A native of Pays Basque, born of the Basses Pyrenées at Ciboure, it seems fitting that Maurice Ravel's last completed composition, Don Quichotte à Dulcinée (also known as Trois chansons de Don Quichotte à Dulcinée) (1932-1933) should reflect his Spanish heritage. The work is alive with traditional Iberian music and also contains the most famous character in Iberian literature. The work was part of a competition of 1932 in which de Falla, Ravel, Milhaud, Marcel Delannoy, and Jacques Ibert took part, for the performance in Georges W. Pabst's film Don Quixote starring the Russian bass Feodor Chaliapin. Slightly occupied with a European tour of his Piano Concerto in G with Marguerite Long, Ravel's Don Quichotte was written slowly due to failing health that was complicated by a car accident, which occurred in the same year. Unable to deliver the work in time, Ravel's skills and composition were passed up for those of Ibert. Regardless of Pabst's rejection, Ravel's work had its first performance with conductor Paul Paray and baritone Martial Singher on December 1, 1934, and was recorded at that time.

The three songs of Don Quichotte à Dulcinée, poems by novelist Paul Morand, reflect the tenderly sincere and humorous moments of this well-known tale. The introductory quixotic song, "Chanson Romanesque," uses a pleasant vocal melody for Don Quixote's declaration of devotion to Dulcinea with a guitar-like accompaniment of the piano in a four-verse set of variations. "Chanson Epique" is the Knight's humble prayer, for blessings and protection, to the Virgin and the saints, in which the piano is used in the style of a church organ with rhythm derived from the Basque zortzico. Its austere chant, near the end of the song, concludes with a peaceful "Amen." The song cycle closes with "Chanson á boire," a robust jota in triple time, suitable for the lively exaggerations and embellishments written for the song's toast, "I drink to joy! Joy is the one aim for which I go straight...when I've drunk." Through this song Ravel bids an inadvertent adieu to music, from then on he suffered from ataxia and aphasia which kept him from coherently completing musical ideas such as the opéra-ballet Morgiane and the opéra-oratorio Jeanne d'Arc.

When Ravel provided the world with Don Quichotte à Dulcinée he furthered the possibility of his belief that "music must always be beautiful," by creating a composition that was charming, moving, and thoughtful.

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