In Rite of Spring, we see a totally different kind of audience grounding. As we have consistently discussed from the beginning of class, structure is extremely important in terms of grounding the audience and providing a framework for music to be played.

In Stravinsky, we do see repetition of themes, such as the solo theme at the beginning and the dance theme when the women dances herself to death. However, in terms of timbre and meter, Stravinsky refuses to let the audience feel comfortably grounded. It is extremely difficult to be able to identify a downbeat, which changes just as you begin to feel it. The meter inconsistency is not only through such accent, but through consistently inconsistent accents. You never really know which note is getting accented as you listen until it’s actually played.

Furthermore, the timbre is consistently shifted. Just as we get comfortable listening to a theme, the key in which it is played or the instruments playing it immediately change. Overall, Stravinsky reverts to the most basic form of pattern creation in the themes he presents. However, he pushes the boundary in the meter and sound to not necessarily keep the listener feeling comfortable, for the piece for some reason sounds very logical, but rather unknowing. When I listen, I can appreciate the music, but I could rarely anticipate what was to come.