In the first article the author believes that on the night of the premiere of “the rite of spring” a riot took place in the theatre. Because of the unnatural choreography and music, the audience of the theater showed clear hate shouting and throwing objects onto the stage. Some reports say that the police were called, and that people were kicked out of the theater. In the second article the author argues about what happened at the premiere. Many of the first-hand accounts came from people sitting on the balcony who might have been overwhelmed by the music projected to them. The dancers’ stomping movements were inspired by dances in Siberia, these exotic dancers were translated into humor of the European dance halls which caused people to laugh. There were no accounts of physical violence only verbal assault against the people laughing. Because of the dynamics between upper and middle class and various cultural backgrounds, things got a little heated. The play had five encores at the end of the night. Many of the rumors had started because of miscommunication. I believe if I was there the night of the premiere, I’d be a little confused but would have enjoyed the uniqueness of the music and choreography. 

1. Read “100 years ago today, ‘The Rite of Spring’ incited a riot in a Paris theater”; in your own words, summarize what the author believes happened during the ballet’s premiere.

The author of this article believes…

Shortly after the ballet’s opening notes, a meandering and unsettlingly high-pitched bassoon solo that many in the crowd found amusing and mocking, started the commotion. The orchestra’s hammering percussion and jarring rhythms intensified in tandem with the mounting tensions within the freshly opened Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, and the jeers grew louder as the music moved into a more cacophonous territory.

By the time the dancers, directed by renowned Ballets Russes director Vaslav Nijinsky, ascended the stage, the atmosphere had almost reached a boiling point. The dancers, who were decked up in absurd costumes, made monstrous and violent movements instead of graceful ones, that echoed the weird story that was being told throughout the ballet. The audience’s boos got so loud that the dancers couldn’t hear the music, requiring Nijinsky to yell instructions from backstage.

The orchestra quickly found itself under attack as irate Parisians threw vegetables and other objects toward the stage as a fight broke out between two sections of the audience. Although 40 individuals were reportedly expelled from the theater, it’s unclear whether the police were actually called to the scene. Amazingly, the show went on till the end, even though the consequences were severe and quick.

2. Read “Did Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring incite a riot at its premiere?”; in your own words, summarize what the author argues actually happened at the premiere and describe at least two pieces of evidence (like historical material) the author uses to support their argument.

The author of this article believes…

A riot never occurred on the night that “The Rite of Spring” premiered. He believes that the term “riot” was used for promotional business, especially in the United States, where the thrill of violence was exciting to Americans. After entering the States, The term “riot” and “The Rite of Spring” went hand and hand. 

Levitz points out that the balcony is where the majority of the first-person recollections of the premiere were recorded. Due to certain architectural features, the balcony of the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées was highly resonant; sounds from the orchestra, which was unusually strong, bounced off concrete walls. The setting of the balcony probably amplified the effect and made the sound overwhelming. We don’t know whether other groups in the audience felt the same confusion because this is the only audience perspective that has been recorded in history. Only a one-group perspective, that to far from where the incident occurred can not be the sole proof that a riot occurred. 

The author also pointed out that the choreography that the dancers were doing, was seen as humorous at the time, justifying the reason why the aristocrats were viewing the performance as hilarious. The music lovers, musicians, and critics were horrified by the aristocrats’ rude actions, so they reacted by complaining and abusing them. History lists a number of specific insults, but Levitz hypothesizes that only those seated near to the people who yelled them were likely to have heard them at all, contrary to how most representations of the clash portray them.

Early stories of that evening do not record any actual physical altercations, much less a riot. Levitz cites a number of sources that described the mood in the immediate wake of the premiere as hostile and fervent but not physically violent—similar to that of a contentious parliamentary discussion or a criminal court trial.

Evidence

“Furthermore, the myth conveniently neglects to mention that, at the end of The Rite, the dancers took five curtain calls, and the evening’s entertainment continued with another ballet, Carl Maria von Weber’s Le Spectre de la rose, also choreographed by Nijinsky. That wouldn’t seem possible if the altercation was as destructive as it’s been construed”, (Gleason / What (actually) happened at the premiere of The Rite?). 

