I REALLY like how you have Bolero in the background during the entire length of this; it being uninterrupted. This turned this video from a 10/10 to a 20/10. Great video mate.

Bolero is like OCD in music form. Its like the tetris effect, where you see and think about tetris pieces falling when in stress. Its those nightmares that arent scary, but are weird and repetitive and it never ends

I'm a great fan of your work and videos and this one particularly struck my interest because I'm a neurologist. With absolutely no disrespect intended to your work, your video, or your research, I'd like to clarify a few points. 1. Wernicke's aphasia is a symptom, not a cause or a diagnosis. Language localizes to several regions of the brain, and the area known as Wernicke's area (which in most people is in the left posterior temporal-occipital area) is specifically dedicated to the comprehension of received language, usually in spoken or written form. Aphasia is a disruption of language skills, so Wernicke's aphasia is specifically a disruption of the comprehension of language. We can't say with certainty what happened to Ravel as we have no post-mortem data, but something that afflicts a specific region of the cortex suddenly as it did in him is almost certainly a stroke. In addition, Wernicke's aphasia does not typically cause motor symptoms, as the motor cortex is in the frontal lobes. While it's possible for a stroke to affect Wernicke's area and the motor cortex, we would expect all the areas in between to be affected as well. The fascinating thing about aphasia however is that usually musical abilities ARE preserved, so it would be very unusual for his aphasia to be the cause of his amusia (loss of musical ability). This suggests he had other symptoms, specifically alexia and agraphia (loss of reading and writing respectively), independent of his Wernicke's aphasia. There are other things about Ravel's case that are interesting, specifically as you alluded to in your video... 2. He had other symptoms besides aphasia, specifically apraxia (inability to perform complex purposeful movements) and memory deficits. When a person begins to suffer this collection of symptoms, the most likely diagnosis becomes dementia - which is a group of illnesses that all gradually rob cognitive faculties, usually slowly and in multiple domains, as was Ravel's case. He most likely developed a particular form of dementia which could be anything from frontotemporal dementia (characterized by loss of inhibition and executive function), corticobasal degeneration (multifactorial decline including of body functions) or even something as simple as post-stroke dementia (if it is true that he lost his Wernicke's area due to a stroke). Dementia is a particularly interesting diagnosis for Ravel because one of the features of dementia is a symptom called perseveration - that is, dementia patients will often repeat themselves even when completely inappropriate to do so otherwise. Of course all of this is made more complicated by... 3. Traumatic brain injury. Ravel suffered from a moderate traumatic brain injury as a result of a motor vehicle accident in 1932, before his decline. TBIs are dramatic injuries and on top of someone who already has signs and symptoms of dementia and stroke, it certainly didn't do him any favors. Long story short; Ravel's cognitive faculties were grievously injured likely by multiple mechanisms, making complex tasks such as composition increasingly difficult. For someone with an artist's spirit like Ravel, who struggled to write complexity for these reasons, a piece that is simple in its conception, composition, and execution like Bolero becomes very attractive and even inevitable. The conclusion of your video is particularly striking and powerful. For someone to create immortal music the way Ravel did with the deficits imposed on him by cruel circumstances speaks volumes about the human spirit and the passion for music he possessed. It will be fascinating to see the future of neurology entangle with music therapy and use the art that the brain generates as a way to heal it.

6:10 as an organist I immediate recognize this! Ravel is treating the piccolos as mutation stops, which don't sound at octaves but at fifths or thirds to the fundamental. They are listed as stops with some kind of fractional length to make it immediately obvious to the organist that they don't sound at octaves (as opposed to standard stops which are usually listed in powers of two - e.g. 8 foot (which sounds at concert pitch), 4 foot, 2 foot stops. Mutation stops are usually 2-2/3, 1-3/5, etc

I've only just come across your videos and, while the visuals are unavailable to me (I'm blind), your description and synchronisation with the music are amazing. That relentless snare makes me grind my teeth; it almost seems torturous. My late father was a drummer (mainly in brass bands) and he said that piece was one of the most difficult for him and I now see what he means. Everyone and anyone looking for more than a passing appreciation of music should see your videos.

Monet’s growing cataracts contributed to Impressionism and now I find Revel’s disability led to this masterpiece. Yet we still think the disabled have nothing to contribute.

I still remember the first time I listened to the Boléro. I couldn't believe someone had actually written something like that, how just a tune repeated over and over could be so amazing.

My god, your works just keeps getting better and better. It has always been very good, but just the visuals alone are extraordinary and more so with every new video.

