In his ?Autobiographical Sketch? Ravel looks back and stresses the importance of his ?Miroirs? (HN 842) published in 1906 for his harmonic evolution. He said that they had ?disconcerted even those musicians who had been mostfamiliar with my compositional style up to then?. This is particularly true of the fourth piece in the collection ?Alborada del gracioso? (Morning song of the court jester) with its frequent employment of harsh dissonances. Thisboth technically and musically charming genre scene full of rousing ideas and rhythms is one of the French composer?s best-known piano pieces today. We are now issuing it in a single Urtext edition.

A Mighty Medieval Musical-Imagine a world where all weapons were replaced by musical instruments! Welcome to the legend of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table like you've never seen it or heard it before. On guard! This 35-minute medievalmarvel complete with jousting knights delightful damsels and court jesters will capture the interest of actors and audiences alike! Perfect for upper elementary and middle school performers this musical features sevenoriginal songs in a variety of musical styles adaptable choreography helpful staging and costume tips and a script with 40 speaking parts easily adaptable for casts of varying sizes and teaching objectives linked to theNational Standards for each song. The expanded Performance Kit/CD provides 20 Singer books along with the Teacher Edition and a P/A CD. Available separately: Teacher Edition Singer 5-Pak Preview CD (with vocals) PreviewPak (1 Singer book 1 Preview CD) Performance/Accompaniment CD Performance Kit/CD (Teacher 20 Singer Books P/A CD). Duration: ca. 35 minutes. Suggested for grades 4-8.

A Mighty Medieval Musical-Imagine a world where all weapons were replaced by musical instruments! Welcome to the legend of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table like you've never seen it or heard it before. On guard! This 35-minute medievalmarvel complete with jousting knights delightful damsels and court jesters will capture the interest of actors and audiences alike! Perfect for upper elementary and middle school performers this musical features sevenoriginal songs in a variety of musical styles adaptable choreography helpful staging and costume tips and a script with 40 speaking parts easily adaptable for casts of varying sizes and teaching objectives linked to theNational Standards for each song. The expanded Performance Kit/CD provides 20 Singer books along with the Teacher Edition and a P/A CD. Available separately: Teacher Edition Singer 5-Pak Preview CD (with vocals) PreviewPak (1 Singer book 1 Preview CD) Performance/Accompaniment CD Performance Kit/CD (Teacher 20 Singer Books P/A CD). Duration: ca. 35 minutes. Suggested for grades 4-8.

The libretto for Giuseppe Verdi's 'Rigoletto' was adapted by Francesco Maria Piave from Victor Hugo's play Le roi s'amuse which was so controversial it had been banned in Paris after one performance. Le roi here isthe Duke a renowned womaniser who seduces ladies as their husbands are taunted by his hunchback jester Rigoletto. An elderly nobleman Monterone curses them both for seducing his daughter and Ceprano whose wife has been withthe Duke plots with the courtiers to punish him.Rigoletto is suspected of keeping a mistress so while Rigoletto is out the Duke slips into his house and finding Rigolettoâ??s daughter Gilda he proffers his love to herand she is smitten. After he leaves the courtiers break in and carry off Gilda to the Dukeâ??s bedchamber. Soon Rigoletto enters and realises the mistake just in time as the dishevelled Gilda runs in. As Monterone is led to thedungeon Rigoletto vows to avenge them both. Rigoletto pays the assassin Sparafucile to murder the Duke as his sister Maddalena flirts with him. However Maddalena persuades her brother to kill not the Duke but the nextvisitor to the inn instead so overhearing and resolving to sacrifice herself for the Duke Gilda enters the inn and is stabbed. Rigoletto finds Gilda dying and begging forgiveness: Monterone's curse is fulfilled.This isthe Schirmer edition of the Libretto in the original Italian with an English version by Ruth and Thomas Martin.