Maurice Ravel - Pavane pour une infante défunte (piano)

Pavane pour une infante défunte (Pavane for a dead princess) is a well-known piece written for solo piano by the French composer Maurice Ravel in 1899 when he was studying composition at the Conservatoire de Paris under Gabriel Fauré. Ravel also published an orchestrated version of the Pavane in 1910, scored for 2 flutes, oboe, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 2 horns, harp, and strings. A typical performance of the piece lasts between six and seven minutes. It is widely considered a masterpiece. Ravel described the piece as "an evocation of a pavane that a little princess (infanta) might, in former times, have danced at the Spanish court". The pavane was a slow processional dance that enjoyed great popularity in the courts of Europe during the 16th and 17th centuries. Pianist: Samson François