Rituals: The Rite of Spring with Salonen

Presented as part of the LA Phil Rituals festival, curated by Creative Director Esa-Pekka Salonen, this program explores one of music’s most iconic ritualistic expressions—The Rite of Spring. In his book Conversations, Stravinsky wrote, “I had dreamed of a scene of pagan ritual in which a chosen sacrificial virgin danced herself to death.” Orchestrating his dream with ferocious harmonies and pounding rhythms, Stravinsky helped usher in the Modern era of music. Also on the program is Prokofiev’s First Violin Concerto performed by three-time Grammy winner Hilary Hahn. Among the pieces she best known for, Bachtrack says this concerto is “an extremely compelling vehicle for her astounding technical and musical talents…Hahn’s lush tone and affectionate shaping of the opening theme of the last movement convinced one that this angular theme was a melody of the highest beauty imaginable.”