Description: Ravel composed the Concerto in G Major after a trip to the United States. It has been seen as a reflection on Gershwin and American musical comedy. Ravel described the work as "... written in very much the same spirit as those of Mozart and Saint-Saëns," and that "it uses certain effects borrowed from jazz, but only in moderation." (Arbie Orenstein, Ravel: Man and Musician.) When the Paris Opera Ballet staged In G Major, under the name "En Sol," it commissioned scenery and costumes by Erté, which were borrowed by New York City Ballet. Maurice Ravel (1875-1937) was born in the French Basque town of Ciboure. His family moved to Paris and encouraged him to take piano lessons. At fourteen he was admitted to the Paris Conservatory, where he studied with Fauré, who became his principal teacher of composition. His ballet scores include Pavane pour une Infante Défunte, Jeux d'Eau, Boléro, Daphnis and Chloe, Ma Mère L'Oye, and L'enfant et les Sortiléges, a ballet-opera.

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