Playlist: Symphony Happy Hour - Stravinsky’s Firebird
Item details
Date
Thursday, Nov 20, 2025 6:30PM
Name
Playlist: Symphony Happy Hour - Stravinsky’s Firebird
Description
📍 This concert takes place at Powell Hall
Stéphane Denève, conductor
Igor Stravinsky The Firebird
Ignite your imagination with Stravinsky’s The Firebird. Fusing magic and modernity, the 1910 ballet revolutionized orchestral music while reimagining an age-old fairytale. As the music shifts between bold, sweeping movements for the supernatural elements and simpler folk songs for the mortals, it brings to life the story of an evil wizard, captured princesses, a brave prince, and the dazzling, magical Firebird in a whirlwind of color and sound.
Savor each note at all three Playlist: Symphony Happy Hour concerts this season. Sip signature cocktails and mocktails, enjoy insights from the conductor, and mingle with musicians at these special one-hour concerts designed to inspire, relax, and get the conversation going.
A few things to know:
- Only after being turned down by several more established composers did the Ballets Russes turn to Stravinsky, a young, relatively inexperienced composer, to compose the music for The Firebird, a score that turned out to be one of the 20th century’s iconic works.
- In 1910 Paris, the Ballets Russes was at the cutting edge of sophistication, mixing tradition with experimentation in music, dance, costume, and sets. The Firebird reflects founder Sergei Diaghilev’s desire to create groundbreaking art through exciting new collaborations among choreographers, composers, designers, and dancers.
- In the tale of the Firebird, Prince Ivan arrives at the garden of the evil wizard Kashchei the Deathless. There, he captures the brilliant, magical Firebird, but lets her go in exchange for one of her feathers. He soon discovers the thirteen princesses being held captive by Kaschei and falls in love with the youngest. Ivan summons the Firebird who forces Kaschei to dance until he falls asleep from exhaustion. With the Firebird’s help, Ivan finally defeats the wizard and frees the prisoners.
Tickets are currently available for subscribers. Curated Series and Compose Your Own subscriptions are on sale now.