If we had a time machine, it certainly would be fascinating to witness some of the key moments of the History of Music, both intimate and colossal. One thing’s for certain – we would not forget to buy our ticket to the première of The Rite of Spring at the Champs Elysées Theatre in Paris on May 29, 1913.

Used to audiences that were respectful and even indifferent to what went on on stage, the news of the incredible scandal that this ballet sparked in its première fills us with insatiable curiosity, and we are left wondering- why? There was not just one reason, and we will probably never know the full story. We know the impresario behind it, Sergei Diaghilev, was satisfied: his intuition had once again got it right. But, what was there in the music that provoked such a reaction to it, leading to comparisons with "emotions similar to those of primitive men "? How has Igor Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring stood the test of time? That May day, The Rite of Spring irrupted noisily in the History of Music, but as from its following performance, it went on to seducing, or rather conquering, every audience with the force of a masterful orchestra and a rhythmic pulse that seems to come from the soul.

Other successes came late for their composers, such as the posthumous première of the opera Prince Igor by Alexander Borodin. The enthusiastic applause received in Russia and Paris did not reach Borodin, but it was not in vain, as it made it possible to set up a grant which was enjoyed by Shostakovich.

Violin concerto nº 1 in A minor, Op. 77 by Dmitri Shostakovich was hidden in a drawer for seven years. Shostakovich thought that after having been publicly admonishedby political authorities, he was better off not publishing this work, simply because in it he had strictly followed his artistic conscience. On October 29, 1955 it finally premièred in Leningrad. The response: silence. Silence. A far cry from the deafening noise that met The Rite of Spring! The press remained in silence for several days until the great defender of the work, violinist David Oistrakh, praises him profusely. From then onwards, fear was put aside, and the applause still continues today.

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