The themes of these pieces are both natural events, such as moonlight and what occurs in the forest during the springtime. The music really does capture that throughout the pieces. Both of these pieces are able to evoke the feeling of nature, but they are very different in terms of rhythm, melody, development, and dynamics. Clare de Lune starts out with a softer melody that has a relaxed rhythm. As it develops, the pace does start to move a bit faster, but it is nothing like the hard and fast development of Rite of Spring. The melody stays rather sweet throughout the whole piece. It can almost be described as delicate, even when the rhythm begins to pick up a bit towards the end. Dynamically, Clare de Lune is soft while Rite of Spring can only be described as hard. The Rite of Spring has a much harder rhythm and melody that seems relentless. It does not seem to develop as slowly as Clare de Lune, but starts out quick and just gets quicker until it starts to slow in the middle before gaining speed again.
Clare de Lune was very soothing to me. I felt anxious before starting to listen to this piece, but after it started, I felt a little more relaxed. I stopped feeling as though I need to rush through listening to it, and really started to enjoy the sweeping tones of the melody. It really does fit the name as I feel as though I am walking in the moonlight on a clear summer night. It just seems so peaceful and harmonious. It is also vaguely familiar to me, but I cannot really place where I have heard it before. I also enjoyed The Rite of Spring, but it certainly has a different feeling to me. The first thing that it makes me feel as though there are two animals in the forest, predator and prey, and it evokes a feeling of chase or even the clash of two large bucks fighting for the chance to mate. It is a very powerful feeling. The more I listen, the more it makes me think of my childhood. This music is actually more familiar to me, and I start to remember the hulking dinosaurs from Fantasia along with how the music faintly reminds me of Jaws. The Rite of Spring was given a more ferocious feeling, and I really feel that as I am listening to it. It is very empowering.
An appropriate use for Clare de Lune would be a lullaby or for relaxing after a hard day. This piece is very restful, and I think that an infant would find it very soothing to go to sleep to at night. I also can see a person listening to this as they take a bath or sit and read. It is the perfect background music to be at peace. I think that the Rite of Spring has already been used appropriately, but it certainly would work to instill that edge of the seat feeling in something dangerous for a movie setting. In the personal sense, this would probably be perfect for getting psyched up to do something unpleasant, or that will be a battle in some way.