FireBird Suite

Igor Stravinsky’s “Firebird Suite” is said to belong in the
contemporary music time period. The expression “contemporary music” is generic
to an extreme – meaning simply music written “today”, but has become
commonplace to denote art music written since World War II. The rapid advances
in technology during the late 20th century are partly responsible for the
emergence of a wide variety of musical forms. Some general characteristics of contemporary
music are fewer lyrical melodies than the music of former periods along with dissonant
harmonies, complex rhythms, and percussiveness. There is also greater use of
woodwind, brass and percussion instruments than in music of earlier periods and
the use of synthetic and electronic sounds.