# Your Top 10 Favorite Ballets



## Air (Jul 19, 2008)

Based on the music alone, here's my list:

1. Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring
2. Tchaikovsky: Swan Lake
3. Ravel: Daphnis et Chloe
4. Prokofiev: Cinderella
5. Bartok: The Wooden Prince (which I prefer to The Miraculous Mandarin)
6. Prokofiev: Chout
7. Delibes: Coppelia (which I prefer to Sylvia)
8. Tchaikovsky: Sleeping Beauty
9. Stravinsky: The Firebird
10. Prokofiev: Romeo and Juliet

Stravinsky and Tchaikovsky have often been pitted against each other for the title "best ballet composer of all-time". I would have to give a slight edge to Stravinsky. Though they both broke major ground, the fact is that "The Rite" not only revolutionized ballet but majorly impacted (I can't emphasize that enough) classical music in general. Another major factor to my decision is that Stravinsky wrote 10 ballets compared to Tchaikovsky's 3, however famous they are.

Why so much Prokofiev on my list? I think people often neglect Prokofiev as a composer of ballet and forget that he wrote nine (not just 2) consistently-brilliant ballet (something I cannot even say of Stravinsky). IMO, his ballet are as good as both Tchaikovsky's and Stravinsky's and almost as revolutionary.

What do you guys think of all of this?


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## Mirror Image (Apr 20, 2009)

Favorite ballets....oh boy this is hard!

In no particular order:

1. Ravel - Daphnis et Chloe
2. Stravinsky - The Rite of Spring
3. Prokofiev - Romeo and Juliet
4. Delibes - Coppella
5. Vaughan Williams - Job
6. Debussy - La boîte à joujoux
7. Bliss - Checkmate
8. Tchaikovsky - Sleeping Beauty
9. Dukas - La Peri
10. Glazunov - The Seasons (say what you will about this work --- it's beautiful)


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## bassClef (Oct 29, 2006)

Hmm, hard indeed, but I'll have a go:

1. Stravinsky - Rite of Spring
2. Prokofiev - Romeo & Juliet
3. Stravinsky - The Firebird
4. Khachaturian - Spartacus
5. Stravinsky - Petruchka
6. Tchaikovsky - Sleeping Beauty
7. Bartok - The Mariaculous Mandarin
8. Respighi - La Boutique Fantastique
9. Milhaud - Le Boeuf Sur Le Toit
10. Respighi - The Magic Pot

Prokofiev's Tale of the Stone Flower is growing on me, I've only just begun to listen to it, so it may make this list in a few weeks.


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## LvB (Nov 21, 2008)

Assuming you mean only music written specifically for dance--

1) Prokofiev, _Romeo and Juliet_
2) Stravinsky, _The Rite of Spring_
3) Delibes, _Coppelia_
4) Tchaikovsky, _Swan Lake_
5) Barber, _Medea's Meditation and Dance of Vengeance_
6) Ravel, _Daphnis and Chloe_
7) Gliere, _The Red Poppy_
8) Khatchatuian, _Gayne_
9) Strauss, _Josephslegende_

10) A whole bunch of operatic ballet music (Strauss, Rubinstein, Saint-Saens, etc.)


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## bdelykleon (May 21, 2009)

1. Les Noces - Stravinsky
2. Le Sacre du Printemps - Stravinsky
3. The Miraculous Mandarin - Bartók
4. The Chasse Royale from Les Troyens - Berlioz
5. El amor brujo - Manuel de Falla
6. Uirapuru - Villa-Lobos
7. Petrushka - Big Igor
8. Romeo and Juliet - Prokofiev
9. Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune - Debussy
10. Pulcinella - Big Igor


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## Air (Jul 19, 2008)

bdelykleon said:


> 6. Uirapuru - Villa-Lobos


I'm absolutely appalled that I forgot the Villa-lobos ballet, in particular _Uirapuru_ and _Amazonas_.



Mirror Image said:


> 5. Vaughan Williams - Job


I just ordered it on Naxos for 50 cents. Aint I lucky!


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## shsherm (Jan 24, 2008)

Oddly enough the most frequently performed ballet is not on the list and that is "The Nutcracker". This ballet is performed by companies in every city of the US at Christmas time.


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## tahnak (Jan 19, 2009)

*Top 10 Favorite Ballets*

1. Tchaikovsky - Le Lac Des Cygnes
2. Tchaikovsky - The Sleeping Beauty
3. Tchaikovksy - Casse Noisette
4. Adam - Giselle
5. Khachaturian - Spartacus
6. Bartok - The Wooden Prince
7. Prokofiev - Romeo and Juliet
8. Stravinsky - L'Oiseau Du Feu
9. Stravinsky - Petrouchka
10. Stravinsky - Le Sacre Du Printemps

Honourable Mention : 
Beethoven - The Creatures of Prometheus
Delibes - Coppelia
Stravinsky - Pulcinella


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## Queen of the Nerds (Dec 22, 2014)

Oh boy... This is tough:
1. Swan Lake, Tchaikovsky (interchangeable with 2 at times)
2. L'oiseau de feu (aka The Firebird), Stravinsky
3. The Nutcracker, Tchaikovsky
4. Sleeping Beauty, Tchaikovsky 
5. Coppelia, Delibes
6. Romeo and Juliet, Prokofiev

I really need to listen to more ballet music.


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## Oscarf (Dec 13, 2014)

Not a big fan of ballet music... So I might not get to ten

1. Stravinsky rite of spring
2. Prokofiev Romeo and Juliet
3. Prokofiev Cinderella
4. Stravinsky the firebird
5. Debussy Jeux
6. Ravel daphnis and chloe
7. Dukas la peri
8. Glazunov the seasons
9. Khatchaturian spartacus
10. As I suppose it is not possible to exclude him completely from a top 10 ballet list Tchaikovsky Swan Lake


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## QuietGuy (Mar 1, 2014)

Stravinsky - Rite of Spring
Stravinsky - Petrushka
Stravinsky - Firebird
Stravinsky - Apollo
Stravinsky - Orpheus
Ravel - Daphnis et Chloe
Ravel - Ma Mere l'Oye
Copland - Appalachian Spring
Copland - Rodeo
Copland - Billy the Kid
Tchaikovsky - Nutcracker


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## Guest (Jan 11, 2015)

Air said:


> I think people often neglect Prokofiev as a composer of ballet and forget that he wrote nine (not just 2) consistently-brilliant ballet (something I cannot even say of Stravinsky).


List Of Stravinsky Ballets

Also, no mentions of Agon yet?


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

Prokofiev Romeo and Juliet

Copland Appalachian Spring

Tchaikovsky Sleeping Beauty

Stravinsky Petrushka

Stravinsky Rite of Spring


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