This has to be one of the most beautifully crafted videos I’ve ever seen. The music, the in-depth narration, the setting, backdrops, animation, the music’s winding trail in the background telling the very same story we see and hear from the screen and narrative. Your work is excellent, and tells the story that has often crossed my mind with a touch of mystery. For many years I had heard and believed the old wive’s tale that Bolero was conceived as an orchestral composition exercise, never meant for the stage. Could there be some truth to this? True or not, now I know with certainty that the story is far from that level of simplicity. Hearing Bolero in person at a performance of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra is an experience I remember vividly. I now understand the cause behind a subtle, yet unsettling tremor throughout the concert hall as the theme repeats. It is buried deep in the history and life of its composer. This is truly the work of a man who grasped onto the feeling of having his life fade away inexplicably from an undiagnosed disease, and used that feeling to create something breathtaking. I choose to find the notion inspiring, that even on the threshold of oblivion one can find a path to greatness. Thank you for creating such a masterful description the composer behind the music, and providing a glimpse of the inside of his mind.

I never realised what was so special about this piece. I always thought: "Ravel wrote so many wonderfull pieces like Daphnis et Chloé, his piano concerto, string quartet and Pavane. And THIS is his most well known piece?!" You really opened my eyes with this video, thanks!

I definitely felt something dark was going on this piece long time ago, at several parts I felt his desperation, his madness and his anger, frustration and struggle. I’m impressed how music can actually paint the composer’s emotions so vividly. Thank you so much for this video!

As someone with neurological issues... Yes this inspires me to keep going, to keep dancing. ❤️ Brilliant explanation of this masterpiece, cleverly arranged on top of the music itself.

You should do a video on the music of Tom and Jerry.

I had a brief discussion recently with my piano teacher recently about key changes and how effective they can be. He said listen to Ravel’s Bolero as a piece that demonstrates this to the fullest. It stays in C for almost it’s entire duration, before lurching into E Major (I think?) right at the end before crashing back down to C, and how incredible the effect is. Only having listened to this piece in relation to Torvill & Dean, I now see how amazing it really is

I thought it was odd that they played this in the japanese olympic opening ceremony - I've always associated the piece with a slow descent into madness, possibly because of what you described here. But it seems like you said, others see it as a triumphant march of perseverance, which appears to represent the olympics better!

Wow Barnaby, this was deeply insightful. When the repetitive flat notes play in the "jazzy" melody, I hear a cry of craze, desperation, exhilaration and pain. Both melodic themes feel like a game between what we see and hear. The first theme as diatonic melody reminds me of the physical world around Ravel, all fitting nicely in the harmony, but the second one, may just be a glimpse of his ever-increasing grip loss on what was happening. A flow, even a ruptured dam of thoughts and dark emotions which only steadily opened for years... not so different from his bolero.

Repetition legitimizes. The repetitiveness and the catchy melody of Bolero is what makes it such a know and liked piece. It shows in many way Ravel's understanding of orchestration, harmony and melody. For Ravel melody was everything. But I think Bolero isn't in any way his best work and it's such a shame that it is viewed as his best or most known work. Though it is understandable due to its nature. Look up Daphnis and Chloe, Piano concerto for Left hand and Le Tombeau de Couperin if you want more complex, but as (or even more) ingenious and beautiful music as Bolero.

This reminds me of the Unraveling Bolero Radiolab episode, which I recommend everyone listen to, which connects Ravel’s condition to that of a painter who made a visual representation of Bolero shortly before she passed away. EDIT: Haha, he mentions it at 11 minutes in! Silly me for not waiting until the end to comment.

i read somewhere in the mid- 1980s that he was working with an orchestra that wouldnt cresendo gradually enough for him. so he wrote a piece that gets a bit louder with each phrase to make them need to. ive performed the soprano saxophone part with 3 orchestras over the years.

Ravel: So I know computers don't exist yet, but I think one day maybe 80 years in the future, "Control+V" will be a thing.

Please never stop making these videos dude, they're fantastic

I would absolutely love to see your analysis of the Rhapsody in Blue.

Ah yes, Ravel's "orchestral tissue without music" (The composer words himself). Can't say I disagree but dang did it has some good tunes.

Interesting video, but remember Ravel composed his final two masterpieces, The Piano Concerto in G and The Concerto for the Left Hand, after Bolero. The piano concertos show Ravel in excellent creative form, with immaculate orchestration and hellish piano parts, especially the cadenza on the left hand concerto. Sadly, he only composed a short song cycle after the concertos.

8:26 Adding to the inspirations of machines, I once read that in alborada del gracioso (no.4 from Miroir), the rhythm was also inspired by the clicking of machines.

