Ravel: Habanera

This new recording of Ravel’s works is performed by Julian Steckel (winner ECHO Klassik 2012, category “Newcomer of the year”), and includes the rarely played piece “Habanera”.

The young violinist Lena Neudauer captivated the critics with her first recording for Haenssler, Schumann’s Complete Works for Violin and Orchestra (HAEN93258), and on this new recording she tackles the incredibly demanding violin works of Maurice Ravel. Accompanied by Paul Rivinius (who is a critically acclaimed performer in his own right), Lena’s interpretation is wonderfully inspired.

Is it possible to represent faithfully the rich world of the oboe and oboe playing?

This double CD offers this and more, with 33 tracks of music from composers such as Mozart, Ravel, Tchaikovsky and Britten. Twenty oboists are featured,

including Elaine Douvas and Nicholas Daniel. The first CD is designed to be enjoyed as either foreground or background music, with instantly recognisable tunes, or music with a persuasive atmosphere, or both. The second covers an enormous range, from Beethoven's Fidelio to Berio's Sequenza VII.

This CD celebrates fifteen years of these two artists playing as a duo. Phillippe Pélisier has pursued a double career as both a musician and a producer for Radio France. Harumi Konoshita studied the piano in Japan and Paris. She performs as a soloist and with many instrumental ensembles. The duo performs works by Mozart, Sweelinck, Telemann, Rameau, Hotteterre, Ravel and Purcell.

It has often been said that music is a universal language; it is not, though, universally understood as a mother tongue, it is only universally spoken thus. So one must always attempt to hear it like something new, not quite familiar with a tourist's perception. Let's travel, then, and imagine some interesting encounters, where a German Brahms would understand a French Saint-Saëns as much as a Russian Glière, where a Belgian Jongen would make himself understood to an Austrian Kreisler as much as to a British Elgar, and where a trombonist and a pianist would understand themselves mutually. The listener, then, will have the creative opportunity to impart these familiar and less familiar sounds with significance while surrendering to the sheer pleasure of their beauty.

28th December 2012 marks the 75th Anniversary of the death of Maurice Ravel, the great French composer, best-known for his beautiful melodies, orchestral & instrumental textures and mesmeric compositional effects.

Many consumers will know Ravel through his masterpieces, such as: Boléro, Pavane pour une infant défunte, Rapsodie espagnole, Gaspard de la nuit, Ma Mère l’oye, Daphnis et Chloë, Le Tombeau de Couperin and La Valse.

For the first time ever, a 14-CD Box Set containing the COMPLETE EDITION of Ravel’s compositions. This is the flagship product, the first time ever that a complete Ravel Box has been issued by any classical label.

In addition to detailed tracklists and artist information to Decca’s high house standard, the 184 page booklet offers full sung texts in original French and with English translation. A 3000-word appreciation of Ravel by Nigel Simeone appears in English, French and German.