Here is a tale of diplomatic brinkmanship. On 28 December 1927 Ravel boarded the S.S. France at Le Havre, bound for New York. His arrival on 4 January was the start of an exhilarating tour of America and Canada that lasted until 21 April 1928. Although audiences and critics were ambivalent about his abilities as a conductor and pianist, in Gaby Casadeus's view, ‘America confirmed Ravel's status [as a composer], even for the French’. While the reviews and eyewitness accounts of his tour tell one story, there is another fascinating story behind the scenes that took place even before Ravel set sail. His trip was conceived by Pro Musica, a contemporary music society founded by the pianist Robert Schmitz, and it was managed by the New York/Montréal company Bogue-Laberge Management. Documents in the Fonds Montpensier (Bibliothèque nationale de France, Département de musique) detail the sophisticated manoeuvrings of the management company, the various levels of the French ministry and of Ravel himself. While all parties had a concern for Ravel's national and international standing and value, their machinations, interspersed with periods of inertia, had the potential to jeopardize the success of the trip.