MAURICE RAVEL III
DAPHNIS ET CHLOÉ / LA VALSE
LA-OBC-011 | CD + HD WAV STEREO | RELEASE DATE: 6 FEBRUARY 2026
The Barcelona Symphony Orchestra (OBC) and Music Director Ludovic Morlot – renowned specialist in French repertoire with four Grammy awards – release the complete orchestral works of Maurice Ravel in six CDs between April 2024 and December 2026. The thrid volume of the collection, recorded at the Pau Casals Hall of L’Auditori with Matthew Bennett (producer) and Stephen Rinker – sound engineer of the BBC and Chandos label – includes two iconic works by the composer from Ciboure (French Basque Country).
Ludovic Morlot’s precision and control of orchestral color give these recordings great transparency, with meticulously balanced sound and expressiveness that showcase the OBC’s poetic capacity. Additionally, the collection features the editorial revision of the complete orchestral works of the French composer: the Ravel Edition, a project that brings together artists such as Bertrand Chamayou, Renaud Capuçon, François-Xavier Roth, Ludovic Morlot, George Benjamin, Kirill Karabits, or Cristian Măcelaru, among others.
PRESS
“Morlot is a superb conductor of French repertoire and his pacing is unerring. He’s sprightlier than both Wilson and Antonio Pappano (in his recent LSO Live release)”
GRAMOPHONE magazine
“Selten klangen Ravels hochartifizielle, „künstliche“ Paradiese so märchenhaft verzaubert und so feinstofflich orchestral aufgefächert wie hier”…
RONDO MAGAZIN
“À chaque époque ses références, nul doute que celle s’inscrira dans le paysage discographique de notre temps”…
CRESCENDO MAGAZINE
“Morlot lleva a la orquesta a espléndidos momentos. El primero de una serie prometedora”…
REVISTA SCHERZO
“Excepcional. Esta integral, sin duda, apunta muy alto”…
REVISTA RIMTO
“Una interpretación transparente y precisa”…
REVISTA MELÓMANO
“De una delicadeza y de una elegancia exquisitas”…
EL COMPOSITOR HABLA
CD review on France Musique…
FRANCE MUSIQUE
“Un plaer il·limitat i una delícia”…
SONOGRAMA MAGAZINE
MAURICE RAVEL III
Stefan Zweig wrote in The World of Yesterday: “[…] no one believed in wars. […] With disdain one regarded earlier eras […] as a time in which humanity was not yet mature and had not yet been sufficiently enlightened.” Debussy, Fauré, Stravinsky, Picasso, Cocteau and even Proust, holed up in a room writing In Search of Lost Time, created some of the works that made the Belle Époque an exceptional artistic moment, without anticipating the disaster of the Great War that would break out just two years after the premiere of Daphnis et Chloé, ravaging Europe.
Serge Diaghilev was a leading figure during this period of creative vibrancy. It was Diaghilev who commissioned the dances of Prince Igor (1909) from Borodin; Scheherazade (1910) from Rimsky-Korsakov; The Firebird (1910), Petrushka (1911) and The Rite of Spring (1913) from Stravinsky, and Faun from Debussy (1912). The first conversations between Diaghilev and Ravel about the new commission date back to 1907. Ravel was often grumpy while working on it. In 1910, while in the drafting phase, he unsuccessfully challenged the terms of the contract, under which he would receive only a third of the profits from the production. His anger grew when, a few days before the premiere, Diaghilev cut the number of scheduled performances in half, from four to two. As a sign of his disappointment, Ravel never wrote a dedication for the work.
The absence of text in the choral parts, as Debussy imagined for Les Sirènes eleven years earlier, evokes mythical, bygone times. It lends an expressive dimension of otherworldliness that reflects the idea that the higher the angels are in the divine hierarchy, the fewer words they have at their disposal. The enigmatic sounds of the chorus use striking scene changes to propel the work forward, taking audiences from an energetic dance to the purity of an Arcadian pastoral game. Based on the story by Greek novelist Longus (2nd century AD) about two innocent herders from the island of Lesbos learning the arts of love, Daphnis was the longest composition in Ravel’s oeuvre.
Despite Ravel’s influence on Stravinsky, explicitly confirmed by the critical reception of The Firebird, it is surprising to see how much certain commentators failed to grasp. Édouard Lalo, for example, wrote that “the music is rich but lacking in rhythm”, while Gaston Carraud argued that “the rhythm is extremely weak”. The Danse guerrière, a year before the premiere of The Rite of Spring and its iconic Sacrificial Dance, hinted at where Stravinsky was heading, with its unrelenting beat, elusive tuttis crowned by the piccolo, abrupt juxtapositions of sound levels, concise melodic motifs, accumulation of orchestral layers and percussion reminiscent of earlier generations, putting into practice the maxim that “genius steals”. Stravinsky, who was aware of his own shortcomings, knew that Ravel knew it! This is why he referred to Daphnis et Chloé as one of the “most beautiful works of French music”.
