~ George Jones ~
Igor Stravinsky isn’t for everyone, and this music isn’t for wallerin’. Although Russian born, he was the bad boy of French music at the turn of the century. The Octet for Winds was written in 1922 and is classified as “neo-baroque”. The harmonies are dissonant and acrid, but he uses the traditional architecture of classical forms in this piece. It’s a mix of the old and new. The octet features two trumpets, two trombones, two bassoons, clarinet and flute. It lasts about 17 minutes and consists of three movements: sinfonia, theme and variations, and finale.