Daphnis et Chloe, La Valse & Bolero [with works by Debussy]

This collection brings together all the ballets by the two so-called Impressionistic composers, Ravel and Debussy, in recordings by Bernard Haitink.

Ravel's masterpiece is the three act ballet Daphnis et Chloé, commissioned by Diaghilev, with Nijinsky dancing the lead role. Also included are La Valse, the orchestral version of Ma mère l'oye (Mother Goose) and two works inspired by Spain, Alborada del gracioso and Boléro - a work Ravel famously described as a "piece for orchestra without music".

Debussy is represented by two masterpieces from both ends of his career: Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune, a turning point in the history of music that ushered in the modern harmonies of the 20th century, and converted into a sensational ballet by Nijinsky (L'après-midi d'un faune); Jeux was the composer's last orchestral work and premiered just two weeks before The Rite of Spring.