Menuet from Le Tombeau de Couperin

Menuet from Le Tombeau de Couperin

Maurice Ravel 1875-1937

SATB Saxophone Quartet

Menuet from Le Tombeau de Couperin by Ravel arranged for SATB saxophone quartet. This menuet is a movement from a suite for piano by Maurice Ravel. It was written between 1914 and 1917. Each of the six movements is dedicated to the memory of friend who had died fighting in World War I. Ravel himself was an army driver during the war. Later Ravel published the suite as an orchestral work that remains popular today.

Tombeau is a musical term dating back to 17th century France meaning “a piece written as a memorial”. When he was criticized for composing a light-hearted, amusing work instead of a sombre one, for such a serious topic, Ravel replied: “The dead are sad enough, in their eternal silence.”

This arrangement is for SATB Saxophone Quartet. Each part covers a wide range of the instrument.

• The range for each saxophone part is shown below.
• Audio and score excerpts are available above.
• Registered users can download a complete sample score and full length audio file of Menuet from Le Tombeau de Couperin on the ‘Samples’ tab.