I think that it was in the month of April, 1914, that both the 'Sacre' and 'Petroushka' were played for the first time at a concert in Paris, Monteux being the conductor. It was a brilliant renaissance of the 'Sacre' after the Théatre des Champs-Elysées scandal. The hall was crowded. The audience, with no scenery to distract them, listened with concentrated attention and applauded with an enthusiasm I had been far from expecting and which greatly moved me. Certain critics who had censured the 'Sacre' the year before now openly admitted their mistake. This conquest of the public naturally gave me intense and lasting satisfaction. << less