Stravinsky, The Rite of Spring, Rehearsal Numbers 32-36
Rehearsal number 32
Cellos and contrabass pull the entire rhythm off base. These two instruments re-distribute the pulse and pull the rug out from underneath the listener
It's almost as if he wanted to see how far he could take that one simple motif that he established almost in the beginning of the peace: A4– C5 – B4 – C5 (trumpet in C)
The same motif is reflected in the French horn, piccolo trumpet, later on in the tuba, and in so many other places. It's almost as if he really wants to get the full measure of that ostinato, and base much of the piece on it
Rehearsal number 33
It's almost as if he was thinking, "I gotta take this to the next level."
Look at the textural figures, those long chromatic, polyrhythmic lines: flutes I & II, alto flute, oboe I, clarinet piccolo, clarinet (3x), and bass clarinet
i've seen this countless times… Where a composer wants more, just add so many instruments that it becomes this beautiful wall of sound and mass. In the hands of a lesser orchestra than the London Symphony, the recording that I'm listening to, this section wouldn't sound even remotely cool.
I remember a story my old teacher told me about The Rite of Spring recording that Stravinsky conducted. He said it was terrible because Stravinsky wanted to hear every single little note. Apparently, he took the entire piece so much slower so he could do just that, and as a result, the momentum and pulse were just absent. Makes me think that I should 100% hire David Shipps to conduct my work in the studio so that I don’t get bogged down in the details. Besides, I have no trouble giving good friends some extra dough for being in front of an orchestra and I get to hang out and drink coffee in the control room.
Rehearsal number 34
Woodwinds are so loud that the strings take a background roll
The piccolo soar over the top. No wonder they used for war
Low strings echo and double the timpani for more power. Otherwise, no percussion is in this section!
Strings seem to add this immense pulse and flow at the same time. This blows my fucking mind. What on earth was he thinking when he created this? Ridiculous.