# Favorite ballet?



## Celloman

Yes, you knew it was coming sooner or later. Partly to satisfy TC's obsession with superlatives, and partly to satisfy my own curiosity...here's the big question we've all been waiting for:

*What is your favorite ballet?* And if you have one, why is it your favorite?

Taking in both music and dance, I'd have to say my favorite is Prokofiev's _Romeo and Juliet_. That, or Stravinsky's _Petrushka_. What's yours?


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## Roland

The only ballet I have actually seen (as opposed to "listened to") is Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker. I would have to say that it was surprisingly good. The music was, of course, beautiful. The choreography was terrific. And, I'll admit, I liked all the pretty ballerinas. All in all, Tchaikovsky can make for a magical evening.


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## PetrB

Petrushka, hands down, as the score most perfectly married to the libretto, with the original stage setting and choreography. 
All elements enhance the other elements, all the way through.

This makes it a near miracle in the world of musical theater, because, just as with opera, there are so many elements to get right that the likelihood they will all come together at the same level is that much less than an orchestra performing a piece of music.

Tchaikovsky, whose works Stravinsky admired and loved, I think came relatively close with his Sleeping Beauty, as did Prokofiev with his Romeo and Juliet -- neither though produced scores which are so listenable as independent pieces of music, which Petrushka is; the Tchaikovsky and Prokofiev need the support of the stage activity, the Stravinsky does not.


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## ComposerOfAvantGarde

_Rélâche_ for the dancing and the...er...events which happen in it :lol:
_Kraanerg_ for the music.


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## hreichgott

Cinderella! (Prokofiev) I regularly just listen to this for entertainment even without having choreography to look at. It's gorgeous music and there is not a dull moment. I intend to learn one or more of the piano concert suites from it at some point.


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## Tristan

_Swan Lake_ is my personal favorite. It is a masterpiece and one of my favorite works of classical music. I certainly love stage-adaptations, but I've listened to the music on its own often.

My other favorite ballets are _Sylvia_ and Tchaikovsky's other two ballets


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## Ingélou

Taggart & I have only seen a few ballets, as we have to take whatever comes to our heavily-subsidised local theatre. We both like Swan Lake best, for the music and the story and the imagery and the tragic climax. 

But after reading about Petrushka up above, I'm wondering whether it would be worth travelling to .... *London*??


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## leomarillier

Ok, now his is a tough question. Because ballet music covers, always under the same name of ballet music, more than 350 years, including Lully, Rameau, and other French composers at the _cour du roi_, the romantic (not only Delibes, Lakmé, Tchaikovsky, but also Beethoven-a good Prometheus music if you ask me!-, the fruitious early 20th, and the modern (Glass, notably).
I luckily had the opportunity to attend a performance of Les Siècles, a wonderful french orchestra, during the summit of the Radio Festival in Montpellier. They played the usual Rameau Indes Galantes Suite, Lully as well, Delibes, Lakmé, and the Rite of Spring. I was quite thrilled by Rameau, and I had the confirmation that Romantic ballet, at least the popular one, is just, musically speaking, sweeties and ruins of delicatessen from a wonderful era. Of course, the Rite is more mind-crushing than any other musical piece - still to this say!-, but in terms of musical beauty, choregraphic poetry, public acceptance, and yet modernity and shivering light, the *Firebird* seems pretty hard to beat, and Prokofiev's Suite Scythe comes close with those criteras. I know, musically speaking, it's almost Haydn, put together even with Pétrouchka. But the stylistic and formal "gaps" of the Russian Tradition, including Rimsky's heavy basses and codas, are here transcendented by orchestral variety, an attention not to musical form but to the story! Not a "dumbening" ABA form...

But if there is something even greater than this, It's Debussy's Jeux.
Musically, a storm, it does not have the structural and popular appeal of Images, the assumed colorism of Nocturnes, but shares images with Pélléas, it does not have the comfort of La Mer, works and grows by exaltant convulsions. The height of Debussy's genius, modernism, even in the "drama"; no musical rule is here "applicable" (formally quite obviously, but in the little melodic shapes, even the orchestration, Debussy goes WILD and almost INSANE). Plus, the argument is... Well you know, it's one of those little stories, almost anecdotes, that makes the listening of the music absolutely delicious, like Cosi Fan Tutte. "The scene is a garden at dusk; a tennis ball has been lost; a boy and two girls are searching for it. The artificial light of the large electric lamps shedding fantastic rays about them suggests the idea of childish games: they play hide and seek, they try to catch one another, they quarrel, they sulk without cause. The night is warm, the sky is bathed in pale light; they embrace. But the spell is broken by another tennis ball thrown in mischievously by an unknown hand. Surprised and alarmed, the boy and girls disappear into the nocturnal depths of the garden."
The argument is "nothing", everything is about the mood, the atmosphere, a Turner of the tennis court, just three people, and mysteries surrounding, themselves lost ina city. There is no sacrifice, nor a devil to destroy, just an anecdote that could happen to everyone. And at the same time, a vast quantity of images is offered to us. Van Goghian modern images, some kind of non-mystical (but mist-ical!), subtle erotism that everyone can experience, here the flirting of Pélléas an Mélisande seems less exclusive but as orgasmic. Plus, some ideas are really what Debussy was into, generally speaking! A new type of light, a new type of darkness, of night, and yet images of love are here: the moon bathed, embraced by the coulds, lonely lovers surrounded by civilization, still, blessed by the moon (or is it an electric light?^^). And, for Debussy, this is the ultimate Ode to a new time, when, as the nights are lit up by man, and consequently days are not days anymore, love and attraction is to be found and expressed through little gestures, not in "special" moments, not in the middle of a lonely dark night where the lovers, unable to seeing each other, swear solemnly their undying love for half an hour (don't get me wrong, I love Tristan and Isolde), and flirt is now a pleasure to create, seems to be a special sign of attention between those people.
These three people, in the argument of the ballet, are friends. They're young and beautiful.

_Let the Games begin._


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## Huilunsoittaja

Woot! So glad this is a subforum!

I'm not sure I have a favorite ballet. I have a favorite dozen. 

But it's on my bucket list to see a Glazunov ballet, here in the US. I just might see Swan Lake this winter, but if I ever see Raymonda or the Seasons as a ballet, that would be awesome. Also, Firebird would be great to see.


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## TxllxT

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## Selby

I love ballet. There are so many I am very fond of, but, a favorite?

de Falla's El amor brujo, Ravel's Daphnis et Chloe, and Stravinsky's Petrushka first come to mind.


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## Pantheon

I love Coppélia, Delibes' Sylvia and most of Tchaikovsky's 
I have seen the Bolshoi's Nutcracker which is really a treat.
Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliette would be the next on my list to see.


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## JCarmel

My favourite is La Bayadere...now currently being danced at Covent Garden by The Bolshoi, I believe.....
*Wish I could go*.....though having a couple of excellent performances available on dvd suffices to give me the necessary 'fix' of it, two or three times a year. But I_ do _wish that I could zip down to London, sit in a nice Box...with a bag of boiled sweets?!.....

I really enjoy the ballet score too, you see. Ludwig Minkus isn't to everybody's taste but it was my budgie's favourite & we whistled-along to the tunes, together....2 old birds together, one might say?


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## Itullian

I have to say the Nutcracker.
I think the music, the melodic invention, makes it one of the greatest works ever written.


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## Secretariat

I agree. I read somewhere that Tchaikovsky despised it though...is that true? And if so does anyone know why? My fave is probably Swan Lake but I really enjoy all 3 of his ballets, well the music that is...I've never seen the actual ballets.


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## Tristan

Secretariat said:


> I agree. I read somewhere that Tchaikovsky despised it though...is that true? And if so does anyone know why? My fave is probably Swan Lake but I really enjoy all 3 of his ballets, well the music that is...I've never seen the actual ballets.


Tchaikovsky was very harsh on his own compositions, and I believe the Nutcracker was one in particular that he didn't care much for. I will have to completely disagree with Pyotr Ilyich, however, as I completely agree with what you all are saying about it. It is certainly in my top-10 greatest works of classical music. "Swan Lake" was his personal favorite, though.


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## Secretariat

Interesting, I think that the Nutcracker is packed with him at his best. He really was harsh on himself, but I guess when you compose that well you can become over critical. It's brilliant work.


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## Feathers

Definitely Ravel's Daphnis et Chloe for me. Colourful, passionate, magical, incredible.


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## Selby

Feathers said:


> Definitely Ravel's Daphnis et Chloe for me. Colourful, passionate, magical, incredible.


Pretty much. If forced to choose one, which, thankfully I am not, it would be Ravel - perhaps the sexiest piece of music ever written.


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## katdad

For me, absolutely Rite of Spring. I never grow tired of the extraordinary music and really enjoy a sleek, modern interpretation.

Of course, Rite isn't technically "ballet" as much as modern dance, but this section is labeled "Ballet" which is meant to incorporate modern classical dance, not precisely "ballet" by accurate definition. Rite may in fact bridge the gap between the two genres.

I actually find "classical" ballet a bit tiresome occasionally. Mainly because of the misuse of male dancers, I suppose. Let's consider the point... for ages, males were trained to "dance like girls" because there was simply no concept that a male should behave differently onstage. Men were therefore taught to execute arm and leg movements that are quite specific to female anatomy.

Please understand, I'm NOT talking about gender roles or sexuality or homosexual vs heterosexual dancers, nor of societal images. I'm just talking about the physical anatomic structure of male vs female bodies. Males have wider shoulders, proportionately larger arms, thicker thighs, etc. Their height/weight ratios are also different. But for years, male dancers were essentially forced into female molds, where their movements duplicated female. And this sadly made them appear effeminate. Now I really don't give a damn whether a male dancer is gay or not. This isn't the issue. It's how the dancer appears in form and movement and how the choreography needs to be different for males vs females.

For me, this takes half the joy away from the dance. It wasn't till the 20th century that roles were coreographed specifically for male physiques (Agnes Demille, etc) and male dancers began to take their own rightful place as equals, but different, onstage.

Which is why I strongly prefer modern classical dance over traditional ballet. And so do the dancers, by a large margin. It's not that they don't like the gorgeous music of the 19th century, but they simply don't feel that they can express themselves as well within the constraints of traditional choreography.

For someone who'd not a dancer (ha ha, I can't even pretend to dance!) I've been around dancers a lot, as a result of my involvement in classical music and also finding myself marrying a dancer ages ago. She was pretty good, too -- studied with a full scholarship to National Ballet of Canada under Eric Bruhn, then was in the corps of the San Francisco ballet for 4 years, not too shabby.

While dating and then marrying her, I met plenty of dancers and learned a lot about what they wanted and what disappointed them. #1? Nutcracker. #2? Male dancers being required to dance like girls (arm movements and such). Even gay men I knew felt it was a misuse of their physique and structure.


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## sharik

katdad said:


> for ages, males were trained to "dance like girls" because there was simply no concept that a male should behave differently onstage


you are mistaken. you should go and learn more on the subject. ballet movemets have nothing to do with gender in the first place but with an artistic technique that requires to create an impression the dancers kind of 'defy the laws of gravitation' with there 'airy' movements on stage.


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## katdad

sharik said:


> you are mistaken. you should go and learn more on the subject. ballet movemets have nothing to do with gender in the first place but with an artistic technique that requires to create an impression the dancers kind of 'defy the laws of gravitation' with there 'airy' movements on stage.


I've learned a lot about dance. And I fully understand the "law of gravity" onstage. I've spoken with many dancers in the past about this and they all concur. The idea isn't mine -- it's what I was told by those dancers. I've got no skill about choreography myself whatsoever. I'm essentially repeating what I learned from them and since they are the ones dancing, I'd tend to believe them.

Besides, there is more than one way to simulate weightlessness (if this is what you want to convey). I however don't think that this is the object of choreography _per se_. The object is principally to convey an emotion to the audience, whatever that may be. For example, the sequence of the Rival Towns in Rite of Spring, where individuals are supposed to be contesting one another with prowess. It usually involves fake wrestling or spear throwing or whatever. None of that is weightlessness.

I agree that the swan does want to display "flight" and that's understandable.

My point, however, is that the arm movements (pulsing "waving" movements) are more suited for the slender female arm and not at all mechanically similar to the thicker and more muscular male arm. And for too long, choreographers refused to acknowledge this difference, making male dancers appear effeminate instead of taking "natural" advantage of the male physique and providing choreography that better suited that structure.

Again, I don't claim any authority or expertise myself. I'm just echoing what I've been told by my many former acquaintances who were dancers. You may be an authority yourself, a composer or choreographer or dancer perhaps, or a dance teacher. And therefore you would be very well suited to "overrule" my point, which of course I'd be happy to admit being the lesser informed.

What do I know? I'm just a writer with a fan's interest in dance and by no means anyone professionally connected to the art form, and related only by marriage, ha ha.


