Stravinsky- The Rite of Spring- Introduction, The Augurs of Spring and Ritual of Abduction

A-Level music set work

When was the piece first performed?

1913

Describe the structure

Narrative form

Introduction

Augures of Spring- from figure 13

Ritual of abduction- from figure 38

Describe the tonality

Stravinsky had not rejected tonality entirely at this point of his career

Yet there is no real sense of key

Constant use of harsh dissonance

Augurs- Bitonal

Mixolydian mode in the faggoto intro

Ritual- Atonal

Describe the instrumentation

Lots of woodwind instruments

In Groups of 5- Complex

Use of auxiliary instruments

Describe the harmony

There is a harsh dissonance throughout

Sense of bitonality

Describe the texture

Mainly polyphonic

But is monophonic at the start of augurs

Describe the rhythm and metre

Rhythm was very important to Stravinsky

Rhythms are very complex

Use of:

-Tuplets

-Ostinati

-Irregular rhythms

Irregular groupings

Cross-accents

Describe the melody of the piece

Little tiny melodies throughout the movements

These melodies represent different things happening in the piece, such as birds, and running water

Taken from old folk music

What did the piece take influence from?

Lithuanian folk music

What is the style of the piece?

Dark ancient tribal ballet

-In narrative form

-Frantic and unpredictable story

What did the piece tell the story of?

A fortune teller and a tribe who sacrifice a girl to their gods every year

This sacrifice means the girl having to dance herself to death

What are some wider listening pieces, and how do they link to the piece?

-Psycho shower scene ‘The bathroom, the murder’ - 1960 Bernard Hermann

-Planet of the apes ‘The hunt’ - 1968 Jerry Goldsmith

Both of these pieces use a harsh dissonance similar to that in The Rite of Spring

-The miraculous mandarin - 1918 Bela Bartok

This piece is also a ballet which conveys a story through music to accompany the ballet

-Symphonie fantastique - 1830 Hector Berlioz

This piece also tells a story through its music