I love the way you analyze the piece, present all the possible theories for this, and most notably edit and sync the music, visual, and script together. And I love Ravel too! Thank you!

The first time I consciously heard Bolero was in the Italian animated film Allegro Non Troppo, where it accompanied a heavy-handed but evocative allegory of evolution on an alien planet: a steady march of progress, becoming increasingly frenzied and obsessive, ending in paroxysms of ecological destruction. I’ve never been able to shake that imagery since, so Bolero has always felt “au fou” to me.

Just found your videos last month, and they're fascinating! Beyond the knowledge of music and composing, I wanted to compliment you on the overall production. You have the "environment," the sheet music and orchestra synced to the music, and the animation. Fantastic work!!

It's actually crazy this is one of my favorite KZfaq channels and recently I started listening to belero alot and learning to play the solo on from trombone and now you made a video it's crazy how things work

The quality is so damn high for a channel this small. This needs to blow up!

Thank you for making this great video! It encapsulates how I've always felt about Bolero. Ravel is my favorite composer, and I love the piece to death. There's definitely an elitist attitude when folks dismiss the work. He managed to create one of the catchiest melodies ever written and builds it beautifully with the orchestration. Yes, Ravel was critical of his own piece, but I think him pretty much being a perfectionist (that's speculation on my part, but you can just see it in his other works) and the neurological damage he was experiencing contributed to those feelings. I often wonder what could have been if hadn't had aphasia, but at the same time, I would not change a thing about Bolero.

This video is so well made. The music relentlessly playing in the background sync-ing perfectly with what you are describing at each moment allows for a much much deeper appreciation both of the insights about Ravel and of the piece itself.

Bolero is my favourite piece of classical music, and this deep dive into the song and the composer has been lovely! Thank you for sharing your perspective, I really appreciate this video.

Barnaby from the moment I saw the title I was thrilled to see this video. The story of Ravel’s Frontal Temporal Dementia (I know you use a different term in the video which I think is a broader description of the effect) and its effect on this piece has been one of my favorite stories in music history. A working theory of the underlying cause of the repetition is that FTD tends to disturb and suppress the executive function in the brain, a portion of the brain that to some extent prevents ongoing repetitive thoughts. With that suppression set free, musically in the case of Ravel, or colors and patterns in the case Unravelling Bolero (an interesting play on words in its own right) in the case of Anne Adams, the end result is a maddening repetition in whatever medium in which the artist operates. The video itself - once again masterfully done. Thank you for creating such interesting and educational content.

INSANELY GOOD VIDEO. Really good research and an easy, digestable script. Escpecially loved how you had the music running the entire time in the background, which I thought was a really good idea. You deserve many more subscribers.

Ive heard Bolero a few times over the years but it wasn’t until a few weeks ago when I watched a London Symphony Orchestra performance on YT that I fell in love with it. It’s quickly become one of my favorites and I’ve been thinking about it a lot. There’s a compelling beauty to the simplicity of each instrument/section slowly joining in and patiently building up to the crashing climax. I was just looking for some more analysis on the work so this video was perfectly timed. Love your channel btw, keep up the amazing work!

I guess what´s most remarkable about your videos is the amalgamation of precise analytics and music theory with the emotions the piece evokes as well as the historical, social and psychological background of the creation. You find the perfect balance of rational dissection and emotional impression and every video is a musical journey worth undertaking.

WOW superb. Ive been in tears at the end of many of your videos. Your editing, musical timing, knockout quality graphics, excellent research so well scripted and narrated are a joy. Thank you.

I was literally JUST hoping you'd upload a video on this profound piece!! Thank you for this!!!

Wow, I’m stunned by the quality of your work, bravo!

I have suffered brain damage myself 25 years ago and since then all my senses have gone way up and I could never listen to Bolero again without it triggering severe anxiety, a pounding heart and overall misery. I had no idea about Ravel and this particular health condition of his but hearing this Information now does explain a lot now.

Thank you for creating such a wonderful video (as always) about this masterpiece. I love this piece, the orchestration is just phenomenal. I had the great pleasure to play this in an orchestra myself, which was a fantastic experience. You realise how each voice, each colour contributes to the creation of this great musical painting. It amount of concentration it requires can be daunting, but makes the finale the more satisfying!

Awesome video! Love it! Was learning the bolero rudiment and felt compelled to investigate more history - glad to have found your channel!

Absolutely brilliant video! Looking foreward to watch the next one!

I love the way you crafted the visuals, moving from room to room as we moved through each section of the music.

Awesome vid! Great to learn more about one of my favorite pieces of music!

