The Firebird is a well-known character in many Russian fairy tales. But the task of turning it into a musical masterpiece fell to the young Russian composer Igor Stravinsky. Written for an extravagant production company called Ballet Russes, it was unveiled in 1910 before a sophisticated Parisian audience.

The role of the Firebird was danced by Tamara Karsavina (after the super-star Anna Pavlova turned down the role). Karsavina relished the chance to portray one of Russian cultures most intriguing fairy-tale creatures by dancing choreographer Mikhail Fokine’s brilliant steps. The ballet was an instant hit and boosted Stravinsky’s career, bringing him significant commissions for the ballets Petrushka in 1911 and the revolutionary Rite of Spring in 1913.

In the story line (“book”) laid out for this ballet, Ivan Tsarevich (Ivan, son of the Tsar) sees the glowing light of the Firebird’s magic feathers from afar. He scales a wall into an enchanted garden belonging to Russian folklore’s greatest villain, Kaschei the Immortal. Ivan Tsarevich captures the Firebird, but she persuades him to release her. She gives him one of her iridescent feathers to protect him in case of danger.

He will need this protection. He falls in love with one of thirteen enchanted princesses who appear and surround him with a beautiful dance. Angered, Kaschei sends his bewitched creatures to kill Ivan. At the last moment, Ivan pulls out the feather to invoke the Firebird. She appears, mesmerizes his attackers, and shows Ivan the secret to Kashei’s invincibility. Ivan is able to destroy Kaschei, liberating the bewitched creatures who return to their human form.

Infernal Dance of King Kaschei

In this portion of the ballet, Kaschei is incensed by Ivan Tsarevich’s boldness and commands his grotesque creatures to kill him. A struggle ensues, which Stravinsky paints by setting up variations on short, forceful melodies answering back and forth in different parts of the orchestra. The fragments get shorter and faster (3:38) as Ivan continues to struggle. Finally he pulls out the prized feather, summoning the Firebird. Using her good powers, she sends the creatures into a frenzied dance, distracting them from Kaschei’s orders.

Berceuse

This beautiful section of the ballet seems to emerge from the chaos (4:32) as the creatures, and even the wicked Kaschei, are rendered harmless and fall asleep. The Firebird dances a delicate solo to an expressive melody played by bassoon, oboe and cello. While lullabies traditionally feature gently oscillating groups of three beats, this one floats across a relaxed rhythm of four beats. The term berceuse comes from the French verb to rock (bercer, as in rock a baby).

Finale

Kaschei has been destroyed. The scene shifts (7:41) as his evil world fades into a mist of gently descending strings. A soothing but strong melody (8:40) emerges, accompanied by glissandos of the harp and melodic decorations throughout the orchestra. The music builds to a triumphant tone as the grotesque creatures realize they are free of Kashei’s evil spell. Now handsome princes, they reunite with their princesses, while Ivan Tsarevich and his beloved princess take their places as king and queen.

The Suite

Composers sometimes take the best music from a staged work and turn it into an suite that can be effective in a concert setting, Man people today become acquainted with The Firebird first through one of the three uites that Stravinsky arranged for orchestra. While a live production on stage is always preferable, Stravinsky’s suites are exciting and effective works.

Musically, The Firebird is considered the first artistically mature work of the 28-year old composer. Stravinsky took the lessons learned from his Master teacher, the Russian composer Rimsky-Korsakov and brought them into the 20th century. Rimsky-Korsakov was amazingly creative in how used the orchestral instruments, finding ways to paint magical creatures in sound, and combining instruments to create soaring melodies. Stravinsky took Rimsky-Korsakov’s palate of color and, step-by-step, crafted a new language of driving rhythms and angular melodies.

The use of French for the titles reflects many things. Yes, the work was written for French audience. But more importantly, French is the language of ballet world-wide. French terms are still used to describe all of the movements in ballet choreography (e.g. pas de deux, en pointe, jété). One more thing: French, the language of the European aristocracy, was spoken in Russia too at court and in aristocratic circles. Artists were comfortable in the world of French culture.