As evening falls on a warm late summer day, the soft veils of twilight set the stage for an intimate concert where poetry and music intertwine. Medieval texts by Charles d’Orléans inspired Claude Debussy, while Maurice Ravel penned his own lyrics for Trois Chansons — his only a cappella work. He himself described the second movement, Trois beaux oiseaux du Paradis, as ‘an exquisite ballad full of tenderness.’ By choosing the poetry of Paul Verlaine for his song cycle Chansons grises, Reynaldo Hahn crowned himself the undisputed master of the French mélodie — and the Parisian salons of the Belle Époque. Fauré closes the evening and ushers in the night with the dramatic power of Les Djinns, based on a poem by Victor Hugo.