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## sharik

katdad said:


> I've spoken with many dancers in the past about this and they all concur. The idea isn't mine -- it's what I was told by those dancers


you spoke with bad dancers who have no idea what is ballet.



katdad said:


> there is more than one way to simulate weightlessness


nope, only one: 'feminine' movements for all.



katdad said:


> I however don't think that this is the object of choreography


weightlessness is the very essence of choreography, unless a stage character requires otherwise -


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## katdad

Well, apparently your expertise outshines mine, your experience in the field of dance, and so on, is easily more advanced. I admit to not having any "credentials" myself, only that I've known quite a few dancers over the years. But you are likely a professional in the field, a teacher or dancer or otherwise personally involved with dance, as you speak from a position of authority (whatever that may be, in that you haven't really told about it). I'm happy for you and I hope your career in dance continues to be a successful and productive one.


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## katdad

I will however lend my shabby opinion that "feminine for all" is precisely why I cannot tolerate classical ballet and greatly prefer modern classical dance. It's an artificially engendered imposition.


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## Cosmos

My favorite ballets are all Russian: Stravinsky's Rite of Spring and Petrushka, and Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet and Cinderella.

Oh wait I forgot to mention Ravel's Daphnis et Chloe


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## hreichgott

Katdad, this is an interesting critique and it's the first time I've heard it. I've heard a lot of people (especially modern dancers attached to colleges and universities) complaining that ballet is TOO gendered, though -- the guys have so much in the way of special bravura movements that the girls never do, that they take separate boys' classes in addition to regular class in order to practice them! These folks usually love modern dance because it allows for more gender ambiguity than ballet does.

It is true that ballet emphasizes beauty and fluidity and strength all at the same time, no matter what your gender is. (But why shouldn't both men and women be beautiful, fluid and strong?)


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## sharik

katdad said:


> you are likely a professional in the field, a teacher or dancer or otherwise personally involved with dance


no, i'm just a ballet fan who has eyes and common sense.



katdad said:


> "feminine for all" is precisely why I cannot tolerate classical ballet and greatly prefer modern classical dance


try Broadway cabaret and let ballet be.


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## sharik

katdad said:


> modern classical dance


no such thing exists, other than in advertising campaigns for those dance companies unable to dance properly and whose dancers had been regected from classical ballet.


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## moody

"Le Sacre" because of the savagery of the music and,if we had a second choice, "Casse Noisette" for the opposite reason.


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## katdad

sharik said:


> [modern classical dance] no such thing exists, other than in advertising campaigns for those dance companies unable to dance properly and whose dancers had been regected from classical ballet.


Very strange concept. You mean that modern choreographers such as Agnes DeMille, Martha Graham, George Balanchine, Merce Cunningham, Twyla Tharp and others are barking up a nonexistent tree?

Here's what I think: you're totally hooked on Tchaikovsky (who in fact is great, and who wrote perhaps the greatest classical ballets) and your love for his compositions muddles your view of legitimate modern classical dance.

If you prefer the traditional style, fine, so be it. I happen to prefer modern classical dance. Both are good and I happily acknowledge both styles as terrific in their own venues and frames.

But for you to totally ignore and reject modern classical dance as failed ballet, dancers and choreographers who aren't good enough for the Wooden Prince or the White/Black Swan? Specious.

Anyone here who's familiar with both aspects of dance, classical ballet and modern classical dance, feel free to weigh in, please. I contend that sharik is not being realistic at all, that he's off base to totally reject modern dance as a falsehood or a failed classical. He may prefer the classic, okay, that's his prerogative, but to ignore, to reject people like Twyla Tharp or George Balanchine? Gimme a break.


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## sharik

katdad said:


> You mean that modern choreographers such as Agnes DeMille, Martha Graham, George Balanchine, Merce Cunningham, Twyla Tharp and others are barking up a nonexistent tree?


i meant the likes of Pina Baus and Mats Ek and Nacho Duato and so on... as for Balanchine's - his sort is not modern or contemporary but just a mediocre classical ballet kind of dance, rather outdated and secondary.



katdad said:


> you're totally hooked on Tchaikovsky


not at all. here's what i'm into at the moment -

*Shostakovitch The Bolt*


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## Pyotr

Been on vacation the last few weeks. Nice to see the new forum has gotten off to such a good start. Enjoyed reading everyone's input so far. Swan Lake is my favorite although I have not attended any live performances yet, but I'm hoping to do as soon as the local company gets around to doing it again. I own the Mariinsky Ballet's blu-ray version, which I watch from time-to-time. There is no substitute for a live performance though.


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## gpaulot

My favorite ballet: the swan lake for the music
Paquita for the choreography
Bolero could come first but it is almost never more played in ballet.
But this latest one is one the most played music in the world with its repeated theme and fantastic crescendo


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## TrevBus

'La Sylphide' Lovenskiold

2 by Bernstein
'Fancy Free'
'Dybbuk'

Although it is rarely performed, Walter Piston's 'The Incredible Flutist' is remarkable. I helped stage a production of it w/my son as the Flutist


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## Huilunsoittaja

@sharik and all:






This is BRILLIANT!!!!!!!! I already adored the suite, but now I can hear EVERYTHING! All 3 acts in full!! Already listened to this fully, and I found the other 2 acts on youtube as well. I'm gonna die of pleasure.


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## RobinG

I guess I'm unoriginal but I've always loved Swan Lake, the combination of music and well presented dance can be a delight.


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## LouisMasterMusic

If someone asked me how I like opera and ballet, I would say that I like to see opera and listen to ballet (although I do own a lot of opera on CD, and I listen on the computer). Seeing people constantly dance for two hours on end is for me like watching paint dry. My favourite ballet is Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake; the Finale just gets me every time. Long-breathed lines, and an opening blaze of fire that grabs attention. I do, however, also enjoy excerpts from The Sleeping Beauty and The Nutcracker. (I only like the suite of the latter; no toy instruments). All in all, I enjoy highlights rather than sitting down to listen to a complete ballet. Who knows, maybe I will one day?


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## Celesta

I'm a passionate balletomane and it's tough to pick just one score as a favorite. Tchaikovsky comes to mind immediately. He completely revolutionized the genre and demonstrated that ballet music was a form to be taken seriously. Swan Lake and The Nutcracker are masterpieces of melody, orchestration, story telling and "danceability". But IMO The Sleeping Beauty is in a class by itself. It's 3 hours of gorgeous narrative dance music. I attended dozens of his ballet performances and the way his music comes to life with an orchestra playing live and dancers onstage moving to his music is extraordinary.

Prokofiev's ballets are great too. Romeo & Juliet I think is his magnum opus. The score's dramatic and lyric power bowls one over. Cinderella is a beautiful score but differs from R&J in that Prokofiev fits the score into classical dance forms: pas de deux, variations, waltzes, etc. Cinderella is arguably Prokofiev's homage to Tchaikovsky.

Other great ballet scores are Stravinsky's Firebird, Petrushka and Apollo and Ravel's stunning Daphnis & Chloe.


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## LittleSoubrette

I know this thread is old, but...

My favorite ballet is Don Quixote. The music is so passionate, dramatic, fun, and elegant!!!


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## spradlig

My favorite ballet is Prokofiev's _Romeo and Juliet_. I've never seen it, and I don't really care about dancing at all, just music. The music is great and this ballet contains an incredible quantity of good music. Does anyone know how long it is?


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## Celloman

I think it's about two hours, maybe a bit less.

(p.s. Look at the first post!)


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## Posie

Swan Lake :-D I'll come back when I can elaborate on my reason.


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## Ravndal

hreichgott said:


> Cinderella! (Prokofiev) I regularly just listen to this for entertainment even without having choreography to look at. It's gorgeous music and there is not a dull moment. I intend to learn one or more of the piano concert suites from it at some point.


This one has been in my wishlist for quite some time now


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## sabrina

Coppelia (not all productions), La Bayadère, Swan Lake...I love ballets, but I'm rather picky...
And i almost forgot Don Quixote!
I loved, loved this production:


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## ClassicalGuitarist

Swan Lake and The Nutcracker. While I was driving today I turned on my local classical station and Swan Lake just happened to be playing and I was actually glad that I was taking a long drive so I could listen to all the movements. It made my day.


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## aimee

Swan Lake is the best (for me)

For Coppélia, I enjoyed watching this version from Australian Ballet:


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## sabrina

aimee said:


> Swan Lake is the best (for me)
> 
> For Coppélia, I enjoyed watching this version from Australian Ballet:


Thanks! Indeed it is a wonderful production. I've watched it on youtube.


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## talx

I would say Nutcracker is my fav.


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## Rackon

Favorite ballets by choregrapher, including some modern dance...

Balanchine - Four Temperaments, Agon, Symphony in C, Who Cares, Square Dance, Apollo, Prodigal Son, Jewels, Concerto Barocco

Robbins: Dances At A Gathering, Afternoon Of A Faun, The Concert

Ashton: Monotones, The Dream, La Fil Mal Gardee, A Month In The Country, Les Patineurs(I would also include Enigma Variations except I haven't seen it in soooo long)

Tharp: Push Comes To Shove

Taylor: Esplanade, Cloven Kingdom, Roses, Rite of Spring, Company B

Mark Morris: Dido & Aeneus; Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato


Traditional...Nutcracker, Act 2 Swan Lake, Giselle (with a great cast)


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## Copperears

Another vote for The Tale of the Stone Flower here, particularly the Melodiya recording. That's the only one which has captured the full drama and magic of the music for me. The recording is a bit on the thin side, 1968 Melodiya, but on the other hand I find that just brings out the presence of all the instruments and their articulations the more.

I had the rare chance at one point in my life to study with someone from Moscow Conservatory. Russian classical musicianship is just astounding, there is absolutely nothing so deep nor so technical as it in the West. We're slobs, by comparison.

You hear all that in Gennady Rozhdestvensky's performance here with the Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra.


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## Rackon

Do any folks who named musical favoritesevenings actually care for dancing? I took the original post to mean one's favorite "ballet", not one's favorite ballet score.


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## Fried fifer

Personally Stravinsky is my second favorite composer so his ballets are obviously at the top my my list. Especially Le Sacre and Pulcinella, which if you've never seen, i highly recommend. It is available on youtube in 5 parts.


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## Orfeo

_*My favorites:*_

Glazunov: Raymonda & The Seasons
Tchaikovsky: Sleeping Beauty
Nosyrev: Song of Triumphant Love
Ravel: Daphnis et Chloe
Dukas: La Peri
Nikolai Tcherepnin: Echo et Narcisse
Delibes: Sylvia
Offenbach: Le Papillon
Massenet: Le Carillon
Bartok: The Wooden Prince 
Stravinsky: The Firebird & Petrushka
Khrennikov: Napoleon Bonaparte
Boris Asafiev: Flames of Paris
Shchedrin: Anna Karenina
Murad Kazhlayev: Gorianka (Maiden of the Mountains)
Khachaturian: Spartacus
Rossini (arr. Respighi): La Boutique Fantasque
Leevi Madetoja: Okon Fuoko
Rimsky-Korsakov: Mlada (opera-ballet)


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## Exordiom

definitely rite of spring!


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## Andrei

*Le Sacre*.
Apollo & Petrushka also by Stravinsky I also rank highly.


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## DFALRUITAE

Swan Lake is one of my favourite, most amazing, and most beautiful ballet's ever written.


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## Orfeo

John Antill's "Coroboree," which I failed to mention before.


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## clara s

Bolero by Ravel

Jorge Donn with Bejart Ballet


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## Eviticus

ClassicalGuitarist said:


> Swan Lake and The Nutcracker. While I was driving today I turned on my local classical station and Swan Lake just happened to be playing and I was actually glad that I was taking a long drive so I could listen to all the movements. It made my day.


The music to Swan Lake is divine with so many brilliant moments. However, the palace/court scene itself i found quite boring. The music is far greater than any visuals i've seen to date.


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## The nose

Stravinsky's _Sacre du printemps_ in Nijinsky original choreography, but i recently watched a representation of Béjart's choreography and it's good too.


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## Marschallin Blair

dholling said:


> _*My favorites:*_
> 
> Glazunov: Raymonda & The Seasons
> Tchaikovsky: Sleeping Beauty
> Nosyrev: Song of Triumphant Love
> Ravel: Daphnis et Chloe
> Dukas: La Peri
> Nikolai Tcherepnin: Echo et Narcisse
> Delibes: Sylvia
> Offenbach: Le Papillon
> Massenet: Le Carillon
> Bartok: The Wooden Prince
> Stravinsky: The Firebird & Petrushka
> Khrennikov: Napoleon Bonaparte
> Boris Asafiev: Flames of Paris
> Shchedrin: Anna Karenina
> Murad Kazhlayev: Gorianka (Maiden of the Mountains)
> Khachaturian: Spartacus
> Rossini (arr. Respighi): La Boutique Fantasque
> Leevi Madetoja: Okon Fuoko
> Rimsky-Korsakov: Mlada (opera-ballet)


I like that Daphne's in there.


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## Marschallin Blair

Rackon said:


> Do any folks who named musical favoritesevenings actually care for dancing? I took the original post to mean one's favorite "ballet", not one's favorite ballet score.


Ha. Ha. Ha. . . touche. . . fair shooting.

You want to talke the chocolate ganache of Nijinsky, Karsavina, and Fokine-- and you get the sourdough pretzels of the scores to Le Sacre and Daphne. . . Ha. Ha. Ha.

