Ravel in Montréal

Ravel came to Montréal for the final concert of his North American tour on 19 April 1928. He had arrived by train that morning, and immediately gave an interview to the local press in which he again pointed to the importance of jazz for the future of American music. He also identified Stravinsky, de Falla, and Vaughan Williams as his favourite modern composers. And he made the intriguing comment that his own work as a composer really began with the Sonate pour violon et violoncelle. (Potvin [1988] p.160, quoting La Presse (Montréal), 19 & 20 avril 1928).

The recital took place in the Théâtre Saint-Denis, and Ravel was joined by the soprano Greta Torpadie, 

the Quatuor Dubois who played his String Quartet, and the pianist Léo-Pol Morin (a former pupil of Ricardo Viñes) who joined Ravel in the piano-duet version of Ma mère l’oye. Unusually by comparison with Ravel’s other appearances, the event was poorly attended and the theatre was only one-third full. However, in an informal atmosphere, those who were there gave the performances an enthusiastic reception. (Potvin [1988] p.160).

Ravel left Montréal to return to New York, just in time to catch the liner “Paris” at midnight on 21 April for the return voyage to France.