Ah, classical music. Whether we know it or not, we’ve heard it practically everywhere. From evergreen cartoons like Tom and Jerry and Looney Tunes to popular movies 2001: A Space Odyssey, there are at least four or five pieces we have heard in our lifetime. Today, we’ll be looking at some stories behind some iconic as well as lesser known masterpieces. There will be chaos, there will be laughter and above all, there will be music.Chaos at the balletIgor Stravinsky was one of the pioneers of modernist music and one of the most influential composers of the 20th century. His music carried rhythmic complexity and dissonance. (lack of harmony between musical notes). One such composition was a ballet called ‘The Rite of Spring’, which not only broke the conventional structure of harmony, but also displayed choreography and costuming which was very unusual for its time. The ballet features dissonant music, like a typical Stravinsky composition, and jerky, spastic (stiff and involuntary) dancing.The ballet premiered on 2 April, 1913 at the Theatre de Champs-Elysees in Paris. And needless to say, no one had ever seen anything like it. From a high-pitched solo on the bassoon (a low-pitched reed instrument) to the jumpy, jerky dancing of the characters, everything was so different. A lot of crew members felt that his piece would brew chaos.And he was right. Just at the opening notes of the ballet, the crowd began to yell so loud that no one could hear the orchestra, and only kept getting louder and louder. The madness escalated to fights among audience members, things being thrown around the hall and arrests of the audience members. An account mentions that over 40 people were arrested that night.But as Thomas Jefferson once said: “With great risk comes great reward,” Stravinsky’s unconventional take on a ballet turned out to be a massive success. The premier itself was believed to have received an ovation from the audience, but that is unconfirmed. Nevertheless, the ballet continues to be performed even in recent years.