“Levitz points out that the audience had a limited frame of reference for such displays; they most often saw them in demonstrations at colonial expositions that presented the “exotic” traditions of exploited people for the amusement of their European colonizers. Some dance moves had found their way into the cabaret and music hall, where they were intended as humor—as the title of Levitz’s essay indicates, these practices were very racist. Thus some in the audience—notably the aristocrats—responded in the way they thought they were supposed to: by laughing”, (Gleason / What (actually) happened at the premiere of The Rite?). 

Conclusion: Everything was a big misunderstanding!

3. How did you respond to this ballet the first time you watched/listened to it? If you were in the audience in 1913, how do you think you would have reacted to the music and dance?

Watching this performance, I found it very unusual. My first initial thought was that this was distributing. I did not know what was going on in this ballet or what story was being told. If I was in the audience in 1913, based on my first initial thoughts of seeing this ballet, I would have reacted with an expression of disturbance, and I would have probably left the theatre hall. I found it very hard to watch as I was confused the whole time and the music and visuals were not that pleasing.

The author of “100 years ago today, ‘The Rite of Spring’ incited a riot in a Paris theater”, first starts off with a quick explanation of the piece “The Rite of Spring by Igor Stravinsky. The author states how the piece today is considered a work of modernism with its frenetic, jagged orchestral ballet that boldly rejected the ordered harmonies and comfort of traditional composition. He then adds how the piece had left a mark ​​on jazz, minimalism, and other contemporary movements. The debut of “The Rite of Spring” in the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées caused a great commotion. The show started with a meandering and eerily high-pitched bassoon solo, followed by a group of dancers dressed in whimsical costumes, the dancers performed bizarre and violent moves. This irritated a large portion of the audience causing the audience to engage in a scuffle and fight with one another. With this performance, Stravinsky was subjected to harsh criticism due to his introduction of a new form of art that used harsh dissonance, complex rhythms, and repetitive melodies. The author of “Did Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring incite a riot at its premiere?”, argues that the riot had never happened and it was all just misunderstanding and exaggeration of the events. He shares how the accounts of the riot came from the balcony, but The balcony of the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées was exceptionally resonant allowing sound from the orchestra to bounce off concrete walls. He shares how it is likely for the walls to have amplified the sounds from the orchestra creating a misconception of chaos on the lower level. He then goes on to share how the fight that occurred was not about the art form but more about the aristocrats and politics. The author states, “aftermath of the premiere that compared the atmosphere to that of a contentious debate in Parliament or a criminal court trial—confrontational and impassioned, but not physically violent.” With the evidence, he manages to disprove accounts of violence and brutality that were claimed to occur. The first time I watched the ballet I found it interesting due to the unique dancing. Unlike what I normally know about ballet the one performed in this video was unique. The dance moves did not seem very refined but instead rough around the edges. The dance sequence incorporated a lot of jumping up and down, left to right, and collapses. If I was an audience in 1913 I would have been shocked by this new display of movements that I was not yet used to or familiar with.

In the first article, “100 years ago today, ‘The Rite of Spring’ incited a riot in a Paris theater,” the author discusses what went down and what he believes happened in this ballet’s premiere. The author says that to this day, there is still not a clear answer as to what took place during that performance and he uses the word “hazy” to describe people’s memory of what happened. Everyone can agree that this ballet ended in “mayhem and chaos.” People in the audience ended up throwing things like vegetables at the stage which is what insinuated the chaos. Even with this going on, the performers kept going and the ballet itself was violent too. In the next article, the author explains what actually happened at this event. The author starts by saying that due to the ballet’s harsh instrumental sounds and ugly costumes, the audience having such a reaction is almost validated. However, he then shifts to saying that the riot actually never happened. The balcony sections would have experienced Stravinsky’s harsh music even worse due to the sound bouncing off of concrete walls. The author then goes onto saying, “Since this is the only audience perspective that has been preserved in history, we have no idea whether other sections of the audience experienced the same disorientation.” It was a disrespectful and even racist performance as well. He also states, “The ballet ignited explosive tempers, but the blasts were not all directed at the stage.” There is no mention of any physical fights that took place, only verbal, so therefore this “riot” did not happen. It is a myth. When I first watched this ballet, I thought that it would be something very boring and it is not something I would enjoy watching a whole performance of. If I was actually in the audience in 1913 watching this, I honestly probably would have not stayed for the entire show.

