A letter from Florent Schmitt to Maurice Ravel, sent during his stay at the Villa Medici in Rome (1901). In it, Schmitt writes about the news of Ravel’s second prize in the Prix de Rome competition: “Many congratulations my dear Ravel. I was very afraid for the Fauré class and for you, and I must admit that I am pleasantly surprised as far as you are concerned — not that you obtained the second prize, which I am sure was well due to you, but that the jury had the intelligence to give it to you. And it’s great for you that they judged you favorably right away. At least, they will receive you with pleasure next year and you won’t have, like me, four years of effort to erase a bad first impression … There’s no reason to back down and you have no less of a first-prize chance than [Gabriel] Dupont and [Aymé] Kunc. Could we see your cantata if by chance you have some copies? Fauré must be delighted …

Another thousand compliments my dear Ravel. And in the hope of seeing you here in the very near future, I kiss your forehead affectionately and will take a joint (you will learn the meaning of this bizarre expression later) to your final success …