Amar Toor believes that the “Rite of Spring” performance was the cause of the riot. From a confused point of view, he tries to break the situation down to see if it was a publicity stunt, a mistake, or an honest attempt to please the viewers with something completely different. As well as being described as “mayhem and chaos,” a fight broke out between two audience factions which eventually turned into vegetables being thrown on the stage. Though it was already confusing determining what exactly was going on in this performance, one thing for sure is that it was NOT a success.  

According to Gleason, the Riot of the “Rite of Spring” never happened. It was actually a myth that was just exaggerated to its fullest potential. The performance was still “shocking to the audience” with its excessively loud music and unpremeditated acoustics where the balcony was, but there wasn’t anybody throwing anything on stage, let alone a fight breaking out. People might’ve felt upset or uneasy but it never got to the point where people were being “physically violent.”  One reason to prove that it never happened was that at the end of the performance, the dancers took five curtain calls and then in the evening there was another ballet. The next performance wouldn’t have been possible if there was a brawl between the factions. 

With all being said, the first time that I listened to it I honestly didn’t mind it. Did I enjoy it? I don’t know. Did I hate it? No. I was captivated by it because of its abnormality especially since it was the polar opposite of what was expected. I am used to these performances being easy going and maybe a little bit of loud every once in a while, but the performance was almost deafening (with respect to it being viewed by a laptop as well.) It was new though and at least was an attempt at something beyond the ordinary which was very much appreciable. If I was a person in the audience that night, I probably would’ve left because I wouldn’t be able to lower the music manually like how I am able to now. But, if the music was lower just a tad bit, I would consider staying.  

The virtual concert I watched was “Yet to Come in Busan” performed by the South Korean boy band group, BTS. The genre of music they performed was kpop, and the concert took place at Asiad Stadium in Busan, South Korea. I chose to watch this concert because BTS is one of my favorite kpop groups, and I have always wanted to attend a BTS concert. During the concert, there was a lot of engagement between the performers and the audience. There would be moments during the concert where BTS members are just speaking to the fanbase, ARMY, and when members are singing songs, they will purposely not sing a line, because ARMY would sing along with them. BTS members were all very chill, and fans will also sing along and cheer. Overall, everyone at the concert was just enjoying themselves with no pressure. The dress style was also very casual, where everyone was able to express themselves through their own unique style. The concert matched my expectations, as I mostly vibed along with the performances while watching the recording.

In Unit 7, we mentioned “The Magic Flute,” which is a Singspiel, a German-language comic opera. When compared to this BTS concert, there are very noticeable differences, but also some similarities. The similarity is that both performances included singing, and the performers on stage would interact with one another. The differences are that the performers in the opera wore specific costumes for the character they played, while in the BTS concert, the members would wear casual styled clothing, and would also change their clothes to match the theme of the songs (ex: darker colors for more rough, edgy styles, and lighter colors for more cheerful, upbeat songs). Other differences are that there was no interaction or talking with the audience in the opera, while in the BTS concert, there was a lot interaction with the audience. The performers in the opera also had to follow a script, while BTS members were free to perform their songs in any way they wanted.

I attended a BTS concert in May 2019. BTS is a K-POP group that performed music in a few different genres such as hip hop, pop, R&B, etc. The concert was held at Met Life Stadium. The performers changed outfits throughout the concert to fit the music set. They danced and interacted with the crowd energetically. Fans had “Army Bombs” which are light sticks created specifically for BTS. At one point of the concert close to the end, BTS told the fans to make a wave which they directed. They also took a selfie on stage with all the fans in the background. Throughout the concert, fans cheered loudly and sang along to the lyrics. They even yelled a fan chant at certain points in some songs. What surprised me the most was people loudly singing along to the music videos before the concert itself started. However, I expected fans to do the fan chants. This concert reminded me of the Khalid concert we looked at in class because of the way the fans interacted with the performer and the dancers.

I had never seen a concert before I started this project, and I chose Taylor Swift’s Concert after doing some searching. After watching the concert, I was hooked. The concert that I chose was “Taylor Swift ‘s reputation Stadium Tour 2018”. Taylor is an American singer-songwriter whose songs come in many different styles. Each of her songs is like a little story that creates a picture in my mind as I listen to it. The concert took place in the stadium. Reflecting themes of Reputation, the concept of the Reputation Stadium Tour incorporated Goth subculture, Broadway theatricality, and snake motifs.

I like the song in the concert called “Style/Love Story/You Belong With Me”.She mashup the three songs very smoothly and harmoniously. She switched songs before I knew it, and the smoothness was amazing. At the beginning of each of these songs, the audience will cheer and shout. In the middle, the band comes out and Taylor says to the audience: “Dallas, will you please make some noise for my incredible bank?” Then the audience cheers. Taylor’s words and songs lifted the mood of the audience. The audience danced and waved their hands, singing along with Taylor.

I was surprised by the design of this concert because the songs have so many styles, and the stage changes depending on the song style, after “Style/Love Story/You Belong With Me“ and a moment of darkness, Taylor changed clothes and brought the crowd to their peak again with “Look What You Made Me Do.”Completely different styles was shock me. It was a perfect concert.

Compared with the“First movement of Symphony No. 5, composed by Ludwig van Beethoven， Performed by the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, conducted by Daniel Barenboim” There is a big difference between them. Taylor’s concerts focus on the songs and interaction with the audience. Taylor will channel the audience’s mood and immerse them in the atmosphere of the concert. Beethoven’s concerts are focused on the performance of the music, the audience will not hum along with the music, very quiet to listen to the orchestra. The audience clapped only at the beginning and the end.