The two songs that I’ve chosen for this blog are, Want You Back by 5 Seconds of Summer and Pick Up the Phone by Travis Scott. 5 Seconds of Summer is an Australian pop rock band that consists of 4 members. Travis Scott, also known as Jacques is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. The song Want You Back displays the artists yearning for their lost love. Throughout the song the lyrics show the artist’s regrets, “where I went wrong” and “I will never get over you.” Pick up the Phone on the other hand talks about the frustration the artists goes through when their girlfriend ignores their phone calling. The lyrics throughout the song displays the artist’s clear frustration, “blowin a bag on you, do all that for no reason.”  Want You Back starts out with a rather slow tempo that gradually becomes faster starting from 0:31-0:42. Pick up the Phone on the other hand stays at a similar tempo throughout the entire song. Want You Back also features a much softer timbre than Pick up the Phone does seeing that both songs display different emotions. Pick up the Phone displays a much sharper timbre doing a good job of showing the artist’s bitterness. The performance of Want you Back takes place in a black stage with blue soft white lights. It creates a somewhat sad but romantic setting which reflects on the song. The performance for Pick up the phone on the other hand takes place on a red stage with flickering lights on the back and props that light on fire. This setting sets a very aggressive tone which also reflects on the song.

The song “The Man Who Sold The World” is a song originally written by David Bowie and was released in November 1970 in the United Kingdom and April 1971 in the United States. He had written the song when he was 19 years old. It was released as the title track of Bowie’s third studio Album with the same name of the track. Since its release, many bands and artists have made a cover of the song and it is sometimes performed at live concerts. According to secondhandsongs.com, this song in particular has over 121 versions that have been made within the years between 1970 and 2022. Some of the artists that made their own take on the song include but are not limited to: Midgre Ure in 1982, Simple Minds in 2001, Marcus Van Heller in 2007, and Nirvana in 1994.

From the many versions and performances that have been made of this song, there is one performance that I enjoy the most. Nirvana had a live presentation on Mtv called “MTV Unplugged” which took place in New York City in 1994. The show lasted for 45 minutes and Nirvana performed a lot of their hit songs such as “About a girl”, and “Come As You Are”. However, they also performed “The Man Who Sold The World” as part of their presentation. Kurt Cobain sang this song a couple times before this at other live shows. But this one was well known because it repeated numerous times on the MTV channel following Cobain’s Death.

The song itself is very short, containing the first verse which is followed by the chorus, second verse and then the chorus is repeated at the end. The lyrics of the song seem to be very dark, talking about death and uncertainty. Even so, the song is known for being soft and mellow. A similarity between performances of Nirvana and David is that they keep the lyrics the same. The lyrics don’t change in Nirvana’s rendition, which makes sense because it is only a cover of the song. Another similarity is you can hear both the drums and acoustic guitar. In the David Bowie performance, you can see people in the back playing these instruments while Bowie sings. Similarly in the show by Nirvana, you can see Kurt Cobain playing the guitar while delivering these beautiful vocals. There are also some differences between the two versions. In David Bowie’s performance, the tempo is quicker and fast paced while the one by Nirvana is slower and can almost be seen as a ballad. Although Nirvana is known for there more intense rock songs, this one was always performed with soft vocals and nice sounding guitar strokes. The drastic difference between Nirvana’s usual songs could be the reason this performance is more known than others.

