Music History Review
Topic: Stravinksy’s Rite of Spring, from the perspective of A reporter 1913
Stravinsky’s Satanic Spring
R. Green writing for Variety, USA, May 31 1913
If you thought the Titanic was the worst thing to happen in the last two years, think
again! For some unfathomable reason the Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes Company
decided to commit the most soul-wrenching tragedy to exist in all of ballet history. On
May 29th at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Paris, the French public were leaning
forward in their seats ready to see what masterpiece Stravinsky had created. Instead, they
got The Rite of Spring, or as I would call it, The Disaster of Spring. In the next 50 years
we will never see something as violent and chaotic as this.
The score opened with the most bizarre sound. As I sat in the Théâtre I knew that this
was going to be an atrocity of a performance. Haunting and depressing, the bassoon
played octaves higher than should be acceptable for a ballet, which caused it to sound like
a goose attempting opera. Disgraceful! Stravinsky must have believed there was a
percussion shortage, he seemed to cram every possible instrument into this ballet score.
Five timpani, bass drums, tambourines, cymbals. It sounded less like music and more like
a battle between every percussion instrument in the orchestra. The instruments were used
in violent ways; the music lacked consonance, both within the melody and the harmonies;
and the overbearing dissonance left no room for any tonality. The tonality was further
Topic: Stravinksy’s Rite of Spring, from the perspective of A reporter 1913
Stravinsky’s Satanic Spring
R. Green writing for Variety, USA, May 31 1913
If you thought the Titanic was the worst thing to happen in the last two years, think
again! For some unfathomable reason the Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes Company
decided to commit the most soul-wrenching tragedy to exist in all of ballet history. On
May 29th at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées, Paris, the French public were leaning
forward in their seats ready to see what masterpiece Stravinsky had created. Instead, they
got The Rite of Spring, or as I would call it, The Disaster of Spring. In the next 50 years
we will never see something as violent and chaotic as this.
The score opened with the most bizarre sound. As I sat in the Théâtre I knew that this
was going to be an atrocity of a performance. Haunting and depressing, the bassoon
played octaves higher than should be acceptable for a ballet, which caused it to sound like
a goose attempting opera. Disgraceful! Stravinsky must have believed there was a
percussion shortage, he seemed to cram every possible instrument into this ballet score.
Five timpani, bass drums, tambourines, cymbals. It sounded less like music and more like
a battle between every percussion instrument in the orchestra. The instruments were used
in violent ways; the music lacked consonance, both within the melody and the harmonies;
and the overbearing dissonance left no room for any tonality. The tonality was further
