From the back of the record:
“Perhaps the most striking thing, harmonically, is the juxtapositioning of triadic chords and the interval of the tritone. Stravinsky’s triadic chords are sometimes uncomplicated diatonic affairs specifically intended as accompaniments, sometimes more complex, modally-derived structures or combinations of differing chords belonging to the same key. The tritone, on the other hand, is generally employed melodically - except for the famous “Petrushka Chord”, where it has an additional harmonic function.
Bitonality was anything but usual in the early part of the century, and so the “Petrushka Chord” (i.e. two simultaneously-sounded major triads a tritone apart, based on C and F-sharp) was considered quite adventurous in 1911. Even more singular was the assignment to this tritone of a dominant, unifying role throughout a markedly heterogeneous composition, in effect making it a kind of leitmotiv. The composer once related: “I had conceived of the music in two keys in the Second Tableau, as Petrushka’s insult to the public, and I wanted a dialouge for trumpets in two keys at the end to that his ghost is still insulting the public.” A deft touch, indeed. And, because Petruska’s “insulting” motive seems always to be lurking nearby - sublty suggested by numerous triadic arpeggios nd the omnipresent tritone - this device is at least partly responsible for that peculiar ambiguity between the real an the imagined that, ultimately, constitutes the magic of Petrushka.”
Saturday morning listen.
