Johannes Brahms’ one and only violin concerto does indeed demonstrate the gifts of its soloist, but it is less focused on technique and more on substance and expression. It also features extensive passages for the orchestra, often highlighting the woodwinds and giving the concerto an almost symphonic feel.
Igor Stravinsky’s ballet Petrushka tells the story of the title character, a popular puppet in Russian folk tales, who finds himself in several uniquely human experiences including love and death. After his success with The Firebird, Petrushka was a bold step away from the late-Romantic period influence, and it signaled his move into creating the sounds that we know him for today. It is bold, colorful, contrasting, and free while at times it often conjures Russian folk tunes and dances. In 1947, Stravinsky revised the work to make it more suitable for orchestral performance and that is the version most widely heard by audiences today.
