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First Nights: Igor Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring: Modernism, Ballet, and Riots | HarvardX on edX

3,563 views · Published 12 October 2016 · 0:28 · Indexed 4 November 2026

Channel: edX · 2016 · Education

Learn the fascinating history of Igor Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring, one of the most challenging and rewarding ballets ever written.

Take this course free on edX: https://www.edx.org/learn/humanities/harvard-university-stravinskys-rite-of-spring-modernism-ballet-and-ri?utm_source=organic_social&utm_medium=youtube&utm_campaign=aboutvideo

ABOUT THIS COURSE
Igor Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring premiered in Paris in 1913, sparking a riot and screaming so loud that the dancers could not hear the orchestra, and the choreographer had to shout numbers from backstage to keep the dancers on beat.

The Rite of Spring continues to challenge listeners. According to Stravinsky, The Rite of Spring was intended to portray “the surge of spring, the magnificent upsurge of nature reborn.” As you will see, Stravinsky’s description is almost frighteningly apt!

Harvard’s Thomas Forrest Kelly (Morton B. Knafel Professor of Music) guides learners through The Rite of Spring, highlighting not only the contributions of Stravinsky, the composer, but also those of his collaborators. Professor Kelly takes learners through the ballet’s development, rehearsals, and finally, premiere performance, and he explores just how and why The Rite of Spring challenged (and to a certain extent, continues to challenge) its listeners.

You will learn about the ballet’s innovative choreography, the basics of 20th-century orchestral form and technique, and the circumstances of this ballet’s first performance and subsequent history. Learners in this course need not have any prior musical experience.

WHAT YOU'LL LEARN
- Identify and describe forms and techniques used in 20th-century orchestral music
- Understand approaches to ballet choreography in the 20th century
- Appreciate cultural context and performance circumstances of Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring

First Nights: Igor Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring: Modernism, Ballet, and Riots | HarvardX on edX

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