Mutatis mutandis, for me; but for the music.


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## Marschallin Blair

Celesta said:


> I'm a passionate balletomane and it's tough to pick just one score as a favorite. Tchaikovsky comes to mind immediately. He completely revolutionized the genre and demonstrated that ballet music was a form to be taken seriously. Swan Lake and The Nutcracker are masterpieces of melody, orchestration, story telling and "danceability". But IMO The Sleeping Beauty is in a class by itself. It's 3 hours of gorgeous narrative dance music. I attended dozens of his ballet performances and the way his music comes to life with an orchestra playing live and dancers onstage moving to his music is extraordinary.
> 
> Prokofiev's ballets are great too. Romeo & Juliet I think is his magnum opus. The score's dramatic and lyric power bowls one over. Cinderella is a beautiful score but differs from R&J in that Prokofiev fits the score into classical dance forms: pas de deux, variations, waltzes, etc. Cinderella is arguably Prokofiev's homage to Tchaikovsky.
> 
> Other great ballet scores are Stravinsky's Firebird, Petrushka and Apollo and Ravel's stunning Daphnis & Chloe.


<Ping!>. . . . . . . . <Ping!>. . . . <Ping!>. . . <Ping!>. . <Ping!> <P-p-p-p-p-p-p-p-p-p-i-i-i-i-i-ng!> (factorial). . .

Lovely all.


----------



## Marschallin Blair

leomarillier said:


> Ok, now his is a tough question. Because ballet music covers, always under the same name of ballet music, more than 350 years, including Lully, Rameau, and other French composers at the _cour du roi_, the romantic (not only Delibes, Lakmé, Tchaikovsky, but also Beethoven-a good Prometheus music if you ask me!-, the fruitious early 20th, and the modern (Glass, notably).
> I luckily had the opportunity to attend a performance of Les Siècles, a wonderful french orchestra, during the summit of the Radio Festival in Montpellier. They played the usual Rameau Indes Galantes Suite, Lully as well, Delibes, Lakmé, and the Rite of Spring. I was quite thrilled by Rameau, and I had the confirmation that Romantic ballet, at least the popular one, is just, musically speaking, sweeties and ruins of delicatessen from a wonderful era. Of course, the Rite is more mind-crushing than any other musical piece - still to this say!-, but in terms of musical beauty, choregraphic poetry, public acceptance, and yet modernity and shivering light, the *Firebird* seems pretty hard to beat, and Prokofiev's Suite Scythe comes close with those criteras. I know, musically speaking, it's almost Haydn, put together even with Pétrouchka. But the stylistic and formal "gaps" of the Russian Tradition, including Rimsky's heavy basses and codas, are here transcendented by orchestral variety, an attention not to musical form but to the story! Not a "dumbening" ABA form...
> 
> But if there is something even greater than this, It's Debussy's Jeux.
> Musically, a storm, it does not have the structural and popular appeal of Images, the assumed colorism of Nocturnes, but shares images with Pélléas, it does not have the comfort of La Mer, works and grows by exaltant convulsions. The height of Debussy's genius, modernism, even in the "drama"; no musical rule is here "applicable" (formally quite obviously, but in the little melodic shapes, even the orchestration, Debussy goes WILD and almost INSANE). Plus, the argument is... Well you know, it's one of those little stories, almost anecdotes, that makes the listening of the music absolutely delicious, like Cosi Fan Tutte. "The scene is a garden at dusk; a tennis ball has been lost; a boy and two girls are searching for it. The artificial light of the large electric lamps shedding fantastic rays about them suggests the idea of childish games: they play hide and seek, they try to catch one another, they quarrel, they sulk without cause. The night is warm, the sky is bathed in pale light; they embrace. But the spell is broken by another tennis ball thrown in mischievously by an unknown hand. Surprised and alarmed, the boy and girls disappear into the nocturnal depths of the garden."
> The argument is "nothing", everything is about the mood, the atmosphere, a Turner of the tennis court, just three people, and mysteries surrounding, themselves lost ina city. There is no sacrifice, nor a devil to destroy, just an anecdote that could happen to everyone. And at the same time, a vast quantity of images is offered to us. Van Goghian modern images, some kind of non-mystical (but mist-ical!), subtle erotism that everyone can experience, here the flirting of Pélléas an Mélisande seems less exclusive but as orgasmic. Plus, some ideas are really what Debussy was into, generally speaking! A new type of light, a new type of darkness, of night, and yet images of love are here: the moon bathed, embraced by the coulds, lonely lovers surrounded by civilization, still, blessed by the moon (or is it an electric light?^^). And, for Debussy, this is the ultimate Ode to a new time, when, as the nights are lit up by man, and consequently days are not days anymore, love and attraction is to be found and expressed through little gestures, not in "special" moments, not in the middle of a lonely dark night where the lovers, unable to seeing each other, swear solemnly their undying love for half an hour (don't get me wrong, I love Tristan and Isolde), and flirt is now a pleasure to create, seems to be a special sign of attention between those people.
> These three people, in the argument of the ballet, are friends. They're young and beautiful.
> 
> _Let the Games begin._


A. . . well-thought out and 'sustained' response: bravo!


----------



## Orfeo

Marschallin Blair said:


> I like that Daphne's in there.


Cool! You should try the Nosyrev and Tcherepnin ballets if you haven't already.


----------



## Eviticus

Marschallin Blair said:


> <Ping!>. . . . . . . . <Ping!>. . . . <Ping!>. . . <Ping!>. . <Ping!> <P-p-p-p-p-p-p-p-p-p-i-i-i-i-i-ng!> (factorial). . .
> 
> Lovely all.


Another ping from me... assuming the 'ping' is the pretty sound of the celesta hitting the right notes.


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## mirepoix

I haven't managed to attend a ballet yet, but it's something I'll definitely do. I haven't even seen very many. Of those I've watched my favourite so far is a MacMillan Production of Romeo and Juliet. I believe a huge part of that is because I love Prokofiev's music.


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## Haydn man

My wife is the ballet fan in our house and she says The Nutcracker gets her vote, apparently because 'it just does'
Then she added 'that's so far' so the lady may exercise her option to change her mind!


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## Marschallin Blair

My wife is the ballet fan in our house and she says The Nutcracker gets her vote, apparently because 'it just does'Then she added 'that's so far' so the lady may exercise her option to change her mind! 









-- Then blow her away with a Diaghilev-staged version of the Firebird.


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## Marschallin Blair

The nose said:


> Stravinsky's _Sacre du printemps_ in Nijinsky original choreography, but i recently watched a representation of Béjart's choreography and it's good too.











Seen this?-- I got it just for the beautifully-recreated opening scene of the film at the première of Le Sacre at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées ; but not for the insipid drama between Stravinksy and Channel. Ha. Ha. Ha.


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## Haydn man

Thanks for that recommendation 
I will have to get that for her


----------



## Levanda

Just for interest Russian ballet so popular, how about African or Arabic ballets? 



Levanda


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## Whistler Fred

Nutcracker tops my (rather large) list, for both musical and personal reasons. I grew up with the Nutcracker (Tchaikovsky was one of my mom's favorite composers), and we made several trips to see the Joffrey Ballet performance of it during the holiday season. So I have all sorts of warm associations with the music and the ballet. And the music itself is wonderful!


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## Autumn Leaves

My answer is, alas, not in any way original: _Swan Lake_. My most favorite ballet of them all, for me better than even the fantastic _Nutcracker_. I practically grew up on Tchaikovsky's ballets... And though I'm now a devoted opera fan, I'm still jumping at any chance to see them.


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## sharik

Rackon said:


> Do any folks who named musical favoritesevenings actually care for dancing? I took the original post to mean one's favorite "ballet", not one's favorite ballet score.


a valid point, by the way, but alas - ballet means music score in the first place, not dancing... the history of ballet has kept only those ballets that have masterpiece music score, with no regard to dancing as such whatsoever.


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## sharik

Exordiom said:


> definitely rite of spring!


well folks, i don't quite get your infatuation with _Le Sacre Du Printemps_ because that piece has roots in the works by Mussorgsky and Borodin and Rimsky Korsakov, that is, you had heard it already long time before.


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## Avey

I read this as an open-ended post: favorite ballet for dancing, score, suite or otherwise. So, I'm going purely on music.

I recently heard *Prokofiev's *_Cinderella_ in full, and I can't listen to anything else right now. From that mesmerizing opening adagio, and all that gorgeous weaving between the waltzes, serenade-esque interludes, that distressing clock(!) -- it's so incredibly dramatic. And that's the whole point, right?


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## QuietGuy

My all-time favorite ballet has to be Ravel's Daphnis et Chloe. I love the music from beginning to end. I've only seen a filmed performance of it, and from what I was able to tell (I am not a dance person), the choreography told the story well.


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## hpowders

Favorite: Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet. Nothing else even comes close.


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## perempe

Feathers said:


> Definitely Ravel's Daphnis et Chloe for me. Colourful, passionate, magical, incredible.


i heard it for your advice, a fantastic piece. thank you so much.


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## perempe

hpowders said:


> Favorite: Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet. Nothing else even comes close.


i have tickets for 20th April, can't wait to see.


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## hpowders

perempe said:


> i have tickets for 20th April, can't wait to see.


Hope you enjoy it. I've seen it often and can't get enough of it!


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## QuietGuy

The only ballet I've ever seen live is _The Firebird_. Loved it. I've seen filmed performances of Stravinsky's _Pulchinell_a, and Ravel's _Daphnis et Chloe_. As for the latter, I've loved the music for years, and always wondered what the choreography might look like. Finally saw a film on youtube (in 9 parts) which was only one possibility for the choreography telling that story with that music. Beautiful stuff.


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## perempe

i just got back from The Taming of the Shrew. i really liked the plot, and enjoyed the music.

i liked the bath scene plot-wise compared to boring ball scenes of Onegin and The Merry Widow.


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## Woodduck

sharik said:


> well folks, i don't quite get your infatuation with _Le Sacre Du Printemps_ because that piece has roots in the works by Mussorgsky and Borodin and Rimsky Korsakov, that is, you had heard it already long time before.


Roots are invisible underground. Its the trunk, branches, leaves and blossoms that we see, and those were startling enough to cause a riot.


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## Woodduck

hpowders said:


> Favorite: Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet. Nothing else even comes close.


Concur. Watched the video of Fonteyn & Nureyev with a friend and we ended up hugging and blubbering.


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## hpowders

^^^^I've seen it live a couple of times and no other ballet comes close.

I have comprehensive excerpts by Solti and Abbado. Also, complete performance by Previn and Tilson Thomas.

The Solti is my favorite.


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## perempe

i bought tickets to a concert, and i just found out that the last piece will be Daphnis et Chloé! Lionel Bringuier will be the conductor.


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## hpowders

For all time: Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet.


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## Celloman

You said that already! 



hpowders said:


> Favorite: Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet. Nothing else even comes close.


----------



## mirepoix

Celloman said:


> You said that already!


But it's _that_ good.


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## hpowders

Celloman said:


> You said that already!


It shows I'm consistent in my beliefs. Imagine if I wrote "Romeo and Juliet" back in March and now, "Le Sacre du Printemps" as my all time favorite.

Also, who reads an entire thread? Folks usually concentrate on the last page, so I'm bringing them "up to date".

Add all this up and it simply means:

I MADE A MISTAKE!!!! :lol::lol:


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## hpowders

mirepoix said:


> But it's _that_ good.


You know, it really is that good. Whenever I'm fortunate enough to see it performed, I always feel it's worth the money spent.


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## mirepoix

^^^I'm still waiting to see it live, in person, before my eyes. One day...


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## perempe

hpowders said:


> Favorite: Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet. Nothing else even comes close.


I couldn't agree more. i saw it today for the second time.



















when i saw it for the first time, there were teen girls ahead of me in the box. even they recognised Dance of the Knights.

when i saw it for the first time tuba sounded unmusical in the 3rd act, this time it was much better.


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## perempe

back home from La Sylphide. Shoko Nakamura was the star of the evening.


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## cjvinthechair

I qualify as a ballet music person, though the dancing isn't really for me. 
Only here to mention some beautiful music recently discovered - glancing through the posts, it had a very brief 'nod' to it earlier but that's all, I think:
Mikhail Nosyrev 'The Song of Triumphant Love'...gee, the guy could write some sumptuous tunes !


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## Avey

Am I alone in my preferring _Cinderalla_ over _Romeo and Juliet_?


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## MissLemko

Giselle! The variation in the 1st act is so beautiful! And the ballone sur la pointe...it's so fun to do!


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## hpowders

Avey said:


> Am I alone in my preferring _Cinderalla_ over _Romeo and Juliet_?


Probably! Ha! Ha! I adore Romeo and Juliet. It is my favorite ballet and have seen it performed by American Ballet Theater at the Met in NYC. Unforgettable!


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## Dustin

Avey said:


> Am I alone in my preferring _Cinderalla_ over _Romeo and Juliet_?


They're certainly close! I've listened to them both recently and haven't formed a definitive opinion yet. You've gotta love his wonderful orchestrations.

