Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924) • Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)

String Quartets

Bringing together on one disc the two quartets of Ravel and Fauré is not the result of pure chance. These works are closely linked, as were their creators, who vowed each other an 'unfailing affection'.

Born in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques département on 7th March, 1875, Ravel was introduced to music's joys by his father, an engineer: 'Lacking musical theory, that I have never learnt, I started studying the piano when about six years of age.' In 1897, he went to the Paris Conservatoire and met Fauré in his composition class. A relentlessly hard worker, but forever losing in competitions, Ravel had to be content with second prize in the Prix de Rome (1901) whilst failing the various Conservatoire examinations. His failures seemed plain to the director: 'no chance, on account of the awful inaccuracies in writing!' Though expelled from the establishment in 1900, he