Ravel’s productivity came to a halt during World War I when he tried to enlist, but he was denied for physical reasons and instead was given the opportunity to be a military transport driver. The death of Ravel’s mother, the most important person in his life seeing as he never married, furthered Ravel’s inactivity in the world of composing. Ravel only begun composing again when Sergei Diaghilev tasked him with composing a piece for one of his (Diaghilev) ballets. The piece Ravel composed for Diaghilev was the completed version of Wien renamed La Valse. In 1928, Ravel took part in a successful concert tour in the United States and wrote his most famous work, Boléro. Boléro was used in the 1984 Olympic Games by figure skaters Torvill and Dean
