Our study of the Mighty Five left me with the sense that the “Russian Sound” which composers such as Mussorgsky strove to attain seemed to include a strong directive towards melodic music. The music of the mighty five, especially Mussorgsky, seemed to sometimes shirk complexity in favor of powerful, emotional tunes which make sense to the ear and require little logical analysis or appreciation for the nuances of musical theory.

I have always been interested then in Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring because it does not make any immediate sense to the Ear. It is often atonal and, though it is explosive and brassy at times like some of the works of the quintessentially bombastic Mussorgsky, it is so complicated as to verge on utterly Alien. It truly is an “Avant Garde” piece of music, especially placed within the context of the evolution of Russian music. It seems to be a departure from the work of the mighty five just as much as the work of the Mighty Five were a departure from more “Western” music.

The Firebird seemed to be somewhere in between the Mighty Five and the Rite of Spring. It is doused in the best parts of both worlds. It has some atonal and elusive moments, and yet ends with a movement with a simple harmony that repeats over and over again, becoming more emotionally charged with each recursion. It was indeed Avant Garde, but still had a more profound sense of logic and direction. Indeed, unlike the Rite of Spring and mushc like some of the works of the Mighty Handful, the Firebird seems to be a tonal poem.