When Gabriel Fauré wrote this gracefully swaying cradle-song for violin and piano in 1879, he didn't consider it a very important piece and was surprised when it was enthusiastically taken up by violinists "from international soloists to café serenaders with an enthusiasm that bordered on mania". The unexpected popularity of the work attracted the attention of the music publisher Julien Hamelle who became Fauré's publisher for the next 20 years. Unfortunately, it also led some music critics to consider him a "salon composer" not worthy of serious attention.

Listen here: