Level of Education of Students Involved

Undergraduate

Faculty Sponsor

Katharina Uhde

College

College of Arts & Sciences (CAS)

Discipline(s)

Music History + Theory

Presentation Type

Oral Presentation

Symposium Date

Spring 4-30-2026

Abstract

This research investigates Maurice Ravel's “Une barque sur l'océan” for piano (1906) from a cultural, musicological, and music-theoretical perspective. The importance of water depictions in impressionist art has been studied since the early 20th century. Not only impressionist painters but also composers like Maurice Ravel, Claude Debussy, and Eric Satie were attracted to water imagery. Well-known examples include Debussy's La Mer (1905), Eric Satie's "Le Water-chute" (1914) and "Le Bain de Mer" (1914) as well as Debussy's Reflets dans l'eau (1915). This research investigates musical painting in Ravel's “Une barque sur l'océan” to better understand how Ravel painted the ocean in impressionistic terms -- with a pronounced use of timbre, fluidity, sensory suggestions, and harmonic ambiguity. In particular, how does Ravel use register, motives, and form to paint the ocean's depth and the movement of the waves?

Biographical Information about Author(s)

Melody Pearson is a junior undergraduate student at Valparaiso University majoring in Music and Creative Writing. Her academic interests center on music theory and musicology. Her research focuses on analytical and theoretical approaches to musical imagery in “Une barque sur l’océan” by Maurice Ravel.

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