This always sends shivers down my spine, so simple and yet so complex, gripping and humorous, just an amazing piece of art. And this video essay was incredibly illuminating and beautiful, thank you!

Your best video so far: a creative and compelling lecture!

Your videos are some of the best on the platform. I love them so much. You do an amazing job with the editing and presentation of the visual elements

Grosses Kino! Die visuelle Umsetzung in Kombination mit dem Sound der Stimme des Sprechers entwickelt bei mir einen ebensolchen hypnotischen Sog, wie die Komposition selber! Danke, grossartig gemacht!

Another fantastic video! I dig your visual style. Very well done!! I mainly know Bolero through the 1972 Emerson, Lake and Palmer's rendition of it. And always associated the music with industrial machinery.

That was INSANE!!! I got chills like three times!

You've outdone yourself. Congrats!! I hope you keep being inspired and that we can get more of its controlled exposition! Kind regards Barney, hope you're doing well. Take care!

The second melody and the sudden modulation at the end are in the Phrygian Mode (a scale whose whole and half steps are based on the white-note scale running from E up to E), which is a hallmark of Spanish music.

Wonderful video. Bolero has been a part of my life since I was little. I remember being bored with it early on, it's repeating pattern putting me to sleep and lasting way too long. Yet after rediscovering it recently, and now being much older this has become one of my favorite classical pieces. I did not know much about the composer himself, only that his music made me feel... strongly. There is this tug of war going on within the instruments, I feel. A need to continue, but a driving need to complete as well. Nothing lasts forever does it. Like life itself, passion, artistry, and imagination all have an end. The disillusion of innocence and youth, or the feeling that I'll have enough time to get it all done. The trial of getting up and doing it all over again when one wants to let go and finally sleep, but contribute in a unique way that will immortalize one forever. The ending is a shout "This is all that I am". There is such sadness and yet joy in that reveal, but I could not hear it when I was younger. When I read the title of your video, the first affliction that came to mind was Dementia. Dementia is the deconstruction of memories. I've worked with many dementia patients and they seem to go backwards in their psyche, losing what is most recent, returning to what is the beginning. It is a very sad and heartbreaking thing to witness. Your video is beautifully done. It was engaging and artistically stunning. Thank you for doing it.

That's such an amazing content, incredible work, congrats!! If possible, i would love to see something like this about Mozart's Requiem, it would help me so much to get in conducting school

Thank you for sharing this! Very insightful.

Never stumbled upon your channel. Glad I did today. Thank you for this video (and I hope for more videos as good as this for a bit worse, because this one is hard to top)!

Wow! This is one of the best KZfaq videos I've ever seen. Good job!

I always thought this particular piece was inspired by all the wars Europe fought all the damn time.. it sounds like a marching tune that’s been adapted for a theatre house

I think this video is one of the most beautiful and compelling analysis of a musical piece I ever had opportunity to see. Thank you so much.

I really appreciate your approach in your works. Beside your wonderful technical analysis og storytelling (which is narrated perfectly) you make many technical editorial choices that reveals a sensibility of a high technical understanding of cinematic language itself. Thank you for educating and sharing knowledge. Cheers from Denmark.

Your videos are such a journey. Thank you so much

I finally understand why i often play this piece in my head while at work. I happen to work in a factory.

superb video as always!

My first encounter with this wonderful music was at the Olympic Games 1984. Jane Torville and Christopher Dean dancing the BOLERO on ice will forever be written on my mind! ⛸️🎶💕

One of my favorite pieces. Thank you

Superb. Best breakdown of the piece I’ve ever seen.

Wonderful presentation! Thank you.

You’re telling of this story is brilliant. Ravels predicament made tears in my eyes.

Thank you for creating this vid. Very interesting view on this masterpiece.

Well you've managed to drive me to sobbing through analysis of multiple favorite songs now (previously the Star Wars video). I *think* that's a good thing... As for this one, around 11:54, seeing the order visually devolve into chaos at the close of the song, and at the end of his life, is what led to weeping.

Thank you for this video!

Thanks for this video! I'm in tears!

The idea that Ravel may have been falling apart mentally and leaned on the sounds of his youth, those of the unrelenting churning of a Factory, is just amazing. I imagine that Raymond Scott drew inspiration from Ravel for his piece, Powerhouse.

A mind-blowing video...extraordinarily well done.

Me, after going onto KZfaq: Ooh another Listening in video! On Bolero! Me, after seeing how long it is: Ah, I see where this is going :) Honestly, after seeing this video on Bolero it opened up a lot of thoughts in my mind, I knew Bolero was incredibly popular and I loved it, but I always thought it a bit overrated compared to his other work. However, after watching it and how the simplicity masks the incredibly orchestration, and why he may have chosen to write it, I'm reminded once again of how powerful this piece is.

