ballet CD

CD Review: The Snow Queen Ballet Suite

April 21, 2014 by 4dancers

For dancers and dance audiences across the US and Europe, Nutcracker is an inextricable part of the Christmas season. In 2012, the Finnish National Ballet premiered Kenneth Greve’s new full-length The Snow Queen, which replaced Nutcracker as the company’s Christmas ballet for the 2012-13 and 2013-14 seasons. Tuomas Kantelinen’s cinematic, magical score wraps up all the same tenderness, warmth, drama, and characterization that are so appealing in Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker. This disc contains a seventy-minute selection of music from the two-act ballet

Based on Hans Christian Andersen’s story of the same name, the ballet takes us from young Kerttu and Kai’s bedroom in Helsinki through the bustling market square. There are wild, glittering, blustery dances for the Snow Flakes, threateningly punctuated with percussion. Once Kai is carried off in the snowstorm, Kerttu’s search takes her through Sweden, Spain, Persia, and the Orient in an energetic series of pastiche “national” dances.

Kantelinen’s score is festive, illustrative, and emotional. The use of a particularly tender leitmotif that seems to represent the love between friends Kai and Kerttu winds its way through the music, showing up every now and then as if to comfort the listener that good will always triumph over evil. The whole CD is a real pleasure to listen to.

An interesting production note about the ballet is that though this score was designed specifically for Greve’s choreography, the ballet itself was not performed with live orchestral accompaniment. Instead, the stage was extended out over the pit and the cast danced to a recording.

Behind The Keys – Ballet Pianist Anna Buchenhorst

September 2, 2013 by 4dancers

At 4dancers we believe that music is a big part of dance, and that the people who conduct it and play it are as much a part of the art form as the dancers themselves. To that end, today we hear from Swedish pianist Anna Buchenhorst, who recently released a CD of ballet music. Learn a little bit about what life is like for her behind the keys…

How did you get involved with playing music for dance?

I was dancing ballet myself from the age of four until eighteen. At that age I choose the piano 100% and it wasn’t until ten years later that I came back into a ballet studio as a pianist. I instantly liked being there!

What do you think the challenges are in terms of playing this type of music?

The challenge is to play helpful music that fits to the steps, and still use beautiful, inspiring music with a big variety. One dancer once told me that she could feel it in her body the whole day, that I had been playing her favorite music for class. That was really nice to hear.

How do you select the music you use for dance?

To me it´s like a sport. Even when I go to the opera, or listen to the radio I can think that this aria, or ballade would be great for an adagio in the middle and so on. I am a collector of great pieces and I want to leave them like they are as much as possible. I also improvise a lot, but not on this record.

What do you like best about playing music for dancers?

To watch the dancers improve, when you pick the right music. It´s functional, fantastic and full of good spirits.

BIO: Anna Buchenhorst is a piano soloist and the full-time ballet pianist of the Royal Swedish Ballet since 2002. She has a repertoire that extends from the baroque to contemporary music, including solo works, chamber music and concertos for piano and orchestra. She has worked together with leading European choreographers and ballet teachers of our time, among them Mats Ek, as well as playing for celebrities such as Mikhail Baryshnikov, John Neumeier and Dame Beryl Grey.

She graduated as a Master of Fine Arts, under Professor Stella Tjajkovski, at the Academy of Music and Drama in Gothenburg.

In the early nineties she received a scholarship from the Swedish Institute enabling her to become a full-time student of the Liszt Academy in Budapest. With Professor Márta Gulyás as her piano teacher, she refined her virtuosic technique and musical insights.

CD Review: West End To Broadway: Inspirational Ballet Class Music by David Plumpton

May 1, 2013 by 4dancers

by Emily Kate Long

Until this disc, I was never a fan of show tunes and popular music for ballet class. David Plumpton’s skill and sensitivity make West End to Broadway a fun and functional class album. Plumpton plays with warmth and a light hand, making this a great CD for intermediate or advanced classes. Clear, consistent tempi without over-emphasis of every beat will give dancers the freedom to enjoy the breath and richness of this music. Selections from Aida, High School Musical, Chess, and more offer something for all ages and tastes.

The disc includes seventeen tracks for barre and twenty for center with no repeats, though many are long enough for both sides. There are several lovely adagios (“Unexpected Song” from Tell Me on a Sunday is divine), multiple tracks for port de bras in center, plenty of waltzes for turns and allegro, and enough bounding, bouncing jump tracks to get any class light on its feet. Who can resist lofting through the air to “Gaston” from Beauty and the Beast?

West End to Broadway is a fun addition to teachers’ libraries for intermediate, advanced, or adult ballet classes.

Review: Ballet Studio Inspirations: Volume Three

September 28, 2011 by 4dancers

Ballet Studio Inspirations is a comprehensive CD of piano music for ballet class by Richard Maddock. There are 43 original compositions on the album – 20 for the barre and the rest for centre work. Putting the word “inspirations” in the title is appropriate–as the music really does inspire.

Maddock is truly an artist–his work is just beautiful, and I am looking forward to using it in my adult ballet class. Although it was developed for a pre-professional class, this CD would work well for most levels, and it is a refreshing departure from the standard ballet class music. There is more of a gentle, yearning feel to Maddock’s slower tracks that should coax out feeling from your dancers–even at the barre.

The more upbeat tunes are lively and well-played too, but I believe Maddock is at his best when the more lyrical music is running through his fingers. All-in-all this album of tracks created for ballet class is something that would round out any dance teacher’s collection nicely. When you are in the mood for something that will motivate your dancers to experiment with phrasing and emotion, this is the CD you will reach for. The port de bras music is especially lovely.

I found Maddock’s CD to be an unexpected and wonderful addition to my collection of ballet class music. It’s really nice to have some original compositions to include–especially when they are arranged and played as well as they are here. It can be challenging to find great CDs for ballet class. This is one of them.

Maddock has sample tracks on his website and you can also purchase CDs there. In addition, his work can be found on Amazon and iTunes if you are looking for digital downloads.

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CD Review: Music for Ballet Class III

July 13, 2011 by 4dancers

Mediaphorie has added another excellent ballet class music CD to their lineup with their latest – “Music for Ballet Class III” (Musique pour le Cours de Danse Classique).

It’s lovely to have original music to use, and this collection fits the bill. The tracks are expertly played by pianist and composer Ellina Akimova, who plays in France for the Ballet School of the Paris National Opéra, as well as the CNSMDP, at the CND, and at the Danse school of the conservatoire of the XVIIe district of Paris.

There is nothing quite like taking class with an accomplished pianist providing accompaniment, and if you can’t have live music, this is the next best thing. The phrasing is perfect, and the musical choices suit the exercises in a way that only someone who knows ballet well could choose, with perky music for tendus and a pretty selection for plies. Everything is well-matched.

The complexity of some of the tracks here make me lean toward recommending this CD to teachers with more advanced students. Some of the slower pieces may be a bit difficult for brand new students in terms of using the phrasing properly for movement. Advanced students will appreciate the opportunity to get into the spirit of things and practice their musicality. Akimova’s Russian roots shine through in her music, making the selections all the more beautiful.

This album features repeated tracks for easy instruction at the barre. There is a complete class here–barre and centre, with music for pointe and for tracks geared toward men.

This is what happens when you have an expert pianist at the helm–I can recommend this CD easily for ballet class. It would make a great addition to any teacher’s collection. The cost is $30, and you can find it, as well as other ballet music on Mediaphorie’s site.

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