The Rite of Spring (Le Sacre du Printemps?)
First performed in Paris in 1913, Igor Stravinsky's ballet The Rite of Spring, is considered one of the most influential works of music written in the twentieth century. The ballet is meant to depict ancient Pagan rituals glorifying the arrival of spring and reaching its climax with the ritual selection of a young maiden who dances herself to death as a sacrifice to the gods of spring. At the ballet's premiere, the choreography of dancer Vaslav Nijinsky caused a riot as the audience objected to how Nijinsky choreographed this primitive scene. Stravinsky gave two very different accounts of the inspiration for the piece. He first said that the nature of the music he had written dictated the pagan setting, but later said that it was the image of the pagan ritual that inspired the music. Audiences do not seem to care which came first. Instead, they remain fascinated by the same dynamic intensity, rhythmic drive, and angular melodies that helped cause the riot at the piece's premiere.
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