Another installment in the unique series of compositions for the famous Ballets russes commissioned by the impresario Serge Diaghilev. The three ballets on this CD make it clear how much the Ballets russes had become in a very short time a mirror of their time and finally protagonists of the Western European avant-garde. Milhaud's 'Le train bleu' was a trendy composition in every respect. The title, referring to the modern luxury express train from Paris to Deauville, was news of the day, with the fine 'haute société' travelling on the Côte d'Azur. There, on the beach, the ballet plays out; as the fine company takes time for summer sports such as tennis, swimming and golf. In 1917 Vincenzo Tommasini had delivered his delicate orchestrations of sonatas by Scarlatti to Diaghilev, who was delighted as adapted (very successfully) to a 'commedia dell'arte,' a Venetian dialect comedy by Carlo Goldoni. “Les femmes de bonne humeur” led the revival of 18th century charm and was a great success. Henri Sauguet’s La Chatte is one of the most important productions of the late Diaghilev era. The libretto was based on a slightly different adaptation of a fable by Aesop, while the music hardly conceals its neo-romantic sentiments.