Festival Ravel
Claude Debussy’s Iberia, Ravel’s Boléro, Alborada del gracioso and Rapsodie espagnole are all works that remind us that France and Spain share a long-standing and musically particularly fruitful relationship.
At the turning point of the 19th century, Spanish music became a creative outlook for artists. From Isaac Albéniz to Manuel de Falla, through Enrique Granados, a whole generation of Spanish composers and performers were active at this period, spending a few productive years in Paris working on what would become ‘modern Spanish music’. Contemporaries of Ravel and Debussy, this new generation of Spanish composers ushered in a new golden age of Spanish music. The pianist Ricardo Viñes, acting as a bridge between Ravel and Falla, introduced the latter into the ‘Apaches’ group gathered around Ravel, fostering friendship and mutual artistic admiration. This ‘parisian’ Spanish school extended beyond music and distinguished also itself through painters such as Juan Gris, Pablo Picasso and Joan Miró.
To mark the 150th birthday of Manuel de Falla in 2026, the Festival Ravel invites you on a journey between modern and dreamed Spain. Read more
Bertrand Chamayou
Chairman and Artistic Director