Rite of... passage

There are a few common bonds that the group on the right column of this page have shared and cherished. One of them is that look that we gave Crp, when first exposed to the explosion of modern music in his darbar. I'll never know, but the look was halfway between shock that Parisians felt when they first heard this stuff and amusement that masked concern for the impresario's hitherto shiny musical marbles. While Parisians could safely break into a riot when they heard Stravinsky, what could the poor student do. Trash the room like a rock star?

But, unbeknownst to me, the discord occupied a small place in my mind, clearly. When, this fall, I listened to the 'Rite of Spring', it was a moment whose time had come. I could think of it as nothing but the most interesting thing I had heard in years. Was it the years of apprentice-ship with jazz records? Or, have I just seen enough discord in life to simply get it now? I know its a combination of both these factors. And for a practising Hindu, the inherent Paganism in the 'Rite of Spring' makes it so much more attractive and juicy (that's the best adjective I can come up with).

Just like growing up, appreciating it made me feel different, mostly better but somewhat concerned.

Two BBC pieces that made me enjoy the 'Rite of Spring' tremendously:
BBC discovering music, Rite of Spring -- part 1
BBC discovering music, Rite of Spring -- part 2

Also worth checking out the other pieces in the BBC discovering music archive

PS - To those of who think I'm over-compensating for linking to Hemachandra's videos on youtube... you just get me!