Maurice Ravel
1875-1937

The pastoral tale of Daphnis et Chloe is thought to have been written in the 2nd century BC by the Greek poet Longus.  In 1913 Maurice Ravel wrote the ballet suite of Daphnis et Chloe.  The New York Philharmonic and the Philadelphia Ballet Company gave the US premiere in 1936.  Ravel’s music popped up at the 2002 Winter Olympics when Sarah Hughes skated to a gold medal with selections from the ballet suite.

In the visual arts nothing surpasses the astonishing beauty and stunning color of Marc Chagall’s portfolio of 42 lithographs of Daphnis et Chloe (Christie’s estimated one such portfolio at over $200,000).  My little $25.00 edition of the lithographs by Prestel-Verlag is just perfect.