The orchestration is a paragon of originality, precision and effectiveness. At the beginning of the Danse grotesque, in which the herders Dorcon and Dafnis compete for a coveted kiss from Chloé, three bassoons, aided by horns, dance extravagantly with triadic harmonies based on the sixth interval, an arrangement that Bela Bartók would later bring back in Giuoco delle coppie. The Danse lente et mystérieuse des Nymphes, as well as the later L’Enfant et les Sortilèges, features a wind machine, an unusual device with a handle cranked by a performer to produce a sound that mimics gusts of wind. In Danse légère et gracieuse, the refined presence of natural harmonics foreshadows Gérard Grisey and the spectralist movement, also hinted at by the organic processes of Lever du jour, which has direct parallels to Debussy’s De l’aube à midi sur la mer.
Ravel’s reserved and coquettish personality, with his pathological perfectionism in his daily habits – his choice of ties and shoes, meticulous elegance, clothes, manners, etc. – was faithfully reflected in his scores as millimetrically calculated works of art. He himself wrote “Mais est-ce qu’il ne vient jamais à l’idée de ces gens-là que je peux ètre ‘artificiel’ par nature?” (“Does it not occur to people that I might be artificial by nature?”), which ties in with another aspect: the joie de vivre that can be found throughout his work, especially in La Valse. The score for this apotheosis of dance in homage to Johann Strauss bears the heading Mouvement de Valse Viennoise and the description “Through breaks in the swirling clouds, waltzing couples may be glimpsed.” The composition is full of surprising twists, unexpected intersections and shifts in perspective. With clockwork precision and beauty, it propels a series of waltzes towards a finale not without its tragic overtones.
This brilliant recording by the Barcelona Symphony Orchestra (OBC), conducted by leading Ravel specialist Ludovic Morlot, is a magnificent occasion to recall Jean Cocteau’s beautiful quote describing Ravel as the composer of works that “land in our hearts like a meteorite from a planet whose laws will remain forever mysterious”. Jankélévitch could not agree more.
Ramon Humet
LUDOVIC MORLOT
Morlot’s élan, elegance and intensity on stage have endeared him to audiences and orchestras worldwide, from the Berlin Philharmonic to the Boston Symphony. During his 8 years as Music Director of the Seattle Symphony he pushed the boundaries of traditional concert programming, winning several Grammys.
He is now Conductor Emeritus in Seattle, and in 2019 he was appointed Associate Artist of the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra with whom he has had a close relationship over many years; he returns to both orchestras every season. He was Artistic Director and a founding member of the National Youth Orchestra of China 2017-2021. Morlot has conducted the Berliner Philharmonic, Royal Concertgebouw, Czech Philharmonic, Dresden Staatskapelle, London Philharmonic and Budapest Festival orchestras, and many of the leading North American orchestras, notably the New York Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Chicago and Boston Symphony Orchestras. Morlot has a particularly strong connection with Boston, having been the Seiji Ozawa Fellowship Conductor at Tanglewood and subsequently appointed assistant conductor for the Boston Symphony. Since then he has conducted the orchestra in subscription concerts in Boston, at Tanglewood and on a tour to the west coast of America. He has also appeared extensively in Asia and Australasia, notably with the Seoul Philharmonic, Yomiuri Nippon Symphony and Melbourne Symphony Orchestras. Festival appearances have included the BBC Proms, Wien Modern, Edinburgh, and Aspen festivals.
His tenure in Seattle formed a hugely significant period in the musical journey of the orchestra. His innovative programming encompassed not only his choice of repertoire, but theatrical productions and performances outside the traditional concert hall space. There were numerous collaborations with musicians from different genres, commissions and world premieres. Some of these projects, including John Luther Adams’ Become Ocean, Aaron Jay Kernis’ Violin Concerto performed by James Ehnes and an exploration of Dutilleux’s music, have earned the orchestra five Grammy Awards, as well as the distinction of being named Gramophone’s 2018 Orchestra of the Year. Morlot has released 19 recordings with the Seattle Symphony Media label which was launched in 2014.
