheer difficulty and tonal complexity, drawing comparisons to Liszt’s Transcendental Études.
I’ve been a Liszt fan for ages—love cut of his jib. Lisztomania was basically Beatlemania more than a century before The Beatles were even a thing.
Here’s my favorite concert pianist (Yuja Wang) playing Sonata in B minor