Stravinsky and Neoclassicism

From Impressionist works to Tone Poems and Serial pieces, there are a lot of nitpicky words used to describe classical music, and today we dive into the nitpicky-est one, Neoclassicism. As with many 20th century musical innovations, we have Igor Stravinsky to thank for this multi-syllabic monstrosity.

After attaining celebrity status with the premieres of The Firebird, Petrushka, and The Rite of Spring, Stravinsky was once more commissioned by Sergei Diaghilev to write a ballet, this time based on existing music by baroque Italian composers. What started as an insulting chore to the composer became a career-shifting journey of blending the old with the new. About the process, Stravinsky wrote, “Pulcinella was my discovery of the past, the epiphany through which the whole of my late work became possible. It was a backward look, of course – the first of many love affairs in that direction – but it was a look in the mirror, too.” Thus, Neoclassical music was born.

Through Stravinsky’s eyes, the very act of looking backwards became radical. Pulcinella (1920) was followed by the Octet for Winds (1923) and his Piano Concerto (1924), and with each new work Stravinsky demonstrated increasing fondness for older styles of music alongside an irrepressible tendency towards parody and abstraction. The use of familiar styles to deliver abstract music was not a welcome change for listeners; at the premiere of the Octet for Winds, Sergei Prokofiev remarked that the work sounded “like Bach on all the wrong notes.” Is the music beautiful or is it buffoonery? Take a listen for yourself, and if you would like to experience a direct precursor to Neoclassicism live, I recommend checking out the performance of Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 1 (1926) by the Colorado College Summer Music Festival Orchestra on June 27th at 7:00 p.m., at the Celeste Theatre.