History Music / IgorStravinsky

''Theatre/TheRiteOfSpring'' was a ballet portraying a savage tribal ritual in which a virgin is sacrificed to bring about spring; it premiered in 1913. It uses dissonance, primitive melodies, polyrhythm, and polytonality, to express this. It was met with extreme hostility on its opening night (the audience rioted, leaving few people in the theater and Stravinsky in tears.) The piece is now critically acclaimed as a masterpiece, and is one of the most famous works of classical music of the modern era, and of all time. Creator/WaltDisney even used it in the original ''WesternAnimation/{{Fantasia}}'', which cemented its reputation and even [[OvershadowedByControversy overshadowed it]]. (Stravinsky is the only composer of a piece used in the ''WesternAnimation/{{Fantasia}}'' films that actually was alive to see it used on the movie in theaters. Unfortunately, [[DisownedAdaptation he hated it]].)

* BiggerIsBetter: Like many tropes, played straight early in his career and subverted later. His three great ballets use enormous orchestras, but he began to show more interest in writing for smaller or more unusual bands. ''Les Noces'' (The Wedding), his next big ballet after ''The Rite of Spring'', ended up using a pit with nothing but percussion instruments (including four pianos).

[[caption-width-right:193:"I haven't understood a bar of music in my life, but I have felt it."'']]

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Fantasia}}'': The ''Theatre/TheRiteOfSpring'' segment is a centrepiece in the first film. Igor Stravinsky was brought in to oversee the production, but didn't like how his music was re-edited to match the "story" Disney thought up for it and the small fee he received. He hated what Disney did to his music (mostly due to omitting a crucial ending to the segment out of controversy fears, something that nearly got Creator/WaltDisney sued by him) and hated animation for the rest of his life. ''WesternAnimation/Fantasia2000'' closes with another edited version of ''Theatre/TheFirebird''.

* The 2009 French film ''Coco Chanel et Igor Stravinsky'' is a {{Biopic}} about the rumored affair between him and fashion designer Creator/CocoChanel. The opening scene detailed the premiere of ''Theatre/TheRiteOfSpring'' which resulted in a riot, but Coco Chanel (who was attending) was enthralled by it.

* BiggerIsBetter: Like many tropes, played straight early in his career and then subverted.

* FollowTheLeader: In the 1950s, finding that the atonal

** "In-A-Gadda-Stravinsky" on ''Music/{{Guitar}}'' combines ''Music/InAGaddaDaVida'' by Music/IronButterfly with the intro of ''Theatre/TheRiteOfSpring''.

** The last movement of the cantata ''[[Music/ASermonANarrativeAndAPrayer A Sermon, a Narrative and a Prayer]]'' is dedicated to the memory of [[UsefulNotes/JamesMcLane Reverend James McLane]].

* The 2009 French film ''Coco Chanel et Igor Stravinsky'' is a {{Biopic}} about the rumored affair between him and fashion designer Creator/CocoChanel.