Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring: Modernism, Ballet, and Riots
Experience music of the 20th century
Join Harvard University faculty in this course to discover the history of Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring, one of the most challenging ballets ever written.
3-5 hours a week
What You'll Learn
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.
The course will be delivered via edX and connect learners around the world. In this course participants will:
- 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
Your Instructor
Thomas is the Morton B. Knafel Professor of Music at Harvard University. He received his B.A. from UNC-Chapel Hill, and his Ph.D. from Harvard. He is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, an honorary citizen of the city of Benvento, and a Chevalier de l’Ordre des Artes et Lettres of the French Republic.
Ways to take this course
When you enroll in this course, you will have the option of pursuing a Verified Certificate or Auditing the Course.
A Verified Certificate costs $149 and provides unlimited access to full course materials, activities, tests, and forums. At the end of the course, learners who earn a passing grade can receive a certificate.
Alternatively, learners can Audit the course for free and have access to select course material, activities, tests, and forums. Please note that this track does not offer a certificate for learners who earn a passing grade.