Recording from 05. Mar 2020

Daphnis et Chloé

Maurice Ravel completed the ballet Daphnis et Chloé in 1912. It was the first and last time he worked with Serge Diaghilev and his Ballets Russes. The ballet was not a hit when it premiered, but the music demanded further attention. The story is based on an ancient Greek play about a goatherd, Daphnis, and his shepherdess lover, Chloé, who gets abducted by pirates. Ravel arranged two orchestral suites from the score, and the second — derived from the ballet’s third act — is concerned with the goatherd’s hopeful dream involving the god Pan, Chloé’s rescue, and their happy reunion. Ravel referred to the piece as a “choreographic symphony.”