Reference Recordings: Debussy and Ravel Orchestral Works 

For Debussy and Ravel Orchestral Works, this is the obvious one and only choice for a "Reference." This particular box will probably remain some of the very finest Debussy and Ravel ever recorded long after we're all pushing up the daisies. Excellent advocacy Dave, and thanks for informing some of the youngsters out there of its existence. For them or anyone else that's interested, it's money well spent.

Martinon is my go-to guy for French music. He was a master of Ravel and Debussy. A thousand thanks, Dave, for bringing Martinon into my musical life. ❤

I had many of these recordings on LP, and I now have this CD set. I was very pleasantly surprised to hear how much better these sound on CD. Since I got rid of all my records when I moved cross country 35 years ago, it was like seeing an old friend again, and finding that I liked them more than I remembered.

There is a great deal of pleasure to be had when clicking on these videos and finding out that I've got the reference and been enjoying it for some time. EMI or Warner boxed sets at a nice price are generally a win-win, as are the CBS and RCA ones that Sony releases. For Ravel, I also have a 3-CD set by Ozawa and Boston (DG) and another box featuring André Cluytens and Samson François on piano. Great stuff.

Yes! I knew you’d get here. I absolutely lucked out that this Martinon was where I first heard Jeux. 45 years ago and still these recordings are my go to. Nice to feel validated lol. Please cover Satie 🙏🏼

I picked this up partially as a couple of the 2-disc sets and then gave those to family when I found the first 8-disc box of this. It remains VERY often played.

I remember these.... these were well performed in excellent sound (yes, mid-'70's analogue recordings was really good at its best. There are plenty of recordings of La Mer. Bolero, and even Daphnis et Chloe... and these are great. About all that is missing is a performance of the Ravel orchestration of Pictures at an Exhibition... the only neglect; That's the orchestration that we have as a default. Martinon was no idiot savant as a conductor.the sort who failed outside his narrow niche. He got musical structure well. Type-cast? He died young (65) by the standards of composers, soi we may have little idea of how well he would have done outside the French repertory. He did a great Nielsen 5, as I recall.

While my set doesn't include Debussy and isn't complete with the Ravel works, I am very fond of the Dutoit/Montreal Ravel Orchestral Works from the 1980's on London/Decca. Great orchestral performances and solo playing playing within the orchestral settings (for me).

Martinon is indeed the reference and I love those recordings. But I slightly prefer Cluytens' Ravel cycle, also recorded with the intention of being complete. Was Cluytens' cycle in its time a former reference?

For Debussy I turn to Martinon and for Ravel to Cluytens

Absolutely reference versions. I'd need to check my battered copy of the Penguin Guide (hideous green cover, Circa 1976?), but even they acknowledged these as a yardstick against which to judge others. Latterly, I'd argue singleton performances, like for example Hatink's Nocturnes and Jeux with the Concertgebouw gained reference status, but as a collective this is still it. So, being cheeky, can we expect a reference recording of Second Viennese School seminal works? If yes, my vote would be Herbie and his merry band of Berliners on DG. In all seriousness, Karajan should be given absolute credit for his Schoenberg, Berg and Webern orchestral set which not only treated, what were even in the 1970's considered 'difficult' works, with well deserved care and attention, but also for attempting to bring them into the mainstream in a way the hair shirted Boulez never could.

I greatly enjoy that you never mention Tzigane without trashing it as the worst thing Ravel ever wrote. If you’re interested in forming a club around the idea, I’m happy to help spread the word.

This really is a fine set. Are you planning on reference recordings videos for each individual work? Or at least, the major ones.

Hi David, what do you think about the Ansermet and The Boulez edition or these masterpieces? Boulez sounds sometimes too fast to me.

Before I saw you were talking about Martinon, I thought that Haitink and The Concertgebouw might get the nod. Where do they fit in to the picture?

Hi Dave, thank you for your restless advocacy for this disc, especially the Mother Goose and La Mer. These two recordings opened this wonderful music up to me. I would be very interested in a video on the reference for Debussy's complete piano works. There seems to be a divide between the church of Gieseking, and the church of Michelangeli. (Maybe there is a third complete set I didn’t consider.) Both pianists have a reputation for extreme control, attention to detail, and delicacy of touch, but they highlight very different aspects of Debussy’s music. (There is also a little nationalist nonsense at play, perhaps.) It would be interesting to hear the recording industry history of this one. The ‘New Reference’ seems to be Bavouzet on Chandos, or perhaps Steven Osborne on Hyperion.

I vividly remember when Martinon recorded the Scheherazade Overture and how disappointed I was when I first played the LP - I was hoping for a lost materpiece and found instead melodrama.

My suggestion for the reference recording of Bruckner's 9 symphonies is Eugen Jochum on DG whith BPO/BRSO released in 1967.

If I had a dime for every time you've trashed Tzigane, I might have a few dollars. :)

Dave, could you make a video about Pollini's recordings? He just passed away.