Igor Stravinsky (1882–1971) was a Russian composer and conductor, considered one of the most important and influential composers of the 20th century and a pivotal figure in modernist music. He studied music under Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov until the latter's death in 1908. Soon after, Stravinsky met the impresario Sergei Diaghilev, who commissioned the composer to write three ballets for the Ballets Russes's Paris seasons: The Firebird (1910), Petrushka (1911), and The Rite of Spring (1913), the last of which caused a near-riot at the premiere due to its avant-garde nature. His compositional style varied greatly, being influenced at different points by Russian folklore, neoclassicism, and serialism. His ideas influenced the composers Aaron Copland, Philip Glass, Béla Bartók, and Pierre Boulez, who were all challenged to innovate beyond traditional tonality, rhythm, and form. Stravinsky died in 1971, leaving six memoirs, an earlier autobiography, and a series of lectures.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Igor_Stravinsky

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1066:

William the Conqueror and his fleet of around 600 ships landed at Pevensey, Sussex, beginning the Norman conquest of England. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Conquest

1901:

Philippine–American War: Filipino guerrillas killed more than forty American soldiers in a surprise attack on the town of Balangiga on the island of Samar. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balangiga_massacre

1928:

Scottish biologist and pharmacologist Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin when he noticed a bacteria-killing mould growing in his laboratory. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Fleming

1975:

An attempted robbery of Spaghetti House, a restaurant in Knightsbridge, London, turned into a six-day hostage situation. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spaghetti_House_siege

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

punched tape: (computing, historical) Synonym of paper tape (“an early sequential digital storage medium originally used with teletype machines, consisting of a long roll of paper, each character being encoded as a pattern of punched holes”) https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/punched_tape

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

Our hope is less to last through Art Than deeper searching of the heart, Than broader range of uttered truth.   --Francis Turner Palgrave https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Francis_Turner_Palgrave