Dana’s Personal Classic Faves
- Thread starter Dana
- Start date
When I was five years old I went with my Mother to see Coppelia, my very first ballet performance. It was a matinee and I was so excited, I could hardly breathe. I had just started ballet lessons and this was my Mother’s encouragement gift. The lights went down and then the magic began…
One of my favourite scenes from the ballet …dancing the Mazurka.
One of my favourite scenes from the ballet …dancing the Mazurka.
I love string instruments and even considered learning to play the violin, but my Mother felt I should take piano lessons instead, she thought I would be more suited to that instrument…she was right! Anyway, my love of string continues to this day and one of my favourites is the cello.
I’ve only ever listened to cellos in large orchestras, then it all changed when Croatian cellist Stjepan Hauser burst onto the scene a few years ago. I have never seen anyone handle a cello the way he does. I do believe him when he says ‘I am in love with the cello’ see what I mean…
Caruso - 'Alone, Together' Pula Arena, Croatia
Swan Lake, with the London Symphony Orchestra.
Ave Maria..Pula Arena, Croatia
Without music, life would be a mistake.” ... Friedrich Nietzsche
I’ve only ever listened to cellos in large orchestras, then it all changed when Croatian cellist Stjepan Hauser burst onto the scene a few years ago. I have never seen anyone handle a cello the way he does. I do believe him when he says ‘I am in love with the cello’ see what I mean…
Caruso - 'Alone, Together' Pula Arena, Croatia
Swan Lake, with the London Symphony Orchestra.
Ave Maria..Pula Arena, Croatia
Without music, life would be a mistake.” ... Friedrich Nietzsche
CinnamonSugar
A Quiet American
Ah, @Dana, we are kindred spirits! I love ballet (well, really, any high quality dancing ) and orchestral music. I look forward to comparing notes ! Traveling this AM but will check in later
How lovely CinnamonSugar...looking forward to comparing notes. I'm off to bed now with a little Bach for company
CinnamonSugar
A Quiet American
CinnamonSugar
A Quiet American
My personal fave pas de deux from Don Quixote: Angel Corella and Paloma Herrera. Both great talents, with the added bonus of them both being Latino (he from Spain, she from Argentina), they were able to bring a very authentic level of 'sass' and liveliness to the piece.
Gorgeous! I certainly agree with the "sass" they bring to the pas de deux! You may have seen this clip already, but what makes it very special for me is that I have seen both Marianela and Carlos dance in the UK at Covent Garden. She is also from Argentina and Carlos from Cuba...both making huge names for themselves in Europe..enjoy..
CinnamonSugar
A Quiet American
Oh my goodness! Wonderful! No I’d never seen that part of the ballet...
CinnamonSugar
A Quiet American
It is so interesting to go back in time and watch the different styles of ballet and see how it has evolved. But all beautiful. Did (do) you dance, @Dana? I took ballet and tap for about 10 years as a youngster... would have loved to do it at a higher level but alas, a long torso and short legs do not a ballerina make, haha.
I have so many youtube clips of dancing I love... hard to know which to share next lol
Here's one of Angel Corella dancing to Duke Ellington... proof again that ballet training and a sense of musicality equips good dancers for many styles and roles...
I have so many youtube clips of dancing I love... hard to know which to share next lol
Here's one of Angel Corella dancing to Duke Ellington... proof again that ballet training and a sense of musicality equips good dancers for many styles and roles...
Loved that CinnamonSugar…oh, I certainy agree ballet training is a superb bonus for any dancer’s versatilty. Angel Corella I believe , but not a hundred per cent sure. was the first Spaniard to have prominent roles in the NYC ballet. He is noted for his extremely fast pirouettes and jetés.
Here he excels in Le Corsaire with Julie Kent. Yes..I studied ballet for many years starting out with the Cecchetti method, but my Mother was not too keen, so when we moved from Hampshire to London, she enrolled me in the Royal Academy of Dance, accepted after a gruelling audition!
Here he excels in Le Corsaire with Julie Kent. Yes..I studied ballet for many years starting out with the Cecchetti method, but my Mother was not too keen, so when we moved from Hampshire to London, she enrolled me in the Royal Academy of Dance, accepted after a gruelling audition!
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I've been fortunate enough on some of my trips to Russia to have seen Swan Lake at the Mariinsky Theatre in St.Petersburg and Don Quixote and Swan Lake at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow.
One of my favourite parts of swan Lake is the Coda in which Odile performs 32 fouettes. I've never had any dancing or ballet lessons - for obvious reasons so I can't speak as an expert on the technical points so please correct me if I'm wrong. However I imagine this must be difficult to perform as I suppose the ballerina isn't meant to "wander" all over the place but stay in one spot. I guess it's made even more difficult if the stage slopes from the rear down towards the orchestra ditch like the stage at the Stockholm Opera.
I found this clip and looking at the background the ballerina seems to move very little.
I think it's beautifully performed.
One of my favourite parts of swan Lake is the Coda in which Odile performs 32 fouettes. I've never had any dancing or ballet lessons - for obvious reasons so I can't speak as an expert on the technical points so please correct me if I'm wrong. However I imagine this must be difficult to perform as I suppose the ballerina isn't meant to "wander" all over the place but stay in one spot. I guess it's made even more difficult if the stage slopes from the rear down towards the orchestra ditch like the stage at the Stockholm Opera.
I found this clip and looking at the background the ballerina seems to move very little.
I think it's beautifully performed.
CinnamonSugar
A Quiet American
@Glowworm, the trick in doing any # of turns is to snap your head around to a fixed point each time you turn And, of course, practice practice practice
That technique is called “Spotting” and to follow on from what CinnamonSugar said, it focuses the eyes on a set spot and keeps eye contact with it while turning the body. At the last moment, the dancer whips the head around and reconnects eye contact with the spot.
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Elina Garanca's fine interpretation of "Mon Coeur S'ouvre à Ta Voix" (My Heart Opens Up At the Sound Of Your Voice) from the Opera "Samson and Delilah" by Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns
The water nymph Rusalka has fallen in love with a human...the Prince...when he came to swim in her lake. Now she wants to become human herself and live on land to be with him. Rusalka's father, the Water Sprite, is horrified and tells her that humans are evil and full of sin. Composed by Antonin Dvorak sung by Lucia Popp.
The water nymph Rusalka has fallen in love with a human...the Prince...when he came to swim in her lake. Now she wants to become human herself and live on land to be with him. Rusalka's father, the Water Sprite, is horrified and tells her that humans are evil and full of sin. Composed by Antonin Dvorak sung by Lucia Popp.
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@CinnamonSugar and @Dana Thanks for the information. I guess that this technique also prevents the dancers from becoming dizzy? This clip was also on Youtube and I think the ballerina wanders a long way down and across the stage. Would that mean she hasn't perfected the art of "Spotting"? Also noticed she doesn't perform any double fouettes at all. Most comments were very positive but one written in French was quite scathing.
Interested to hear your comments.