At this point, I still have to give my vote to Tchaikovsky. Which one? Can't say for sure but today I'll say Sleeping Beauty


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## Antiquarian

I enjoy La Boutique Fantasque by Rossini / Respighi. Not so much for the Diaghilev's pastiche ballet, but just for the music.


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## Marschallin Blair

> Antiquarian: Antiquarian: My all-time favorite ballet has to be Ravel's Daphnis et Chloe. I love the music from beginning to end. I've only seen a filmed performance of it, and from what I was able to tell (I am not a dance person), the choreography told the story well.


Probably mine as well; though the _Rite of Spring _, the _Firebird, __ Swan Lake_, the_ Nutcracker_, and _Sleeping Beauty _come close. Ha. Ha. Ha.


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## science

I'd have to go with the _Rite of Spring_. Is that allowed here?

After Stravinsky, also up there are the ballets of Tchaikovsky and Prokofiev.

Adam's _Giselle_ is IMO more interesting than we usually appreciate. I'm also a bigger fan of _Coppélia_ than many of our more elite friends here.

And Glazunov's _The Seasons_. Seems to be a filler every time it's recorded but it rewards a bit of attention.


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## sharik

Avey said:


> Am I alone in my preferring _Cinderalla_ over _Romeo and Juliet_?


no, i second you on that.


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## perempe

Antiquarian said:


> I enjoy La Boutique Fantasque by Rossini / Respighi. Not so much for the Diaghilev's pastiche ballet, but just for the music.


i'm listening it right now. thank you for the recommendation.


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## Vaneyes

Ballet? Many years ago, impromptus by Legs Diamond and Anne Howe.


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## perempe

in the new season I already have tickets to:
Coppelia, The Nutcracker, Manon & Swan Lake (late April '15).

I'll buy tickets to Sylvia & The Karamazovs later. will watch La Sylphide again with Shoko Nakamura.


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## Blake

Just finished watching _The Rite of Spring_ and it kinda' blew me away. I had some pricky bias against ballets... thinking they were too "feminine." But this was quite awesome.


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## ComposerOfAvantGarde

Vesuvius said:


> Just finished watching _The Rite of Spring_ and it kinda' blew me away. I had some pricky bias against ballets... thinking they were too "feminine." But this was quite awesome.


The rite of spring must be feminine then.....BUT I guess females are mentally and biologically/physically superior to men anyway.
Which is just like the Rite of Spring.


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## Blake

ComposerOfAvantGarde said:


> The rite of spring must be feminine then.....BUT I guess females are mentally and biologically/physically superior to men anyway.
> Which is just like the Rite of Spring.


Whatever it was, I really enjoyed it. Funny the societal conditionings that are so locked into us about what's proper masculine or feminine. The hell is all that really about?

What if I chug a beer, punch you in the nose, and enjoy a ballet? Is that okay? Haha


----------



## ComposerOfAvantGarde

Vesuvius said:


> Whatever it was, I really enjoyed it. Funny the societal conditionings that are so locked into us about what's proper masculine or feminine. The hell is all that really about?
> 
> What if I chug a beer, punch you in the nose, and enjoy a ballet? Is that okay? Haha


ikr....and as for your last point I think I know a couple of women who would actually do that!


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## Jordan Law

Hello 

I love ballet, and as an artist, it is a great inspiration to my work. My ultimate favourite is of course The Nutcracker by Tchaikovsky, but his other ballets are so sublime and beautiful. I also enjoy The Firebird by Stravinsky. There is something so dark and intense, fantastical and strange, about his music


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## Rameau

Sylvia by Delibes hands down, right from the beginning to the end of the opera Delibes creates a magic only he can compose. I love the big powerful Prelude, it's the perfect way to start any ballet. Even Tchaikovsky said about Sylvia, "...the first ballet, where the music constitutes not only the main, but the only interest. What charm, what elegance, what richness of melody, rhythm, harmony." Not to forget the pizzicato from Act 3, a true masterpiece, the most famous piece in the ballet for good reason.


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## BevSills

As a whole Ballet, my all-time favorite is "Giselle", when I was lucky enough to see G. Kirkland and M. Baryshnikov. My favorite moment in Ballet is the "Kingdom of the Shades" entrance from "La Bayadere". But my most exciting night at the Ballet was watching Carla Fracci in "Coppelia".


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## perempe

Rameau said:


> Sylvia by Delibes hands down, right from the beginning to the end of the opera Delibes creates a magic only he can compose. I love the big powerful Prelude, it's the perfect way to start any ballet. Even Tchaikovsky said about Sylvia, "...the first ballet, where the music constitutes not only the main, but the only interest. What charm, what elegance, what richness of melody, rhythm, harmony." Not to forget the pizzicato from Act 3, a true masterpiece, the most famous piece in the ballet for good reason.


I already have tickets for May.


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## yelu

Swan Lake always ranks top3 in my list!! Music, performance, techniques etc. are so stunning! Like music of Romeo & Juliet but u know, the story line is a bit uhhh tedious...Another two will be Sylvia and Giselle


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## Avey

Um, does anyone have a copy of -- or even _seen live_ -- Ravel's _Daphnis et Chloe_? I cannot find a DVD of the ballet --that being the physical, _dance_, optical form of the composition.

A push in the right direction would be appreciated. Thanks.


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## naturebug

Maybe it's a generic answer, but my favorite has always been The Nutcracker. I always dreamed of being in it. I studied dance for many years but never good enough to be in a production of it. I still enjoy going to performances of it though. I love it for the music, the story, the costumes and the idea of a child star has always appealed to me since I was a little girl.


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## Itullian

naturebug said:


> Maybe it's a generic answer, but my favorite has always been The Nutcracker. I always dreamed of being in it. I studied dance for many years but never good enough to be in a production of it. I still enjoy going to performances of it though. I love it for the music, the story, the costumes and the idea of a child star has always appealed to me since I was a little girl.


The Nutcracker is mine too.


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## hpowders

Prokofiev Romeo and Juliet, the best of all ballets!


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## perempe

I saw La Sylphide (Løvenskiold) with Shoko Nakamura for the second time on Sunday.
it's pretty good, but short. the forest scene (act2) is my favourite.














It's performed after Troy Game (Downes, all-male ballet parody in one act).

this season I'll see:
Coppélia, The Nutcracker, Manon, Swan Lake, Sylvia, The Karamazovs


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## hpowders

My favorite ballet purely for music listening is Appalachian Spring by Aaron Copland.

My favorite ballet for experiencing the visual and aural in a theater is Romeo and Juliet by Sergei Prokofiev.


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## mikey

Avey said:


> Um, does anyone have a copy of -- or even _seen live_ -- Ravel's _Daphnis et Chloe_? I cannot find a DVD of the ballet --that being the physical, _dance_, optical form of the composition.
> 
> A push in the right direction would be appreciated. Thanks.


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## bassClef

For the music: Stravinsky's Rite of Spring is my favourite ballet score - unless it's discounted for being used more predomanantly as a concert piece these days - if so then Prokofiev's Romeo & Juliet.

For the spectacle and the dancing itself: Khachaturian's Spartacus.


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## chara

La Bayadère & A Midsummer Night's Dream (by Balanchine)... just love the music & choreography of those two ballets!


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## Xaltotun

Not very knowledgeable about ballet but I'll choose _Daphnis et Chloe._ I also love the original novel by Longus! Innocence, ideal, joy of living, growing up, pastoral... beautiful things.


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## kirsten

Probably the Rite of Spring or Romeo & Juliet.


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## Marschallin Blair

Well. . . for _starters_.


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## Kije

Haven't seen or even heard too many ballet's but currently my favourite is Stravinsky's _The Rite of Spring_ with the original choreography by Vaslav Nijinsky.


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## davidaunes

Swan Lake and te Nutcracker, although I'm almost a newbie in this "field" and I have many ballets pending to listen


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## Auntie Lynn

Agon...I has everything in it...


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## sharik

*Asafiev* - _Flames of Paris_


----------



## Queen of the Nerds

My current favorite ballets are Swan Lake, The Firebird, and Romeo and Juliet. All in a 63-year spread by Russian composers.......

Weird. Just weird.


----------



## hpowders

And yet the professional critics usually say Tchaikovsky's greatest ballet is Sleeping Beauty...


----------



## aajj

I have only attended one ballet in my life and do not watch them on DVD, youtube or tv, so i can only rate by the music. 

Petrushka is my favorite.

Also, 
Ravel's Daphnis et Chloé 
Prokofiev's Romeo & Juliet
Bartok's Miraculous Mandarin
Copland's Appalachian Spring
De Falla's El Amor Brujo
Piazzolla's Tango Ballet


----------



## Celesta

I'm a balletomane and attend the ballet often so this is a tough question. Prokofiev's Romeo & Juliet is probably the one. In live performance (even by a mediocre pickup ballet orchestra) or in a recording (Previn's is my favorite) R&J is powerful, profoundly moving music. Prokofiev understood Shakespeare better than any other composer. He captures the love/hatred conflict perfectly and puts you squarely in the center of the story and the souls of the characters. R&J is his magnum opus, IMO.


----------



## Queen of the Nerds

Roland said:


> The only ballet I have actually seen (as opposed to "listened to") is Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker. I would have to say that it was surprisingly good. The music was, of course, beautiful. The choreography was terrific. And, I'll admit, I liked all the pretty ballerinas. All in all, Tchaikovsky can make for a magical evening.


Yes. True, but I want to see others!


----------



## Queen of the Nerds

hpowders said:


> And yet the professional critics usually say Tchaikovsky's greatest ballet is Sleeping Beauty...


Which is insane, because we ALL know that Swan Lake is his finest...


----------



## Queen of the Nerds

Swan Lake and The Firebird.


----------



## Becca

Ashton/Lanchbery/Herold - _La Fille Mal Gardee_
Macmillan/Joplin etc. - _Elite Syncopations_


----------



## Becca

There is (or was) a video of Frederick Ashton's Daphnis & Chloe on YouTube.

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEGKOC7mvop9bFCvrfUFzIr0yioPxF8CQ


----------



## Albert7

Agon by Stravinsky is my favorite ballet number.


----------



## xample

Swan Lake here. it's been my favorite ever since


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## Albert7

Morton Feldman's Ixion is pretty awesome for a modern ballet IHMO


----------



## bigshot

Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet


----------



## Couac Addict




----------



## Albert7

I also really dig The Nutcracker, which is very beautiful in itself.


----------



## Clayton

Gluck: Orphée et Eurydice
Sung in German
Orpheus - Yann Bridard (ballet), Maria Riccarda Wesseling (opera), Eurydice - Marie-Agnès Gillot (ballet), Julia Kleiter (opera), Amor - Miteki Kudo (ballet ) & Sunhae Im (opera)
Ballet de l'Opéra national de Paris & Balthasar-Neumann Chor & Ensemble, Thomas Hengelbrock
Choreography and Stage Direction: Pina Bausch

Set, costume and lighting designs: Rolf Borzik









This is a very beautiful performance, thrilling in parts and a wonderful interpretation of Gluck's masterpiece. Produced by Pina Bausch and described by her as a dance-opera, this is my favourite ballet and something that I would be very happy to recommend to fans of ballet, the opera Orfeo ed Euridice and just great theatre performance.


----------



## Gaspard de la Nuit

I don't witness too much ballet, but on music alone, ravel's mother goose (the full ballet score being particularly great), ranks very high for me, followed by Daphnis and Chloe....the most beautiful score yet to be composed. Scythian suite is a great, great score and for the rite I actually enjoy the choreography as it appears on the Nijinsky replication, though apparently this may be less violent than the original......oh yeah, the music is good too.

Fun fact, the rioting at the premier of the rite had almost nothing to do with the music, but the substance matter of the ballet and the choreography.....very few of the reviews penned even mentioned the music.


----------



## dzc4627

the rite of spring. i know, an obvious one, but it is really the only one i have seen, i'll admit.


----------



## Albert7

I really enjoy Stravinsky's ballets the best... they seem to be rather angular and very beautiful in its experimental nature. Definitely revolutionary.

Rameau is a close second of course.


----------



## rachelb

Swan Lake! I also love Serenade for Strings.


----------



## Tristan

Swan Lake is still my favorite, but I really love Sleeping Beauty. My only issue with it, though, is that the final act feels a bit "tacked on". This is in contrast to Swan Lake's final act that makes use of motifs from earlier in the ballet, whereas Sleeping Beauty's final act includes entirely new material that doesn't seem have any relation to the themes and motifs we've heard earlier. Additionally, the grand finale is an adaptation of a French folk song. It just seems to have little to do with the rest of the ballet. Just a minor negative to an otherwise amazing work, however.

As a side note, is Sleeping Beauty one of the longest orchestral works there is? It's 2 hours and 45 minutes long in its full form--there are longer operas and oratorios, of course, but surely it has to be one of the longest entirely orchestral works.


----------



## Huilunsoittaja

Huilunsoittaja said:


> Woot! So glad this is a subforum!
> 
> I'm not sure I have a favorite ballet. I have a favorite dozen.
> 
> *But it's on my bucket list to see a Glazunov ballet, here in the US.* I just might see Swan Lake this winter, but if I ever see Raymonda or the Seasons as a ballet, that would be awesome. Also, Firebird would be great to see.


