Pavane

Contained on this one disc are some of the major French compositions of this century. Ravel's Le Tombeau de Couperin (1917) was written to the memory of friends of Ravel who were killed in World War I. Astonishingly, Ravel gives to the tombeau (an 18th century dance) a quirky 20th-century feel. A true masterpiece. Also here are two of the three Gymnopedies of Erik Satie, orchestrated by Debussy. Faur© is represented by his "Pelleas et Melisande" suite. The miracle here is that they translate well to the chamber orchestra size. The Orpheus group were born playing this music. --Paul Cook