“Hound Dog was written by 2 Jewish composers, Leiber and Stoller. Big Mama Thorton was an American R&B singer and songwriter. In 1952 she was the first to record Leiber and Stoller’s “Hound Dog”, which became her biggest hit. Elvis Presley is a more well-known name and therefore when he covered “Hound Dog” in 1956, it became a worldwide hit. Elvis Presley was an American singer and was even said to be the “King of Rock and Roll”. “Hound Dog” originally was not “rock & roll”, it was “blues”. It’s originally meant to show female rage at a man who played her. 

However, Elvis’ cover diluted the meaning of the song. Big Mama Thorton was singing to a man, while Elvis was singing to a dog. He didn’t use the original lyrics, he chose to use the “Freddie and The Bell Boys” version of the lyrics.

In Big Mama Thorton’s version, she sang it with a screaming blues intensity. She sings it slower like in 0:23-0:27 when she sings “You told me you was high class”. 

Elvis however sang it at a faster tempo and added different instruments like the drums. Like in 0:16-0:20 you hear the powerful drums and Elvis saying “Well they said you were high class” really fast. With Elvis’ version, you can dance more and faster to it. It doesn’t have the anger that the original Big Mama’s version has. They are similar because they have similar lyrics and they both use guitar in their versions. They are different because the tempo is different, Elvis’ version has more instruments, and the meanings of the versions are different.

on today blog, I will be choosing Ye by burnt boy, and then later on performed by Koffee on 1xbet. burns boy is a Nigerian artist known very we’ll on the international soil all around the globe. he has been releasing hit, but his popularity grew more the he wan a grammy. on the other hand, Koffee is a Jamaica artist who is also well known of the international level of music. she a young girl and a fan of burnt boy and his importation of different dialect of English into his music.

the song “ye” by burns boy can be classify as a social song that talks about the negative part of people around the world specifically in Nigeria have to face. the inspiration of this song was about internet criticism, political suffering, bad government, high rate poverty in Nigeria which is the place burns boy was born as he was born into not too much successful family himself.

altho the lyrics for both performance are exactly the same, but still somethings change in the audio. burna boy uses a baritone to create his original ye piece, while Koffee uses mezzo-soprano in her performance. there are also use of jazz set in koffee version of ye while burna boy only make use of electronic instruments. the setting of Koffee being a live performance change the mood of the song because the instrument create a rocky mood where people just want to show their energy. Overall, the Tiempo of the live performance is faster than the original “ye” song by Burns Boy

Gnarls Barkley is an American soul duo of CeeLo Green and Danger Mouse. They debuted with their studio album “St. Elsewhere” in 2006 that contained the single that I’m using, “Crazy.” Melanie Martinez performed this song on the Voice in 2012. She later released her debut EP “Dollhouse” in 2014. She is most well known for releasing music in the alternative pop genre.

The song “Crazy” is about being isolated from society and being aware of your own emotions. It follows the story of him losing his mind and reminiscing about that time. He encourages others to become aware and to take control of their lives instead of being influenced by others.

The tempo of the songs are different. The original is faster than Melanie’s cover. The instrumentation is also different. For example, I believe there is a violin in the original chorus while the cover features a guitar (0:35 in the original and 0:55 in the cover). The dynamics are pretty similar as in their voice gets louder during the chorus. Their voices have different timbre. CeeLo Green’s voice is raspy throughout the song while Melanie Martinez’s voice is smoother. They are both homophonies. Their voice is the melodic line that has chords accompanying them. They have the same lyrics.

CeeLo Green’s version is very funky and it makes you want to dance and sing along because it has a fast tempo and the instruments that are being used. His voice during the chorus brings out a frantic emotion when he is asking “Does that make me crazy?”. Melanie Martinez’s version, on the other hand, makes the story stand out as it is paced more slowly. The build up is greater because it starts off with little instrumentation and picks up around the second verse. It also sounds like there is a music box playing in her version which makes it feel a bit unsettling.