Trained as a violinist, he studied conducting at the Pierre Monteux School (USA) with Charles Bruck and Michael Jinbo. He continued his education in London at the Royal Academy and then at the Royal College as recipient of the Norman del Mar Conducting Fellowship. Ludovic is Affiliate Professor at the University of Washington School of Music in Seattle and a Visiting Artist at the Colburn School in Los Angeles. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Music in 2014 in recognition of his significant contribution to music.
ORFEÓ CATALÀ
The Orfeó Català is one of the country’s leading amateur choirs. The choir has over 130 years of history, and was founded in 1891 by Lluís Millet and Amadeu Vives to share choral repertoire from Catalonia and around the world, with the utmost artistic standards. Pablo Larraz is the current choir director, while Pau Casan is the choir pianist. Simon Halsey has a close relationship with the choir as the key guest conductor and ambassador for Palau choirs. The Orfeó Català is based at the Palau de la Música Catalana, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The Orfeó Català has performed some of the most recognizable works in choral repertoire, giving the first-ever performances in Spain of important works such as Bach’s Mass in B minor and Haydn’s The Seasons. The choir has been led by a range of internationally renowned conductors: Richard Strauss, Pau Casals, Zubin Mehta, Mstislav Rostropovich, Lorin Maazel, Daniel Barenboim, Simon Rattle, Gustavo Dudamel and Kirill Petrenko, to name just a few. The choir has given concerts at the Konzerthaus in Vienna, the Calouste Gulbenkian concert hall in Lisbon, and the Royal Festival Hall and Royal Albert Hall in London (for the BBC Proms). The Orfeó Català has toured in several countries: in China, at the invitation of the Shanghai International Art Festival; in Italy with the Mahler Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Daniele Gatti; in Paris with Gustavo Dudamel; in Luxembourg with Gustavo Gimeno; in Berlin with the Berliner Philharmoniker (April-May 2023), under the baton of Kirill Petrenko, (Berliner Philharmonie); in Barcelona (Sagrada Família) and Madrid (Teatro Real), with a programme dedicated to Mozart; and lastly with a performance of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony with the Orchestre National de Lyon, under conductor Nikolaj Znaider, at the L’Auditori in Barcelona and at the Auditorio in Madrid (November 2023).
The Orfeó Català also performed Brahms’ A German Requiem and Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 2, “Lobgesang”, alongside the Balthasar Neumann Chor & Orchester and conducted by Thomas Hengelbrock (February 2024), at both the Palau and in Hamburg: the Brahms at the Laeiszhalle, and the Mendelssohn at the Elbphilharmonie. Finally, the Orfeó Català will perform alongside other choirs from the Choral School in a concert featuring works by Ola Gjeilo, with the composer himself on the piano (July 2024).
Highlights from the 2024-25 season include a tour to perform Mahler’s Resurrection Symphony with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Cor de Cambra, with conductor Daniel Harding, in concerts in Stockholm, at the Palau de la Música Catalana in Barcelona, and in Girona (April-May 2025). In addition, the choir will perform in the Spanish début of Rufus Wainwright’s Dream Requiem, together with the Orquestra Simfònica de Barcelona i Nacional de Catalunya, under the baton of Ludovic Morlot, at the Palau (January 2025).
The Orfeó Català is sponsored by mesoestetic®.
OBC BARCELONA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