To composer Arthur Honegger, Ravel would later say, "I've written only one masterpiece -- Bolero. Unfortunately, it has no music in it."

This is an outstanding well produced video.

Wow. What a beautiful piece and amazing video

I can't believe you made a video about Bolero but did not mention Torvill and Dean (GBR)'s iconic ice dance routine at the 1984 Olympics! This music and their program are considered a masterpiece. It's probably the most famous figure skating program known to people who have no other interest in this sport; furthermore, it's probably the reason a lot of non-musical people are even aware of Bolero. I don't know if Torvill and Dean are the reason people see this music as "sensuous"? That adjective/thought never would have occurred to me otherwise. I had assumed Bolero was military in origin but very minimalist compared to the great 19th century marches. That is fascinating about the research study from the University of British Columbia in Canada on the artist, aphasia, and Bolero. Thank you for the video! If you have never seen Torvill and Dean (GBR)'s iconic ice dance routine, please, please look it up!

Great essay 🙌 thank you

This is really a great video, thanks!

These interesting thoughts and questions made me love even more this music!

I lack the words to properly express the feelings this piece inspires in me; I am at once filled with both nostalgic longing and excited anticipation, as if revisiting a memory of something that is yet to happen.

hes great at explaining, the video is interesting, and I also like how the music kinda synchronizes with the content and your great voice.

Beautiful video and music. Your videos make my day.

Amazing video mate, I’m a fan of your content

This is a wonderful video!

OMG as I have said before and will continue to say again, what you do is as important as the music itself. You open the mind to the music’s soul and how it does what it does to us as we listen. No longer do we just listen. Now we get to savor and become intimate with these amazing audio masterpieces. How can we ever thank you enough for what you do? You have put me in tears more than once as the music I love was shown to me in an entirely new way. Bless you young man. What you do has been needed for generations. Thank you! PS. I have to ask if you have heard Keith Emerson’s Abadon’s Bolero that he composed back in the 70’s? He was the brilliant keyboard player from Emerson, Lake and Palmer. Would absolutely love to know what you think of it. Many thanks!

Whenever I hear Bolero, I think of Torvill and Dean's Olympic performance.

Just discovered your channel due to the almighty Algorithm, and I just want to give you many, many kudos for the PHENOMENAL job! Not only is your insight interesting and deep, but your editing skills are impressive. Loved the art in this video too and all the ways you combined both audio and visual. Kudos, mate!

Ravel is my favorite composer (Seriously, I’ve never heard a piece of his I don’t like!). So, I walked into this video already knowing parts of the Boléro story, but the way you unraveled (pun totally intended) this piece and included anecdotes I haven’t heard yet, it made me fall in love with Boléro all over again. I do think it’s “crazy” yet sheer genius. Ravel’s obsession with mechanical things is totally apparent in here, and I love that. I love the obsessive repetition. I’m Autistic and have ADHD. Repetition/routine is my thing, and I often get lost in various rabbit holes of analyzing things in great detail (literature, psychology, History, and ESPECIALLY music). Classical Music is the biggest interest of mine; I constantly analyze scores, research composers for every scrap of info that’s available in their music and lives, and Ravel is the composer I can relate to the most; his meticulous nature and the surrealism of his world just... Invites me in. Like a friend saying they understand me. Though I love Ravel’s other works more than Boléro (seriously, his “Miroirs” Suite is just -- *AAAAHHH SOOOOO GOOD* and “Le Tombeau de Couperin,” “La Valse,” his Left-Hand Piano Concerto, “Ma Mére l’Oye”............. Etc, lol), I will always have a place in my heart for Boléro. It’s relatable to me as someone with my own disabilities, and it sums up how my mind works in one piece. Thank you for this video. You’ve rekindled my love of this piece again. ❤️🎼

AMAZING VIDEO! KEEP DOING MORE!

In all these comments, how come I don't see anyone saying "RAVEL IS A GENIUS!" Maurice Ravel had one of the most incredible senses of harmony, and an incredible skill of orchestration. They are amply evident in everything Ravel wrote. He is my favorite composer simply because his music is very satisfying to listen to. I don't need all kinds of scientific nitpicking to know what an incredibly gifted composer Maurice Ravel was.

Amazing video!!

Wow, what a wonderful video about wonderful music. Bravo to you and Ravel

Great video. It explained a LOT of things about the song and author.

Wow! Amazing video!

Fabulous channel …I’m listening 🙏🏿🙏🎩