Igor Stravinsky

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Igor Stravinsky (b.Oranienbaum (now Lomonosov), June 17 1882; d. New York, April 6 1971) was one of the most important composers of the 20th century. He was brought up in Russia. When the Russian Revolution started he moved to Switzerland and then to Paris, and finally, when the World War II started in 1939, he moved to the United States.

Stravinsky also changed the way he wrote music. At first he wrote music similar to his teacher Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. He loved his native Russian music. He wrote music which had very complicated chords and rhythms. It is very lively music, and some of his best known works of this kind were written for the ballet company of Diaghilev: The Firebird, Petrushka and The Rite of Spring. They were written during the first two decades of 20th century.

Then he changed his style and wrote in what is called a “neo-classical” way. He based it on music from the Classical music period but changed it. In his later years he wrote serial music.