What does rite of spring mean?



What is the meaning of rite of spring?

Its French and Russian (Vesna svyashchennaya) titles translate literally as The Coronation Of Spring. Its English title, The Rite Of Spring, lends a suitably chilling dimension, for the scenario is a pagan ritual in which a sacrificial virgin dances herself to death.

What is the message of rite of spring?

In his handwritten version of the story, Stravinsky described The Rite as “a musical choreographic work. It represents pagan Russia and is unified by a single idea: the mystery and the great surge of the creative power of spring….”

Why is The Rite of Spring so important?





The Rite of Spring sparked a revolution which may be considered truly political in nature; a sociological confrontation which elicited spontaneous combustion in the music world and from which point, nothing would ever be the same.

What are the 5 characteristics of The Rite of Spring?

Instrumentation: 5 flutes (2 doubling on piccolo), 5 oboes (2 doubling on English horn), 5 clarinets, 5 bassoons; 8 horns, 5trumpets, 3 trombones, 2 tubas; strings; percussion.

Who created The Rite of Spring?

Igor Stravinsky

Igor Stravinsky wrote The Rite of Spring in 1913. It redefined 20th-century music, much as Beethoven’s Eroica had transformed music a century before. With it, Stravinsky took himself far into the realm of the unconscious. The music seemed designed with no apparent order but driven by pure gut feeling.



Why is The Rite of Spring controversial?



The ballet was first performed by Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes at the Theatre du Champs-Élysées in Paris on 29 May 1913 and famously caused a riot. Many people in the audience were so outraged by Stravinsky’s avant-garde score, and Nijinsky’s choreography, that they thought it seemed like the work of a madman.

Is Rite of Spring pagan?

Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring” depicts pagan rituals that culminate in the sacrifice of a young woman, whose death is intended to appease or pacify the gods of spring.