First violins: Vlad Stanculeasa, Jaha Lee, Raúl García, Paula Banciu, Sarah Bels, Walter Ebenberger, Ana Galán, Zabdiel Hernández, Lev Mikhailovskii, Katia Novell, Ivan Percevic, Pilar Pérez, Jordi Salicrú, Ícar Solé, Sei Morishima, Gabriel Parra / Second violins: Alejandra Navarro, Judith Choi-Castro, Emil Bolozan, Maria José Aznar, Patricia Bronisz, Clàudia Farrés, Alzy Kim, Octavi Martínez, Melita Murgea, Laura Pastor, Robert Tomàs, Antonia Escalas, Daniel Gil, Eugènia Ostas / Violas: Ewelina Bielarczyk, Marc Charpentier, Noemí Fúnez, Christine de Lacoste, David Derrico, Josephine Fitzpatrick, Sophie Lasnet, Miquel Serrahima, Jennifer Stahl, Adrià Trulls, Federica Cucignatto, Ricardo Gil / Cellos: Charles-Antoine Archambault, Audun Sandvik, Blai Bosser, Lourdes Duñó, Vincent Ellegiers, Marc Galobardes, Elena Gómez, Lluc Pascual, Jean-Baptiste Texier, Javier Costa / Double basses: Christoph Rahn, Luís Cabrera, Dmitri Smyshlyaev, Jonathan Camps, Josep Mensa, Gerard Dalmau, Elena Marigómez / Flutes: Francisco López, Beatriz Cambrils, Ricardo Borrull (piccolo) / Oboes: Rafael Muñoz, José Juan Pardo, Pau Roca (English horn) / Clarinets: Pedro Franco, Robindro Nikolic, Francisco Rodríguez, Laura García / Bassoons: Silvia Coricelli, Noé Cantú, Thomas Greaves, Slawomir Krysmalski (contrabassoon) / Horns: Juan Manuel Gómez, Joan Aragó, Juan Conrado García, Pablo Marzal, Artur Jorge / Trumpets: Mireia Farrés, Adrián Moscardó, Ángel Serrano, Miguel Herráez / Trombones: Eusebio Sáez, Pablo Rodríguez, Raúl García / Tuba: Daniel Martínez / Timpani: David Montoya / Percussion: Joan Marc Pino, Juan Francisco Ruiz, Ignasi Vila, Joan Carot, Miquel Àngel Martínez, Iván Mesas, Roberto Oliveira, Lola Olmo, Diego Sáenz / Harp: Magdalena Barrera, Esther Pinyol / Celesta: Gregori Ferrer
Director L’Auditori: Robert Brufau / Artistic Coordination L’Auditori and Editorial direction: Santi Barguño / Recording Technical Team: Matthew Bennett (Producer), Stephen Rinker (Sound Engineer) / Technical Team L’Auditori: Toni Vila (Technical Coordination and Audiovisual Technical Manager), Luís Hernández (Technical Manager OBC) / OBC Operational Team: María Marí (Technical Director), Montserrat Grau (Head of Artistic Department), Núria Torrens (Assistant Technical Director), José Sanchis (Artistic Production), Leticia Martin (External Contracting), Begoña Pérez (Archivist), Mercè J. Puertas (Administrative Assistant), Walter Ebenberger (Orchestra Manager), Ignasi Valero / Luís Hernández* (Technical Managers) / Production Team Palau Música Catalana: Lídia Torra, Cristina Junceda / Ravel Edition Guests: François Dru (Editorial Manager), Pierre Jean Tribot
ORFEÓ CATALÀ
Sopranos: Tamar Aguilar, Elisenda Ardévol, Cèlia Buscà, Mar Calvet, Aida Càmara, Laia Canet, Mireia Carmona, Maria Champman, Beatriz Cordero, Mariàngels Custal, Ariadna D’Oca, Anna Faz, Alba Fernandez, Noemí Gallardo, Raquel Garcia, Mar Giné, Georgina Jiballi, Berta Manresa, Núria Milà, Imma Mostazo, Laura Musull, Sofia Reis, Sira Sadurní, Núria Subiràs, Iris Torregrossa, Marina Viñals, Alba Villar, Maria Vives / Altos: Alba Almunia, Ona Alonso, Cristina Arribas, Belén Clemente, Conxa Fernandez, Imma Garcia, Judith Hämmerling, Edith López, Mª Àngels Lorés, Sara Madrid, Martí Marimon, Maria Martin, Aurora Miró, Tania Mittendorf, Anna Muñoz, Viktoria Pavlova, Gemma Planellà, Irene Plass, Marta Porta, Irene Recolons, Anna Rosés, Isis Royo / Tenors: Antoni Agramont, Xavier Barron, Xavier Benitez, Iñigo Berganza, Josep Carreras, Fabián Conesa, Xavier Cos, Gerard Fusté, Marc Majó, Carles Masdeu, Joan Mora, Josep Lluís Moreno, Bernat Oriols, Oscar Puigardeu, Jordi Quelart, Joan Sans, Oriol Ubach, Josep Velasco, Roger Vicens / Basses: Arnau Aina, Benedikt Amann, Marc Canals, Ferran Corral, Andreu Edo, Iago Garcia, Xavier Garcia-Moll, Albert Garriga, Guillem Gascón, Jordi Giné, José Ángel González, Hirotoshi Kikuchi, Víctor Luis, Albert Pàmies, Gerard Pujals, Oriol Saladrigas, Carles Sánchez, Arnau Segura, Joan Velasco
Album recorded on 3-5 December 2024 at Sala Pau Casals, L’Auditori de Barcelona.
The recording of “La Valse”has been made using the revised scores from the Ravel Edition raveledition.com
With funding from the Ministry of Culture, within the framework of the Cultural Capital of Barcelona promoted by the Ministry of Culture and Barcelona City Council and the support of the Ramon Llull Institute:
