Ravel Jeux D'eau questions

[astroboy]

Hi,

I am currently learning this piece, and just have a few questions about the score.

1. In the first bar, and also in other places there is a number '2' next to the pedal mark.. what does this mean?

2. When it says '3 cordes' I assume it is meant to be played without the soft pedal? and 'Une corde' and '1 corde' mean the same I assume.

3. What do the following french terms mean??
- Tres doux
- le chant un peu en dehors
- cedez legerement
- jusqu'au
- Un peu plus lent gu'au debut
- tres en pressif
- Un peu marque
- sans ralentir

Sorry if these questions are really basic! Any help would be fantastic. Thanx

[fyrexia]

Hi,

I am currently learning this piece, and just have a few questions about the score.

1. In the first bar, and also in other places there is a number '2' next to the pedal mark.. what does this mean?

2. When it says '3 cordes' I assume it is meant to be played without the soft pedal? and 'Une corde' and '1 corde' mean the same I assume.

3. What do the following french terms mean??
- Tres doux
- le chant un peu en dehors
- cedez legerement
- jusqu'au
- Un peu plus lent gu'au debut
- tres en pressif
- Un peu marque
- sans ralentir

Sorry if these questions are really basic! Any help would be fantastic. Thanx

Look  i am not so good at french . Ralentir is the italian of rallentar.
You should now what is rallentar.
un peu marque : little marks
Un peu plus lent gu au debut: A little slower at the beginning
le chant un peu en dehors: song a little outwards
Cedez legerement : slightly

[evariste]

2.
"3 cordes" is like the italian "tre corde", the hammers hit all the strings, "une corde" means the hammers hit only one string (using the pedal on the left, don't know what its english denomination is).

3.
- Tres doux : very soft
- le chant un peu en dehors : litterally, the melody slightly on the outside, I guess he means bring out the melody a little
- cedez legerement : slow down a little
- jusqu'au : until
- Un peu plus lent gu'au debut : a little slower than at the beginning
- tres en pressif : I think it's "très expressif", that is, very expressive
- Un peu marque : slighlty marcato
- sans ralentir : without slowing down

[letters]

im playing this, im absolutely terrible but i love it!! i miss out a great swathe in the middle that i can't do but it sounds flashy. post a recording sometime!

[jamie0168]

una corde= one string....means that the hammers hit only one string (in other words, use the soft pedal.)
1. I'm not sure what the 2 means. I played this last year and enjoyed every minute of it. I just used my own pedal markings. I changed pedals on the 4th beat of the first measure because it changes harmonies.
Make sure that you're very careful with tension in this piece. It can really hurt your wrists if you practice it too long with too much tension (I speak from experience.)
BTW, listen to evariste's explanations of the french terms, not fyrexia's.

[ramseytheii]

Even though you already had a few answers I think they all had some errors in them.  I will do my best to answer without mistake

Hi,

I am currently learning this piece, and just have a few questions about the score.

1. In the first bar, and also in other places there is a number '2' next to the pedal mark.. what does this mean?

Actually I don't know how to answer this.  It could mean 2nd pedal, meaning the middle pedal, but it seems to come at odd times.  Sometimes it would seem to make sense in this interpretation, for instance in cadenza with the marking "2 Ped. jusqu'au *" - the 2nd pedal would hold down the F-#, which would be natural.  But elsewhere it doesn't make sense, for instance in the first instance of the second theme. 
Could it mean, left pedal?  OTher composers have used this to indicate that.  But if it does, looking at the cadenza, he says "2 Ped. jusqu'au *," which would mean, soft pedal until the *, but he also increase the dynamic to fff.  But are you supposed to hold the soft pedal through this?

The same problem exists if you interpret it as meaning, right and left pedals both employed.
I think one can be very, very liberal in interpreting these pedal marks, but do not neglect the middle pedal, because it can be used to great effect in this piece.

2. When it says '3 cordes' I assume it is meant to be played without the soft pedal? and 'Une corde' and '1 corde' mean the same I assume.

YEs


3. What do the following french terms mean??
- Tres doux
      very sweet

- le chant un peu en dehors
      the melody a bit in the forefront

- cedez legerement
      slow down slightly

- jusqu'au
      until

- Un peu plus lent gu'au debut
     a bit slower than the beginning

- tres en pressif
     I think you misread "tres expressif" in the Lent section.  very expressive

- Un peu marque
     poco marcato ("marked" in english doesn't translate the adequate meaning)

- sans ralentir
     without slowing down

Walter Ramsey

[mikey6]

The 2 next to the ped means to use the sustain and the soft pedal at the same time.