“This is not only Ravel’s best work, but also one of the most beautiful examples of French music in general,” said Russian composer Igor Stravinsky about Maurice Ravel’s one-act ballet Daphnis et Chloé. Ravel described the ballet as “symphonie chorégraphique” (choreographic symphony), which tells an ancient love story between the goatherd Daphnis and the shepherdess Chloé. The composer began working on the score in 1909 after a commission from Sergei Diagilev, one of the most famous ballet impresarios. It was premiered in 1912 with the celebrated Vaclav Nijinsky and Tamara Karsavina dancing the lead roles. Ravel extracted music from the rich, impressionist ballet to make two orchestral suites, which are often programmed in concerts. The second of the suites is considered to be one of Ravel’s most performed orchestral works. This recording features two-pianos arrangement by Vyacheslav Gryaznov.

The atmosphere of dream-like, unparalleled beauty is presented by two prominent pianists well-known outside their native countries: Professor Petras Geniušas, a recipient of the Lithuanian National Culture and Art Prize, and his former student, Romanian virtuoso Daniel Ciobanu.