Déodat de Séverac

A contemporary of Debussy, Fauré, and Ravel, Sévérac ranks perhaps only marginally below this distinguished group. He was, for some time, assessed a second-rate composer largely because of his decision to leave Paris -- and its influences -- a move seen by many as a step backward, revealing the composer to be a provincial-minded artist lacking sophistication. But his works exude subtlety and sophistication in their conservative expressive language, and are quite individual in their frequent use of modal writing and folk qualities. Déodat de Sévérac was born in Saint-Félix-Ca...