I said this 2 years ago...... yes, it was a dream... but now it's come TRUE!!! Hallelujah! <3 <3 <3

I'll say it for the record... my next bucket list wish is to actually perform a Glazunov work, in an orchestra as a flutist. You could say this motivates me today to keep on chugging along to be a professional flutist. The odds are slim, but not impossible. Then I can die in peace, perhaps.


----------



## Orfeo

Huilunsoittaja said:


> I said this 2 years ago...... yes, it was a dream... but now it's come TRUE!!! Hallelujah! <3 <3 <3
> 
> I'll say it for the record... my next bucket list wish is to actually perform a Glazunov work, in an orchestra as a flutist. You could say this motivates me today to keep on chugging along to be a professional flutist. The odds are slim, but not impossible. Then I can die in peace, perhaps.


The Seasons and the scherzo of the Third Symphony would be wonderful vehicles for a flutist (deliciously employed for the instrument, although demanding all the same).


----------



## QuietGuy

Avey said:


> Um, does anyone have a copy of -- or even _seen live_ -- Ravel's _Daphnis et Chloe_? I cannot find a DVD of the ballet --that being the physical, _dance_, optical form of the composition.
> 
> A push in the right direction would be appreciated. Thanks.


Here is Part 1 of 9 on youtube:


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## Pugg

Giselle - Ballet van Adolphe Charles Adam.
Never bores me.


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## jegreenwood

I was a late convert (in my 50s) to ballet. At my request a friend took me to New York City Ballet (where her brother had been a principal). The first ballet we saw together was "Serenade." I'm not sure I would say it is my favorite, but it is the one I have seen the most in the years since.


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## perempe

I saw the Romeo and Juliet, the complete ballet for the 3rd time a week ago. I love the music!








I heard excerpts in November from Wiener Symphoniker and Dutoit.


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## hpowders

My favorite is definitely the Prokofiev Romeo and Juliet. I was lucky enough to see it twice in New York City.


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## griercooper

I trained at the School of American Ballet and danced with Balanchine companies; Serenade has always been one of my favorite ballets primarily because of the achingly beautiful music. It's a gorgeous ballet as well.


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## griercooper

Serenade is my favorite, too! Gorgeous music and choreography.


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## jegreenwood

I was going to insert a photo, but I couldn't pick just one.

https://www.google.com/search?q=serenade+balanchine+photos&biw=1366&bih=643&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjYo7uW19vKAhUDbT4KHWbfCyMQsAQIGw#imgrc=cpPyj22w0SI9jM%3A


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## Pyotr

hpowders said:


> My favorite is definitely the Prokofiev Romeo and Juliet. I was lucky enough to see it twice in New York City.


I saw the same company do it at Saratoga Springs with Tiler Peck dancing the lead. Sooooo good. I think they do a bunch of them around valentines day every year.


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## Pyotr

griercooper said:


> I trained at the School of American Ballet and danced with Balanchine companies; Serenade has always been one of my favorite ballets primarily because of the achingly beautiful music. It's a gorgeous ballet as well.


That's interesting. Welcome to Talk Classical!


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## hpowders

I took a female to see Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet. She didn't like it.

So I broke up with her by saying "Gavotte the hell do you think I am?"

I didn't wait around for her answer.


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## Gordontrek

hpowders said:


> I took a female to see Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet. She didn't like it.
> 
> So I broke up with her by saying "Gavotte the hell do you think I am?"
> 
> I didn't wait around for her answer.


I'm still looking for a female patient enough to go to ballets or symphonies with me..

Anyway, I'd go with the Nutcracker, simply because that work is what got me into classical music in the first place, and is still one of my favorite works period.


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## elgar's ghost

I might be tempted to go for Shostakovich's _The Golden Age_ from 1930 - as with the opera _The Nose_ and the score he wrote for the stage play _Hypothetically Murdered_ it contains some of his more '_Les Six_ shot through with cabaret'-style music before toning down the satirical and Western-style dance elements in the mid-30s. A completely different plot was written for it when revived in 1982.


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## Adair

My favorite ballet is Stravinsky's _Agon_. I am stirred by its blend of twelve-tone and neo-classical elements. And when I saw the actual Balanchine ballet, I was awestruck by its beauty and physical drama, despite its lack of a "story."


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## bestellen

It has to be "La Bayadere" for me, this was the first full length Ballet I seen and it was the one that inspired me the most to start my Ballet training. Also Solor"s Variation from Act One was my first variation I learned and performed. A marvelous Classical Ballet!


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## tahnak

Le Lac Des Cygnes (The Swan Lake) by Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky


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## EarthBoundRules

Gotta go with the Rite of Spring. Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet is my second.


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## Pugg

​
Minkus: La Bayadère
Recorded live from the Royal Opera House, January 2009

Carlos Acosta (Solar), Marianela Nuñez (Gamzatti), Tamara Rojo (Nikiya), Gary Avis (The High Brahmin), Christopher Saunders (Rajah), Kenta Kura (Magdaveya) & Valeri Hristov (Solor's Friend)

The Royal Ballet & The Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Valeriy Ovsyanikov

Watching this one not so long ago, very impressive.:tiphat:


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## Marsilius

The Bolshoi La Bayadere (in the BelAir Classiques Bolshoi Collection) is even better than the Royal Ballet version - and far better filmed. It's only drawback is that, in common with other Russian productions and that from the Paris Opera Ballet, it doesn't include Makarova's reconstructed final Act.


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## Becca

The Bolshoi _Bayadere_ uses the original Minkus score whereas the Royal Ballet version uses John Lanchbery's revised/reorchestrated version of the score which, musically, is rather more interesting.


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## Marsilius

Becca said:


> The Bolshoi _Bayadere_ uses the original Minkus score whereas the Royal Ballet version uses John Lanchbery's revised/reorchestrated version of the score which, musically, is rather more interesting.


Sadly, however, at the insistence of Nureyev, John Lanchberry produced a vulgarised and dumbed-down version of Minkus's score for _Don Quixote_ that is far less interesting than the original.


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## Becca

Marsilius said:


> Sadly, however, at the insistence of Nureyev, John Lanchberry produced a vulgarised and dumbed-down version of Minkus's score for _Don Quixote_ that is far less interesting than the original.


I find the concept of a version which is 'less' interesting than Minkus' to be rather a mental stretch. I can, however, easily imagine Nureyev's choreography in that context.


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## hpowders

Gordontrek said:


> I'm still looking for a female patient enough to go to ballets or symphonies with me..
> 
> Anyway, I'd go with the Nutcracker, simply because that work is what got me into classical music in the first place, and is still one of my favorite works period.


For a classical novice, I would say the Nutcracker would be your best ballet bet.


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## Pat0223

Nureyev was a terrible coreographer! Should have stuck to dancing only!


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## Pat0223

Love Romeo and Juliet with Nureyev and Fonteyn.


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## Vronsky

_The Rite of Spring_, _Petrushka_, _The Firebird_, _Pulcinella_ & _Apollo_ by Stravinsky, _Jeux_ by Debussy and _Daphnis et Chloé_ by Ravel.


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## Xenakiboy

The Rite of spring by igor stravinsky


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## Becca

If you are going to give a favorite ballet as opposed to favorite ballet music, then you need to specify which choreography where applicable. For example, Prokofiev's _Romeo and Juliet_ exists in many including Kenneth MacMillan, Frederick Ashton and John Cranko, all of which are quite different from each other. Even in the classic classics such as _Swan Lake_, there are notable difference even in how it ends.


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## jegreenwood

Becca said:


> Ashton/Lanchbery/Herold - _La Fille Mal Gardee_
> Macmillan/Joplin etc. - _Elite Syncopations_


I bought the Decca Analog 50 box several years ago. The Lanchbery recording of excerpts from "La Fille Mal Gardee" was included. I must have listened to it once (probably as background music) previously. Last night I was in the mood for light classical, and I decide to pass on Rossini overtures* in favor of the Lanchbery! Wow! The music is light - lighter than Rossini - but the sound. I had long forgotten that the LP version of this recording was a "Best of the Bunch" on Harry Pearson's SuperDisc list. I've never heard the vinyl, so I can't compare, but the CD was nothing to sneeze at. I've never seen the ballet, but I will seek out a performance.

*Actually, the Herold/Lanchbery score is a patchwork and includes a bit of Rossini.


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## Tchaikov6

I used to like Tchaikovsky ballets but they aren't deep enough for my tastes and I went searching for something better. I found the Rite of Spring and at first I absolutely HATED IT!!!!!! Before than I hadn't listened to much post-1900 music and was thoroughly Romantic. But as I listened to it more and more I began to understand it's originality, amazing orchestration, and brilliant new orchestral techniques. But still, I wouldn't really count the Rite of Spring as my favorite ballet, because I've never actually seen the ballet version, just heard the concert piece. So my favorite actual ballet would probably be the Firebird- what a beautiful piece of music! I LOVE THE FINALE!


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## Zhdanov

Tchaikov6 said:


> I used to like Tchaikovsky ballets but they aren't deep enough for my tastes...So my favorite actual ballet would probably be the Firebird- what a beautiful piece of music! I LOVE THE FINALE!


how is Firebird any deeper than Tchaikovsky ballets?


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## Zhdanov

as far as meaning goes, that might be Petroushka, rather then Firebird.


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## Tchaikov6

I agree that the Firebird isn't as meaningful as Petrouchka, but I also think it has more depth than the Tchaikovsky ballets. The Tchaikovsky ballets are more of a string of waltzes, marches, and other dances, whereas The Firebird has several beautiful motifs. I still enjoy listening to the Tchaikovsky ballets, but that is for easy listening. If I want to analyze a ballet I will either do The Firebird or Petrouchka (I still think of the Rite of Spring as a concert piece). Another example of a ballet that is a set of dances would be Pulcinella by Stravinsky.


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## jegreenwood

Tchaikov6 said:


> I agree that the Firebird isn't as meaningful as Petrouchka, but I also think it has more depth than the Tchaikovsky ballets. The Tchaikovsky ballets are more of a string of waltzes, marches, and other dances, whereas The Firebird has several beautiful motifs. I still enjoy listening to the Tchaikovsky ballets, but that is for easy listening. If I want to analyze a ballet I will either do The Firebird or Petrouchka (I still think of the Rite of Spring as a concert piece). Another example of a ballet that is a set of dances would be Pulcinella by Stravinsky.


If you really want to get adventurous give a listen to (or better yet watch) Stravinsky's "Agon."

And I'd say both "Swan Lake" and "Sleeping Beauty" have motifs.


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## Tchaikov6

jegreenwood said:


> If you really want to get adventurous give a listen to (or better yet watch) Stravinsky's "Agon."
> 
> And I'd say both "Swan Lake" and "Sleeping Beauty" have motifs.


I'll give Agon a listen, I love Stravinsky.


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## Zhdanov

i still don't see what isn't deep enough about swan lake or the nutcracker?


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## Tchaikov6

Okay, I understand what you're saying about Swan Lake because it has several underlying themes that come back at the end and are changed throughout, but the nutcracker is just a girl who goes into the fantasy world of her doll (I'm not saying the nutcracker or sleeping beauty are bad, but they aren't really deep). It's not that they aren't "deep enough," It's that they're just some dances put together. I like the Tchaikovsky suites more than the actual ballets, but I definitely enjoy the Firebird more as whole, because it can relate to itself, I guess. That sounded confusing... Let's just I like both the Tchaikovsky and the Firebird for different reasons (Tchaikovsky for enjoyment and Firebird for analyztion and enjoyment).


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## Zhdanov

Tchaikov6 said:


> the nutcracker is just a girl who goes into the fantasy world of her doll


unlikely that Hoffmann would have been this simple... in fact the story is Drosselmeyer creates an imaginary world, and when it disappears, the girl is left with merely a doll instead of the prince, in the end; this leaves you with a feeling how elusive happiness is and that we have to put up with what we got.


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## Tchaikov6

Zhdanov said:


> unlikely that Hoffmann would have been this simple... in fact the story is Drosselmeyer creates an imaginary world, and when it disappears, the girl is left with merely a doll instead of the prince, in the end; this leaves you with a feeling how elusive happiness is and that we have to put up with what we got.


In the original Hoffman novel yes, but in Tchaikovsky's ballet it really is as on the surface as it seems.


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## Zhdanov

Tchaikov6 said:


> In the original Hoffman novel yes, but in Tchaikovsky's ballet it really is as on the surface as it seems.


no, the author story ends differently, its all in the ballet, watch thoroughly -


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## jegreenwood

As Becca points out elsewhere, it depends on the choreography/production. Balanchine's version ends with Marie and the Prince flying off to the heavens in a reindeer driven sleigh..


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## Zhdanov

jegreenwood said:


> As Becca points out elsewhere, it depends on the choreography/production.


those productions that are too far fetched from the original ones can be watched later.


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## Zhdanov

for example, this one version sure can wait -


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## shostythesnowman

My absolute favorite ballet is Prokofiev's ROMEO and JULIET.

