July’s Limelight Recording of the Month honours Maurice Ravel’s 150th birthday with a complete survey of the French master’s songs from Malcolm Martineau.

Mélodies and chansons, each one a tightly crafted gem, were a key component of the composer’s output across his full career and yet they perhaps get less attention than they deserve.

Clive Paget caught up with the British pianist to find out why, and to get a little insight into the collection and the handpicked band of singers that Martineau has recruited for the project.

How would you compare Ravel with the other major French song composers that were around at the time?

It’s hard to categorise him, because he’s got such a wide range of styles. I think he has a touch of the south of France about him, as well as Paris. He is always thinking orchestrally, whereas somebody like Fauré is always thinking about what a piano can do. Debussy and Ravel, I think, almost always have an orchestral colour in their head, which actually makes it fun for us to try and achieve what they want.