Ravel: Le Tombeau de Couperin

The widespread acclaim which met the release of Artur Pizarro’s first volume of Ravel ensured that the popular pianist would be back to record Vol. 2. “Phenomenal”, “scintillating” and “super-refined” were just some of the superlatives used to describe Pizarro’s performance. “The Complete Works of Ravel Vol. 2” surpasses the incredibly high standards set by Vol. 1 as Pizarro reaches new heights with an outstanding performance.

Pavane pour une Infante défunte, one of Ravel’s most popular pieces, is played beautifully in its original piano version.

The suite Le tombeau de Couperin pays homage to French music of the eighteenth century whose premiere elicited a warm and enthusiastic reception, a response which continues to this day.

Valse nobles et sentimentales is highly stylised and harmonically complex, and is considered of seminal importance for Ravel’s future writing.

Ravel himself considered the Sonatine too advanced for his supreme pianistic skills. Pizarro's virtuosity is apparent in his notable performance.

The first disc of this set is dedicated to the pianist's late teacher Jacques Fevrier. Fevvrier was a close friend of Ravel and the knowledge and insights into the music Fevrier learnt from the composer he passed down to Pludermacher.

Disc 2 is dedicated to the choreographer George Balanchine with whom the pianist worked in 1975. As ever with performances by Georges Pludermacher, the playing is immaculate and sensitive.