Maurice Ravel

Pavane Pour une Infante Defunte (Pavane for a Dead Princess), M. 19

Originally written in 1899 by Maurice Ravel (1875-1937) for solo piano, and later orchestrated by the composer, PAVANE POUR UNE INFANTE DÉFUNTE (PAVANE FOR A DEAD PRINCESS) remains one of the enduringly popular of Ravel's works, though the title can be a curiosity for many. Ravel said of the work, "Do not attach any importance to the title. I chose it only for its euphonious qualities. Do not dramatize it. It is not a funeral lament for a dead child, but rather an evocation of the pavane [a stately, 16th-century Spanish court dance] which could have been danced by such a little princess as painted by Velázquez." This edition, with a new engraving, has been completed by Richard Dowling.