A concert I watched on youtube was called Rolling Loud. The performer I watched is named Asap Rocky. Asap Rocky is a Hip-Hop artist from Harlem, New York. When Rocky performs at night, he is usually the main event of the whole concert. The atmosphere of the whole concert has a big crowd. Usually Rocky likes to get the crowd hyped and everyone jumping to his music and sometimes create mosh pits. The stage has red colorful lights, a Dj, stage smoke, and a Crash dummy prop. Asap Rocky is dressed with fancy clothes while singing out loud to his fans. Everything met the expectations of what his concerts would be like. He likes when it when he gives off an aggressive energy to the crowd; almost like a Rockstar.

recently, I went to Davido concert. Davido is an African music artist who genre in afropop, pop, and acrobat. the concert venue was prospect park in Brooklyn, and it was an outdoor concert with a temporary stage develop just for the artist to perform and entertain the present audience. I decided to attend this concert because my high school year was coming to an end, and I need some fun outing before starting college. and also my brother paid for the tickets which gave me access to the concert.

the concert was very fun in many ways. first the concert include a system of call and response where Davido and his group shut down the mic and other instruments while the audience complete the lyrics to the song. on other ways too, Davido was showing different movements. he doesn’t just stand still and perform. he was jumping, switch between walking and jogging, and dancing. I was suprise that he also uses other instrument that wasn’t included in the songs he sang. also he brought up other artist too.

comparing Davido concert to jimi hendrix concert, the two concert was outdoor, but Jimi concert has more people and looks more coathic than Davido concert.

The one and only concert I have ever been to was a Queen tribute band called Almost Queen a few years back. They performed Queen songs with are in the genre of rock. The concert took place in an inside concert theater. The stage was placed in the middle with seating all around. The concert was a surprise for me and my cousins that were visiting from Tennessee near the end of the summer. The performers dressed just like the original Queen band did in the 80’s. The audience and I dressed casually, some in Queen shirts. The performers would sometimes interact with the audience, with both sides singing lyrics back and forth. The reformers would move around the stage especially the one who resembled Freddie who danced and moved around the stage the most. The audience would whoop and cheer and sing along through the entire performance, which is exactly what I expected because I did the exact same thing. This performance was very similar to the one we saw in class with Khalid said. Everyone was singing, dancing along, swaying to the music, and having their phones out to take pictures and video. Both performances showed life and excitement. 

Michael Jackson isn’t a name we all have not heard of already. Being the king of Pop to this day even after his death. There are people out there who aren’t Jackson fans, yet they know some of the lyrics to songs like Thriller, Bad, Smooth Criminal, etc (to put into perspective how much people know him). In 1993, Jackson was the one who performed at the super bowl, performing songs like Black and white, Smooth Criminal, Jam, and everyone’s favorite, Heal the world. I personally am a huge Jackson fan, so when I saw this concert for the first time, I got absolute goosebumps. Seeing his 2 beautiful entrances, then to him performing all the songs and lastly bringing a bunch of children on stage to csing Heal the World, a song about advocating for a better world for children. Within the concert, Jackson had a different outfit after his Jam performance. After Jam, Jacksons took off his golden like blazer to fit into the setting of the rest of the concert. Also, Jackson is widely known for his famous dance moves like the spins and moonwalks, so you best believe he added the most choreography in all his songs (Except heal the world because he wanted to get his message across more). Not only that, but Jackson also has a couple of backup dancers, who really didn’t do much because Jackson was stealing the shows. This concert was a big one to remember because at the end, a whole bunch of people in the audience started running up to the stage screaming at the top of their lungs. 

Compared to our concerts, we acknowledge that this is a public concert. One where the audience and performers are clearly separated from the performers. However, this is also a commercial concert where people are paying for super bowl tickets with Jackson getting a cut. After all, the biggest performer at the time was Jackson, combining that with the ever so known super bowl, giving us an overflowed stadium. Also this was a live performance by dancers and singers, meaning there was no orchestra to be heard or play to be performed. This was an authentic, very big concert.

A concert that I have attended previously is a concert by Atif Aslam. Atif Aslam is a well-known Pakistani singer. The genre of music that his songs mostly focus on is pop music. The concert took place in a performance center like hall. I attended this concert because I grew up listening to Atif Aslam’s music at weddings and during family parties and just in general as well. Most of Atif aslams songs are slow love songs, and so the audience was mostly seated and recording while swaying back and forth. There were some songs which hyphened up the crowd. This concert met my expectations because it was a calm and reasonable concert for the way he sings. To compare this concert with the one we saw of Coachella in class, this one was indoors, and the crowd was not as hyped up and dancing.

When I think about concerts I think about one of the concerts in the One Direction “Where We Are” movie. I remember when I watched this I wished I could’ve gone to this concert. One Direction was a worldwide famous pop boyband. In this film, they performed at the San Siro stadium in Milan, Italy. The performers dressed casually, not in your typically matching boyband outfits, and the audience dressed casually as well. Throughout the concert, the members of the band would take some time to interact and talk to the crowd as much as they could. Due to the size of the stadium, they couldn’t interact with everyone but in the film, you can see them try to talk to people farther away than just the first few front rows. As a One Direction fan, this didn’t really surprise me because I know this is common for them to do, and this definitely matched my expectations. This concert compared to The Rite of Spring by Igor Stravinsky is completely different. Stravinsky’s concert had way fewer people, but most importantly his concert had people who went in with expectations that weren’t fulfilled by the end of the night. Something that One Direction didn’t do, the fans had an expectation and they gave it to them always.