It has everything and more than all the ballets of his time and (even in the group peasant dances) manages to be interesting throughout.
My numbers of the masterpiece are "Juliet's Death",the "Madrigal" directly after the ball at the Capulet's, and the fight music for the "Tybalt confronts Mercutio" scene.
Naturally my favorite recording is Valery Gergiev's with the LSO.


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## Canaeus

I have always been very fond of Tsjaichovsky's Swan Lake, from my childhood on I loved its varying smooth, lovable, haunting, tempestuous, fairytale-like temper and the sometimes sudden shifts in mood. My mother 'warned' me when I went to the local library in search of Tsjaichovsky, waving away his music as being 'too heavy', and that's why she didn't like it. I did, and played my cassettes and LP's until she went mad :-D


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## GodotsArrived

For me, ballet was actually my door into music in many ways. My first two jobs were with dance companies and I was married to a ballerina for many years. Favourites? To name but two...

The Four Temperaments (Balanchine)
L'Allegro, Il Pensoroso ed Il Moderato (Mark Morris)


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## hpowders

My favorite ballet remains Prokofiev's Romeo & Juliet.

I've seen it three times with American Ballet Theater at the MET in NYC and have quite a few recordings at home of the wonderful music.


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## Pugg

GodotsArrived said:


> For me, ballet was actually my door into music in many ways. My first two jobs were with dance companies and I was married to a ballerina for many years. Favourites? To name but two...
> 
> The Four Temperaments (Balanchine)
> L'Allegro, Il Pensoroso ed Il Moderato (Mark Morris)


That was a good dance company, bringing works from outside the box!


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## jegreenwood

GodotsArrived said:


> For me, ballet was actually my door into music in many ways. My first two jobs were with dance companies and I was married to a ballerina for many years. Favourites? To name but two...
> 
> The Four Temperaments (Balanchine)
> L'Allegro, Il Pensoroso ed Il Moderato (Mark Morris)


Seeing The Four Temperaments (for the third time) on Wednesday. There's a DVD from the 1970s TV series "Dance in America" that includes it. One of the very few New York City Ballet videos.


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## znapschatz

Mine are, of course, *Romeo and Juliet*, *The Nutcracker*, and damn near anything well done, but there is a special place in my heart for Glazunov's *The Seasons* in a version choreographed for ice by the great skater, the late John Curry, who died much too young. Even now, while simply remembering, I find myself getting emotional, almost teary, and never hear the music without remembering that production. It was gorgeous and soaring, movement at its most sublime. I saw his *The Seasons* once on television and never forgot it.


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## Phil loves classical

Anyone see the actual ballet for a Rite of Spring with original choreography by Nijinsky? I have it on DVD. amazing, especially the sacrificial dance.

https://www.amazon.ca/Stravinsky-Ballets-Russes-Firebird-Printemps/dp/B0023T9ZR0


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## hpowders

My favorite ballet remains Prokofiev's greatest work:
Romeo & Juliet.


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## Pugg

Phil loves classical said:


> Anyone see the actual ballet for a Rite of Spring with original choreography by Nijinsky? I have it on DVD. amazing, especially the sacrificial dance.
> 
> https://www.amazon.ca/Stravinsky-Ballets-Russes-Firebird-Printemps/dp/B0023T9ZR0


That is a great tip, thanks for sharing.


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## lluissineu

Romeo and Juliet is also my favourite one. I've got various recordings: Muti, Previn, Maazel, and the last Gerviev with LSO. I've seen two productions of the Royal Ballet and one of the Bolshoi (in cinemas). 

I like other ballets, but not as much as Romeo.

i take the oportunity to say that I don't like Minkus (many ballet dancers are very fond of him).


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## Pugg

http://www.prestoclassical.co.uk/r/Opus+Arte/OA1243D

This looks very interesting!


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## joachim

First, for me, it's Tchaikovsky Nutcracker, a wonderful Christmas tale.

This is the only one that I saw "in real", at the Opéra-comique in Paris. I was young...

So maybe I have a bit of nostalgia


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## ICHTHUS

Oh my, this is a tough question to answer because I have so many. I would have to say Swan Lake is my all time favorite. With that being said, I would certainly place under that the following: 
Romeo and Juliet
Sleeping Beauty 
Spartacus
Raymonda


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## KJ von NNJ

I enjoy the two ballet pantomimes written by Vitezslav Novak, Nikotina and Signorina Gioventu. There are not many recordings of them. The CD's I have are Supraphon releases with Frantisek Jilek conducting the BRNO State Orchestra.


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## KJ von NNJ

I also enjoy Prokofiev's ballet music very much. Romeo, Cinderella, The Fiery Angel, more.
Please excuse the consecutive posts, I'm still finding my way around the site functions. I was looking for a delete button to erase an entry and wound up with three posts instead!


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## KJ von NNJ

Though there are several that I enjoy very much, if I had to pick just one it would be Swan Lake. The music alone is so dramatically powerful. The coda always overwhelms me. Just the transition of the main theme from minor to major with the orchestra playing full out is enough to reduce me to shivers and tears. Tchaikovsky actually said that if he had heard Delibes's Sylvia before he finished Swan Lake he would not have bothered to finish it. Sylvia is wonderful, but for Pete's sake! Listening to Swan Lake is a most extraordinary way to spend two hours and forty minutes. Of course a good ballet production only makes it better.

There are many more that I love and I wish to post about them too. I want to economize my posts a bit more to keep myself from running on. I can't seem to say enough about some things!


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## Sissone

There are a lot of ballets I am fond of,but Swan Lake is my number one.I can listen to the music on its own too.


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## Etherealz

Sissone said:


> There are a lot of ballets I am fond of,but Swan Lake is my number one.I can listen to the music on its own too.


Nice! That sounds interesting.


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## Pugg

Sissone said:


> There are a lot of ballets I am fond of,but Swan Lake is my number one.I can listen to the music on its own too.


I can listen to any ballet music, why not?


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## Sissone

Yes,agree,why not


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## ClassicalMaestro

The Nutcracker and Swan Lake


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## ldiat




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## sibelius

I have not gone through the previous 15 pages, but I do have an unusual favorite ballet: Khachaturian's Gayne. Tchaikovsky's big 3 are wonderful. So is Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet. Yet, I enjoy every note of Gayne, and can not say that about the others mentioned.


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## MusicSybarite

Ballet is a form I'm not very familiar with. The most outstanding ballets have to be Russian, therefore my favorites are Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake, Glazunov's The Seasons and Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet.

Edit: I almost forget Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring.


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## Sissone

sibelius said:


> I have not gone through the previous 15 pages, but I do have an unusual favorite ballet: Khachaturian's Gayne. Tchaikovsky's big 3 are wonderful. So is Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet. Yet, I enjoy every note of Gayne, and can not say that about the others mentioned.


Unfortunately Gayane is not staged too often,The Sabre dance is well known.


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## Kieran

I saw the new version of Giselle, reimagined by Akram Khan and composer Lorenzo Lamagna, twice in a matter of a few days last week. That’s my new favourite. It was so intense, and very moving...


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## Guest

My favourite ballet in choreography and music is Prokofiev's "Romeo and Juliet" - the Cranko version: *very different* from the MacMillan choreography.






See for yourself:


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## Sissone

Kieran said:


> I saw the new version of Giselle, reimagined by Akram Khan and composer Lorenzo Lamagna, twice in a matter of a few days last week. That's my new favourite. It was so intense, and very moving...


I love Giselle too.I do not know this version by Akram Khan and composer Lorenzo Lamagna.I have danced the role of Myrtha in the classical version by composer A.Ch.Adam.The performance you write about would be interesting to see.


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## Kieran

Sissone said:


> I love Giselle too.I do not know this version by Akram Khan and composer Lorenzo Lamagna.I have danced the role of Myrtha in the classical version by composer A.Ch.Adam.The performance you write about would be interesting to see.


It was incredible! It contains the same tale, and a modern take on the dance, featuring the English National Ballet. The music is more propulsive, using elements of the original score to create a very intense experience. You might get a sense of it in this video:


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## Sissone

Well,it is a modern choreographic version,but interesting.Thanks for the video.


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## Josquin13

I am fascinated by the Ballets Russes period in Paris, etc., at the early part of the 20th century: 1909-1929: with their impresario (artistic director) Sergei Diaghilev, dancer/choreographers Vaslav Nijinsky, Michel Fokine, Léonide Massine, Bronislava Nijinska and George Balanchine, and my favorite designer of ballet sets and costumes, Léon Bakst. Diaghilev contracted some of the finest composers of the day to provide ballets for his company: Stravinsky, Debussy, Ravel, Prokofiev, Satie, R. Strauss, Poulenc, Schmitt, Milhaud, etc.

Stravinsky's "Le sacre du printemps" (or The Rite of Spring--1913), "Petrushka" (1911), "L'Oiseau de feu" (or The Firebird--1910), and "Le chant du rossignol" (or The Song of the Nightingale--1920, a symphonic poem turned into a ballet) are favorite ballets of mine, along with Debussy's "L'aprés-midi d'un faune" (or Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun--1912) and "Jeux" (1913). However, my favorite ballet from this period is Ravel's "Daphnis et Chloé" (1912). Charles Dutoit's Montreal recording is one of the finest I've heard (of many):






Here is Rudolph Nureyev in Nijinsky's choreography for Debussy's Faun:





Another favorite ballet is the lesser known, neglected, but possibly influential 1911 ballet, "Narcisse et Echo", by Russian composer Nikolai Tcherepnin. I find there are some striking similarities between "Narcisse" and Ravel's "Daphnis et Chloe", which came out a year later. Conductor Gennady Rozhdestvensky has made a world premiere recording on Chandos:






Though it was not composed for the Ballet Russes (surprisingly so), Gabriel Pierné's 1923 ballet "Cydalise et le Chévre-pied" is strongly influenced by Ravel's Daphnis et Chloé, with it's opening moonrise scene, wordless chorus, etc.. Interestingly, Pierne had ties to the Ballets Russes as a conductor, having conducted the world premiere of Stravinsky's ballet The Firebird in 1910:






In addition, Diaghilev's company performed Tchaikovsky's "Swan Lake" and "The Sleeping Beauty", Prokofiev's "Chout" and "Le pas d'acier", and Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov's "Schéhérazade" (& "Le coq d'or", and "Soleil de Nuit"), which is another favorite of mine.

There's an interesting CD series devoted to the ballets of the Ballets Russes on the Hanssler label, although it appears to have stalled at volume 9 in 2013 (as they've not yet recorded Tcherepnin's "Narcisse et Echo", or Stravinsky' "The Firebird" ...).

https://www.arkivmusic.com/classical/listPage.jsp?list_id=1825

EDIT: Hold on, I was wrong, there is a volume 10 from 2016, which includes "The Firebird" (but it appears to be the last volume issued):

https://www.amazon.com/Stravinsky-B...qid=1527361259&sr=1-3&keywords=ballets+russes

There are a number of excellent DVDs & books on the Ballets Russes, too (& I especially enjoyed reading Peter Oswald's biography of Nijinsky):

https://www.amazon.com/Ballets-Russ...qid=1527362215&sr=1-2&keywords=ballets+russes

https://www.amazon.com/Diaghilev-Ba...preST=_SX218_BO1,204,203,200_QL40_&dpSrc=srch

https://www.amazon.com/Ballets-Russ...eST=_SX218_BO1,204,203,200_QL40_&dpSrc=detail

https://www.amazon.com/Vaslav-Nijin...1&sr=1-1-fkmr0&keywords=nijinsky+peter+oswald

https://www.amazon.com/Diaghilev-Li...eST=_SY291_BO1,204,203,200_QL40_&dpSrc=detail


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## Marsilius

Mentioning works premiered by the Ballets Russes, let's not forget Richard Strauss's longest uninterrupted orchestral work - the ballet _Josephslegende_. It's not often performed, either as a ballet or in its orchestral form, but Strauss lovers will find themselves in seventh heaven as he indulges in full-blown (1914) late Romanticism and then some!


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## Ice Dragon

Here are my favorite ballets:

The Sleeping Beauty--probably my favorite ballet. I've seen eight versions and have liked all (except one) to some degree. I love the music, the dancing, the choreography, and the characters. So far, the Royal Ballet with Marianela Nunez as the Lilac Fairy is my favorite. Her dancing's so beautiful, and she has a smile on her face the whole time that doesn't look forced. Overall, it's a lovely rendition. Nureyev's version is nice: it has the best Puss-in-Boots duet I've seen, but I hated that he made the Lilac Fairy a character role. Matthew Bourne's version was a nice variation, with Aurora having a sweetheart before she falls asleep, and Carabosse having a credible motivation. The only one I've disliked is the Teatro Munipical from 1982. Avoid: it awkwardly edits out portions of the ballet, and the dancers are not that good.

Jewels--I like seeing abstract ballet, and this is my favorite of that type. I like seeing three different ballet styles, each with a different type of costume. When I first saw it, I liked Diamonds best and didn't like the funky Rubies. The second time, I liked Rubies better, and right now, it's my favorite of the three.

Cinderella--to be totally accurate, I don't like this ballet: I love one version of it Birmingham's is magical: the dancing is strong, the dancers fully inhabit their characters (the stepsisters are cruel but pathetic and funny, Cinderella's plight shines through even when she makes fun of her sisters behind their backs), the costumes and sets are beautiful, and the music's growing on me. Unfortunately, I haven't liked the other four versions I've seen, but I'll treasure this one.

