Placing music within a historical context illuminates some of the variables that characterize a piece like "Rite of Spring." Understanding the cultural, political, and military events taking place during the composer's lifetime is essential to understanding the music. Although analyzing classical pieces can prove difficult because of shifting time signatures, counterpoint, and layering of sounds, I am now much more able to distinguish between different styles and composers. The course content has awoken my mind and my ears to rhythms and melodies and I look forward to exploring Western classical music more in-depth. For example, pieces like "Rite of Spring" have made their way into movies and therefore continue...

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Thomas, M.T. (2006). "Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring." San Francisco Symphony. Retrieved Dec 19, 2008 at http://www.keepingscore.org/flash/stravinsky/index.html