Sylvia--nice dancing and music. Not much more to say: I just like it.

Raymonda--practically no plot, but I don’t care: I like the dancing.

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland--this one was a lot of fun. It's also the only version of the Alice story I've liked. Fun characters, inventive staging (the Cheshire Cat as a puppet made of several pieces, each carried by a puppeteer in black, was particularly clever), a tap-dancing Hatter, Middle Eastern caterpillar, a parody of the Rose Adagio, and a mix of mime and dance make this one very entertaining.

The Dream--I liked this truncated version of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" better than the full one. The staging and costumes are gorgeous (it helps that there's only one set, so they can dress it up as much as they want). There's excellent dancing by all, especially Oberon, Puck, and Bottom (who's one of the few men I've seen dance en Pointe!). I love that it focuses on the fairies--by doing so, it becomes the story of a failing marriage that's reinvigorated. Only fifty minutes long, but they're a great fifty minutes.

The Prince of the Pagodas--Here's a weird one. I've only seen this twice all the way through, but I love Act II, especially the Salamander's solo. The four kings each have a different style to their dancing, and the dancer playing Epine is having a lot of fun as the villain. Act III is still a bit dull to me, and some of the costumes are grotesque (the King of the South's costume should never have made it past the drawing board), but I enjoy it. There's only one DVD version that I know of.


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## Marsilius

It would be interesting, Ice Dragon, to hear your opinion of the most recent Royal Ballet _Sleeping beauty_ on Blu-ray/DVD because in that one Marianela Nuñez takes the role of Princess Aurora herself.

I wonder, given that it notoriously divides opinion, whether the one version of SB that you _don't_ like is another Royal Ballet performance - the one from the 1990s starring Viviana Durante and Zoltan Solymosi? That, to me, is by far the best filmed version, made even better by Maria Bjornson's imaginative Expressionist sets and striking costumes.


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## RogerExcellent

​
Minkus: La Bayadère
Recorded live from the Royal Opera House, January 2009

Carlos Acosta (Solar), Marianela Nuñez (Gamzatti), Tamara Rojo (Nikiya), Gary Avis (The High Brahmin), Christopher Saunders (Rajah), Kenta Kura (Magdaveya) & Valeri Hristov (Solor's Friend)

The Royal Ballet & The Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Valeriy Ovsyanikov

Watching this one not so long ago, very impressive.:tiphat:


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## Marsilius

Personally, I find that particular Royal Ballet production a little underwhelming when compared to that on offer from the Bolshoi (BelAir Classiques Blu-ray BAC501). If I remember correctly, London offers 24 dancers in The Kingdom of the Shades as opposed to 32 from the Bolshoi - just one example of how the Bolshoi's bigger stage is put to spectacular use - and the extra ones, exquisitely and expertly filmed, make the visual impact of the Russian production even more stunning. The Bolshoi soloists - Svetlana Zakharova, Vladislav Lantratov and Maria Alexandrova - are superb and the whole thing has been filmed in stunning quality (the very best of my many Blu-ray Discs of classical ballet). The one area in which, I think, the Royal Ballet production scores higher is in the decision to add Natalia Makharova's reconstruction of the final scene - thereby providing a more satisfactory emotional climax to the story.


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## valelediazr

You should check out “dakini” which was a special coreography made for the tv series flesh and bone (which i was not a great fan of). However, i found the music-coregraphy amazing.


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## DFlat

Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet. I know pretty much nothing about dance. I chose it because it happens to be one of my favorite pieces of music. I could count on one hand how many times I’ve been to the ballet, and three of them were performances of Romeo and Juliet. I also saw Prokofiev’s Cinderella once. At the Metropolitan Opera. I think it was the Kirov. Also great music.


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## elgar's ghost

Someone raised a valid point early in the thread - are we including the dance aspects in our choices or, as I would be inclined to do, just nominating the music? Although music and dance should often be roughly equal partners in this genre I'm not a fan of dance itself as a visual experience, but the original costumes and stunning choreography of _The Rite of Spring_ allied with the severity of the music makes for such a spectacle that it's probably the only ballet I would pay to see.


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## jegreenwood

So many great ballets are choreographed to music not originally written for dance. On Friday I attended an all Balanchine evening including:

Concerto Barocco to Bach's Concerto for Two Violins
Stravinsky Violin Concerto
Symphony in C to Bizet
Also on the bill was the Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux a tour de force set to music found in the appendix to the score for Swan Lake.

In each case the dance adds a new element to the music.


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## Marsilius

jegreenwood makes an interesting point, highlighting how, with fewer composers writing original ballet scores, choreographers have been turning to existing scores whose composers never envisaged them as pieces for dancers. 

That, of course, is a complete reversal of normal practice in the nineteenth century heyday of classical ballet. In that period the choreographer was the master: he selected a story and then devised the sequence of dances and the steps of individual dances. Only once he'd done that did he commission a composer to come up with a score that fitted his prescribed requirements. Nowadays, on the other hand, the music almost invariably comes first in the creative process and the choreography is then fitted to it. Perhaps that makes the creation of story-based ballets more difficult and explains why modern ballets are mainly abstract exhibitions of technique?


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## junha yang

Daphnis et Chloe, Le Sacre du Printemps by Pina Bausch


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## philoctetes

Bartok's Dance Suite is a ballet except by name?


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## jegreenwood

philoctetes said:


> Bartok's Dance Suite is a ballet except by name?


https://www.mupa.hu/en/program/danc...us-mandarin-2007-02-16-19-00-fesztivalszinhaz


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## jegreenwood

Marsilius said:


> jegreenwood makes an interesting point, highlighting how, with fewer composers writing original ballet scores, choreographers have been turning to existing scores whose composers never envisaged them as pieces for dancers.
> 
> That, of course, is a complete reversal of normal practice in the nineteenth century heyday of classical ballet. In that period the choreographer was the master: he selected a story and then devised the sequence of dances and the steps of individual dances. Only once he'd done that did he commission a composer to come up with a score that fitted his prescribed requirements. Nowadays, on the other hand, the music almost invariably comes first in the creative process and the choreography is then fitted to it. Perhaps that makes the creation of story-based ballets more difficult and explains why modern ballets are mainly abstract exhibitions of technique?


Or sometimes it just depends on who shows up for class. From an article in the New Yorker:

People may disagree over which of George Balanchine's ballets is the greatest, but I don't think there's much contest over which one they feel the most tenderly toward. That would be "Serenade" (1934), set to Tchaikovsky's Serenade for Strings, the first ballet Balanchine made in America. The piece is beautiful-stirring, sweeping-and at the same time a little odd. The heroine seems to die at the end, but you're not quite sure.

Whether spectators know it or not, this ballet is also about what it's like to have nothing. When Balanchine arrived in America, in 1933, his homeland was far behind him; he had escaped from Russia in 1924. He couldn't really go back to Europe, either. (Hitler became Chancellor of Germany in 1933.) And what had he come to? He was a ballet choreographer, and almost nobody in the United States could dance ballet. Most Americans didn't know what a ballet was. He didn't have a company. He opened a school, but to judge from the photos the young women he was able to collect were mostly rather plump and bewildered. When he set out to make a ballet on them-"Serenade"-seventeen girls came to the first rehearsal, but only nine turned up at the second, and six at the third. So he made the opening tableau-a ravishing sight, people still gasp-for seventeen. Then he made a section for nine, then one for six. When a girl fell, he put that in. When another showed up late, he added that. He made no soloist roles, because he had no one who could handle soloist-level choreography.

To be clear - it's changed a lot since then.


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## AlexD

I enjoyed Le Corsaire at the RoH some years ago, although I must admit I have not seen many ballets (probably around 4 or 5) as it has lots of drama and the shipwrecjk scene at the end was something else. 

However, I must admit I have a fondness for the chicken dance in La Fille mal gardée, which I take as proof that the past was just as mad and zany as anything the 60's or anything in the present can throw at us.


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## AlexD

La Bayadere being broadcast live into the Odeon in Harrogate on 13 November 2018 from the Royal ballet.

The Bolshoi version is also being broadcast into Harrogate Odeon on 20 Jan 2019


If you haven't tried this live streaming, then I recommend it. You get a comfortable seat, with a better view than the more expensive seats in London for less than £20.


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## Marsilius

AlexD said:


> If you haven't tried this live streaming, then I recommend it. You get a comfortable seat, with a better view than the more expensive seats in London for less than £20.


In some ways, it could be argued, it's a positively _better_ experience. After all, you get close-ups, a greater number of visual perspectives from several cameras and, if the director knows his or her stuff, there should be no possibility of missing important detail as the appropriate camera will pick it out.

OK, you may miss the "thrill" and atmosphere of the live performance taking place in front of you - and you may be annoyed if the director's choice of shots doesn't always include the dancers' feet (a strikingly common complaint on ballet discussion boards).

But you save a great deal of time and money if, like me, you'd otherwise have to travel more than 100 miles to get to, in my case, Covent Garden - which is, in any case, impossible for most non-metropolitan working people on anything other than weekends.


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## AlexD

I agree - having sat n the "cheap seats" of the RoH - a cinema ticket is by far much better value for money. 

I've also sat in the more expensive seats - and yes, you get much more from it than the cheap seats, but at a premium. A £300 ticket vs a £20 cinema ticket.

Through the medium of cinema I've managed to see more opera and theatre in the last three years, than in the last twenty, and it is easier to experiment. A ten minute walk to the cinema, and if it is a bad opera, well not much is lost. A trip into London means you invest so much more and to get a lousy experience is ten times worse.

it isn't quite the same as "being there" but it is pretty close and has got better over the years.


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## Dimace

*Leo Delibes / Coppelia!* With Lyon National Opera Orchestra, Lyon National Opera Ballet and Maguy Marin. This 1994 performance, esthetically and artistically, has everything could make Leo Delibes a proud ballet composer.


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## Marsilius

More detail on the Maguy Marin "Coppelia" referenced above...

http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2016/Mar/Delibes_Coppelia_109186.htm


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## Lisztian

I've hardly seen any ballet's danced, but currently my favourite -purely how much I enjoy the music- is Stravinsky's _Orpheus_.


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## Dimace

*Die Polowetzer Tänze* from Borodin's Prince Igor acts as a small ballet in the famous Russian opera. It lasts about 12 minutes and sometimes we can attended it as a stand alone event. The oriental character of the dances and singing, combined with the lucrative tradition of the Russian Ballet, make this dual- character instant something special in music history. Here is my favorite performance.


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## Prometheus W

La Bayadere...simply amazing!!!


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## Prometheus W

Dimace said:


> *Die Polowetzer Tänze* from Borodin's Prince Igor acts as a small ballet in the famous Russian opera. It lasts about 12 minutes and sometimes we can attended it as a stand alone event. The oriental character of the dances and singing, combined with the lucrative tradition of the Russian Ballet, make this dual- character instant something special in music history. Here is my favorite performance.


Hands down I gotta agree with you Dimace, Borodin's Prince Igor is truly my all time favorite. The palpable energy seen in that incredible Polovtsian dance sequence was/is truly electric!!! For a while Bizet's Carmen and Jules Massenet's Manon Lescaut were my top favorites, but their seductive sensual energies simply can not compete with Borodin's engaging masterpiece.


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## dsosin

CINDERELLA! Wish the Matthew Bourne version would come to the US.


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## Vaan

Green Table by Kurt Joos.


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## wahidovic

jegreenwood said:


> Or sometimes it just depends on who shows up for class. From an article in the New Yorker:
> 
> People may disagree over which of George Balanchine's ballets is the greatest, but I don't think there's much contest over which one they feel the most tenderly toward. That would be "Serenade" (1934), set to Tchaikovsky's Serenade for Strings, the first ballet Balanchine made in America. The piece is beautiful-stirring, sweeping-and at the same time a little odd. The heroine seems to die at the end, but you're not quite sure.
> 
> Whether spectators know it or not, this ballet is also about what it's like to have nothing. When Balanchine arrived in America, in 1933, his homeland was far behind him; he had escaped from Russia in 1924. He couldn't really go back to Europe, either. (Hitler became Chancellor of Germany in 1933.) And what had he come to? He was a ballet choreographer, and almost nobody in the United States could dance ballet. Most Americans didn't know what a ballet was. He didn't have a company. He opened a school, but to judge from the photos the young women he was able to collect were mostly rather plump and bewildered. When he set out to make a ballet on them-"Serenade"-seventeen girls came to the first rehearsal, but only nine turned up at the second, and six at the third. So he made the opening tableau-a ravishing sight, people still gasp-for seventeen.Bluestacks Kodi Lucky Patcher Then he made a section for nine, then one for six. When a girl fell, he put that in. When another showed up late, he added that. He made no soloist roles, because he had no one who could handle soloist-level choreography.
> 
> To be clear - it's changed a lot since then.


Yes and the hero will die at the end


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## Moriarty

_Swan Lake_ of Tchaikovsky.


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## Clouds Weep Snowflakes

The Nutcracker is one of the compositions I just can't get bored of, so that's my pick.


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## Agamenon

Agon and Apollo! Stravinsky rules.


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## millionrainbows

Rite of Spring, and Jeux.


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## jegreenwood

Agamenon said:


> Agon and Apollo! Stravinsky rules.


And Balanchine!


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## Roger Knox

_Carmen_- Rodion Schedrin (his wife was the prima ballerina Maya Plisetskya)


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## SixFootScowl

I don't know many ballets. I recently saw The Nutcracker and enjoyed it immensely, but apart from a live performance, I will mostly take my ballet as interludes in operas. The Russians seem to do those ballet interludes the most.


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## Becca

Actually it was the French who did it the most as the patrons of the Paris Opéra during the 19th century expected that all operas would contain a ballet sequence. Even Verdi had to add one to _Don Carlos_ for the French version.


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## SixFootScowl

Becca said:


> Actually it was the French who did it the most as the patrons of the Paris Opéra during the 19th century expected that all operas would contain a ballet sequence. Even Verdi had to add one to _Don Carlos_ for the French version.


Of course. I would not have realized that, since French opera does not go high on my list, though I have a few. Saint-Saens has a nice ballet section in Henry VIII.


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## Rogerx

Romeo and Juliet | William Bracewell, Francesca Hayward | The Royal Ballet | Trailer 2019
I can highly recommend this Royal Ballet production of R&J.
Shown on BBC2 New Years Day


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## HerbertNorman

Nutcracker ... I saw the Mariinsky danse it once , and this remains the best performance of a ballet I have ever witnessed


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## Joachim Raff

One of favourite Russian ballet scores. Just as good as a Tchaikovsky in my opinion.


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## Rogerx

Joachim Raff said:


> View attachment 133879
> 
> 
> One of favourite Russian ballet scores. Just as good as a Tchaikovsky in my opinion.


Looks very interesting, will do some research. 
( Thanks)


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## Merl

Joachim Raff said:


> View attachment 133879
> 
> 
> One of favourite Russian ballet scores. Just as good as a Tchaikovsky in my opinion.


Not heard that one either. Will investigate.


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## Rogerx

Joachim Raff said:


> View attachment 133879
> 
> 
> One of favourite Russian ballet scores. Just as good as a Tchaikovsky in my opinion.




Found this one, $1.95 and some shipping.


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## ZeR0

If forced to choose one, I would go with Le Sacre for its unique power. I also love Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet, Ravel's Daphnis and Chloe, and everything by Tchaikovsky.


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## Neo Romanza

Most of my favorite ballets are Russian, but there's a few other nationalities spread out for good measure...

(In no particular order)

Shostakovich: _The Golden Age_
Prokofiev: _Le pas d'acier_
Prokofiev: _On the Dnieper_
Prokofiev: _Cinderella_
Stravinsky: _Le sacre du printemps_
Stravinsky: _Petrouchka_
Stravinsky: _Apollo_
Stravinsky: _Jeu de cartes_
Khachaturian: _Spartacus_
Khachaturian: _Gayane_
Shchedrin: _Anna Karenina_
Shchedrin: _Lady with the Lapdog_
Shchedrin: _Carmen-Suite_
Shchedrin: _The Humpbacked Horse_
Weinberg: _The Golden Key_
Tchaikovsky: _The Sleeping Beauty_
Schnittke: _Peer Gynt_
Eshpai: _Circles_
Bartók: _The Miraculous Mandarin_
Bartók: _The Wooden Prince_
Martinů: _Who is the Most Powerful in the World?_
Martinů: _Le Raid merveilleux_
Martinů: _Špalíček_
Tubin: _Kratt_
Dallapiccola: _Marsia_
Debussy: _Jeux_
Ravel: _Daphnis et Chloé_
Roussel: _Bacchus and Ariadne_
Walton: _The Wise Virgins_
Vaughan Williams: _Job, A Masque for Dancing_
Falla: _El sombrero de tres picos_
Falla: _El amor brujo_
Villa-Lobos: _Gênesis_
Villa-Lobos: _Uirapuru_
Villa-Lobos: _Amazonas_
Ginastera: _Estancia_
Ginastera: _Panambí_
Chávez: _La hija de Cólquide_
Chávez: _Caballos de vapor_
Copland: _Appalachian Spring_
Copland: _Billy the Kid_
Copland: _Rodeo_
Copland: _Dance Panels_
Barber: _Medea_
Bernstein: _Fancy Free_
Bernstein: _West Side Story: Symphonic Dances_ (these really are ballet sequences whether one wants to categorize them or not)


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## Tinker2Evers2Chance

Ravel, Daphnis. Prokofiev, Cinderella.
My wife shares my love for music. In ballet her two favorites are the same as my own only in reverse order.


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## JohnHunter84

my favorite ballet is definitely "Romeo and Juliet". Ironically, I have seen it three times in different countries. And it's really cool, I especially liked the modern interpretation, it's something unreal.
in addition, I love "Swan Lake", "Carmen" and "Sleeping Beauty" - the so-called classics.


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## adriesba

My two favorites are _The Nutcracker _and _Le Sacre du Printemps_. I don't really want to pick just one.


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## Guest

My favourite is definitely 'Romeo and Juliet', the Cranko version. I watched it today on Sky Arts with the Stuttgart Ballet company; Cranko was artistic director of that very company until his untimely death at 45 years from Anaphylactic Shock, suffered on a airliner travelling over the Atlantic en route back from the USA. It was a terrible loss.

What can you say about this stunning ballet? The best music ever composed for a ballet, in my opinion. Cranko's version sees the lovers in full bloom but with that 'mature' edge of fate and destiny that gives these characters a 'knowing' edge of what their fate will be. By contrast the MacMillan choreography sees the lovers as passionate but naive and idealistic.


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## SanAntone

Based on the music, a tie between _Agon_, _Rodeo_, and _Dybbuk_. Probably, _Agon_ has the edge.


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## Guest

I watched "Romeo and Juliet" (Stuttgart Ballet) yesterday with my 8y/o grand-daughter, promising to take her to Sydney Opera House soon to see a ballet in live performance. She sat through the whole thing while I explained what was happening. It really is a wonderful work, especially the Cranko.


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## Geoff48

Two separate answers.
The most perfect classical ballet for me is Swan Lake. The score is filled with great melodies and stands up well as a piece of music without the dancing. And the music seems to take a number of interpretations. I am no ballet expert, although I have seen it on the stage many years ago, but having spoken to friends with far more knowledge than me of such matters the Matthew Bourne all Male version is a very modern and impressive take miles from the traditional Pepita classical blueprint.
But then there is Pineapple Poll. I have seen the John Cranco ballet on the stage and enjoyed it. But the Charles Mackerras score stands out as a concert piece in its own right. He adapts Sullivan’s music so brilliantly that it is difficult to believe that it is not an original work by him. Tunes run into each other and even the joining passages are by Sullivan. Paradoxically a sequel, lady and the fool, using music by Verdi is far less successful.
So I nominate Pineapple Poll as my favourite musical ballet Score whilst fully accepting that as a complete ballet experience Swan Lake must rule supreme.


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## Guest

It depends on whether you like "white ballet". I do like it but I prefer a more overtly narrative-driven experience like "Romeo and Juliet". Tchaikovsky was a master of theatre music and undoubtedly his scores have contributed to the standing and endurance of those ballets. They are, in fact, textbooks on ballet technique - despite the fact that the males don't have more dominant roles.

Speaking of technique:


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## jegreenwood

Christabel said:


> I watched "Romeo and Juliet" (Stuttgart Ballet) yesterday with my 8y/o grand-daughter, promising to take her to Sydney Opera House soon to see a ballet in live performance. She sat through the whole thing while I explained what was happening. It really is a wonderful work, especially the Cranko.


I've taken my pre-8-year-old grand-nieces to several performances, "Nutcracker" (twice) and "Coppelia," and now that's how I'm known to them. We switched last year to "The Lion King," I was wondering at what age they would be ready for ballets with unhappy endings. I planned to start with "Swan Lake," and I'm impressed that your granddaughter appreciated "Romeo and Juliet."

I also want to take them to Balanchine's "A Midsummer Night's Dream" (or Ashton's). But what a convoluted plot.

Of course it's unlikely there'll be live ballet in NYC before next fall. By then there will be four of them old enough to attend, and the oldest will be turning 9.


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## Guest

jegreenwood said:


> I've taken my pre-8-year-old grand-nieces to several performances, "Nutcracker" (twice) and "Coppelia," and now that's how I'm known to them. We switched last year to "The Lion King," I was wondering at what age they would be ready for ballets with unhappy endings. I planned to start with "Swan Lake," and I'm impressed that your granddaughter appreciated "Romeo and Juliet."
> 
> I also want to take them to Balanchine's "A Midsummer Night's Dream" (or Ashton's). But what a convoluted plot.
> 
> Of course it's unlikely there'll be live ballet in NYC before next fall. By then there will be four of them old enough to attend, and the oldest will be turning 9.


I do envy you with the wonderful ABT in New York, not to mention all the other treats you have at your fingertips. Just imagine what it would have been like taking the children to a Bernstein educational lecture with the NYPO - there were lots of kids in those audiences!! (BTW, the great man died 30 years ago just this last week, on the 14th!!) We have Sydney Opera House, which is a pleasant venue on the harbour. The grandson (he'll be 11 next month) has said he's 'not interested in dancing'!! While we were watching the closing scene of R&J he came into the loungeroom and said, "this looks like necromancy to me"!!!!


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## jegreenwood

Christabel said:


> I do envy you with the wonderful ABT in New York, not to mention all the other treats you have at your fingertips. Just imagine what it would have been like taking the children to a Bernstein educational lecture with the NYPO - there were lots of kids in those audiences!! (BTW, the great man died 30 years ago just this last week, on the 14th!!) We have Sydney Opera House, which is a pleasant venue on the harbour. The grandson (he'll be 11 next month) has said he's 'not interested in dancing'!! While we were watching the closing scene of R&J he came into the loungeroom and said, "this looks like necromancy to me"!!!!


LOL

I made my first visit to Australia last year. I did the backstage tour of the Sydney Opera House but the programming while I was there was not to my taste. I did catch the Australian Ballet in Melbourne performing Prokofiev's "Cinderella."

And my grandma took me to one of Bernstein's Young People's Concerts - well, technically a public rehearsal.

Just one thing - while I do attend ABT, my first love is for NYCB where I have been a subscriber for about a decade.


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## Guest

jegreenwood said:


> LOL
> 
> I made my first visit to Australia last year. I did the backstage tour of the Sydney Opera House but the programming while I was there was not to my taste. I did catch the Australian Ballet in Melbourne performing Prokofiev's "Cinderella."
> 
> And my grandma took me to one of Bernstein's Young People's Concerts - well, technically a public rehearsal.
> 
> Just one thing - while I do attend ABT, my first love is for NYCB where I have been a subscriber for about a decade.


I would just love to be there and see that, but my travel days are behind me. My mother used to tell me about those Bernstein Young People's Concerts as far back as the 1960s. They must have appeared on TV here but we didn't get a TV set until December, 1960!!! I was still young then and our TV reception was poor until 1965 when a local station came to our city. Until then we had these massive antennas sitting on our rooftops and they often came crashing down in high winds.

I do hope Australia turned on its charms for you during your visit last year. Sydney Opera House opened in 1973 and I think they're doing upgrades to it at the moment. The views from upstairs at the rear of the concert hall and opera theatre over the Harbour and Bridge are enchanting of an evening, especially in summer with the ferries and other boats.


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## CristianRey

Agh...such a hard question for a balletomanne! But I'll try my best. I find myself usually gravitating towards three major works, and my liking being based on both their choreography and music. 
First and foremost...."Les Sylphides"-( "Chopiniana"). You can't beat Fokine's dreamy white reverie paired with Glazunov's orchestration of the divine Chopin. And to think that it was the very first ballet with no argument...! oh dear.
Then Giselle. It was my earliest exposure to the art form, and I just adore the story and the very "musique dansante" Adams' score. Petipa's reworking of the old choreographical text is quite a masterpiece.
"Le Palais de Cristal"-( "Symphony in C"). What's not to like about this elegant homage by a French company using a wonderful French composer score-( Bizet)- masterly made by a White Russian choreographer-( Mr.B) to pay homage to the Grand Imperial Russian Ballet...? 
I could go for many more..


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## Auntie Lynn

Agon - it's got everything!!


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## jegreenwood

I'm not sure _Serenade_ is my favorite ballet, but there is none that I like more. Just picked up _Serenade: A Balanchine Story_ by Toni Bentley, a book devoted to the ballet and its creator.


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## OCEANE

My favourite ballet, like many others, is Swan Lake as the story is with in-depth meaning and music touches deeply in tears. I watched live performance many times and whatever the sad or happy ending version, it was always a unforgettable experience . To me, Svetlana Zakharova of Bolshoi Threatre (watched video) shows the best performance of Swan Lake


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## Marsilius

For pure pleasure in the choreography and the severely underrated musical scores, I almost always turn to the Petipa/Minkus collaborative masterpieces Don Quixote and La Bayadere.


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