Does a Skater's Choice of Music Influence You?

Winnie_20 · Mar 31, 2014

Music plays a very important part in my life, and I got into watching figure skating not for the skating, but the music. :eek:

: I'm slowly learning to be impressed by skaters by their jumping and skating abilities (very slowly, I still cannot tell some jumps apart, edge work is mostly a mystery to me still!), but musical interpretation is more my thing. So yes, it does influence me.

That said, I have a broad interest in music, and because I do not have a long history with watching figure skating, I have no issues whatsoever with any of these so-called war horses. I really dislike Les Miserables, but that's probably the only piece of music this season that tempted me to switch off the television sound. ;-) The swans, the piano concertos, Gershwin's prelude, but also modern music, bring it on. Very curious to see what will happen in the new season with lyrics allowed in all disciplines!

cuon_alpinus · Mar 31, 2014

JayW said:
Agreed! I never really enjoyed Astor Pizzolla, until Lu Chen did it in 1998. I am assuming many oursiders of classic music could benefit just like me.

I really enjoyed yuna's adios nonino and her tango de roxanne. What about you guys? What's ur favorite?

pointyourtoe · Mar 31, 2014

It absolutely does. It might not change my enjoyment of a technically proficient program, but so often the music is important in stirring up emotions in the viewer.

For me, it's one of the reasons Meryl and Charlie deserved the win this year. Not just for the music, but the choreography and drama that went along with it. Tessa/Scott were going for subtle but in comparison they just looked sleepy!

Kitt · Mar 31, 2014

pointyourtoe said:
It absolutely does. It might not change my enjoyment of a technically proficient program, but so often the music is important in stirring up emotions in the viewer.

For me, it's one of the reasons Meryl and Charlie deserved the win this year. Not just for the music, but the choreography and drama that went along with it. Tessa/Scott were going for subtle but in comparison they just looked sleepy!

I agree completely. As soon as I saw M/C's program vs. T/S, I thought "no way are they going to win with that sleeper -- Mahler light"

Mathman · Mar 31, 2014

JayW said:
Mozart also has a lot cheerful music suitable for skating. Caro did wonderful job in 2012. But why not other skaters?

Fumie Suguri had a fine Lori Nichol program to Eine Kleine Nachtmusik. Has anyone ever skated to the greatest of all classical composers, Haydn?

Alba · Mar 31, 2014

Blades of Passion said:
All that matters is how well the skater interprets the music they've chosen.

However, some musical selections are impossible to interpret (at least in a meaningful way), so it's important to have a good cut of music. Many musical selections that include lyrics are impossible to interpret properly.

I fully agree with you. I was sick and tired with Carmen, but I loved V&M Carmen.
Stravinsky's Firebird it's a beautiful piece of music but very difficult to skate. I think you should be a very good skater technically and very powerful to be able to mantain till the end the huge energy that Firebird requires. If it's done properly it could be a masterpiece.
Same goes for Rossini, although different, and his famous crescendo.

apgold · Mar 31, 2014

I generally groan when I hear the old warhorses being trotted out every year. But it does depend on the skater and their interpretation which can make the music enjoyable. Akiko Suzuki is an example, she tended to skate to warhorses (she even did Ladies in Lavender for her EX) and did POTO for her long this past season. But b/c it was Akiko, I loved it and it became hers. (I am going to miss Akiko very much, as you can tell)

Same w/ V&M's Carmen and the cut of the music they used - it became fresh again b/c of their choreography and the interpretation. Max Aaron's version did nothing for me this year, but I liked Samantha Cesario's. So it depends on the skater for me.

Alba · Mar 31, 2014

apgold said:
I generally groan when I hear the old warhorses being trotted out every year. But it does depend on the skater and their interpretation which can make the music enjoyable. Akiko Suzuki is an example, she tended to skate to warhorses (she even did Ladies in Lavender for her EX) and did POTO for her long this past season. But b/c it was Akiko, I loved it and it became hers. (I am going to miss Akiko very much, as you can tell)

Same w/ V&M's Carmen and the cut of the music they used - it became fresh again b/c of their choreography and the interpretation. Max Aaron's version did nothing for me this year, but I liked Samantha Cesario's. So it depends on the skater for me.

:thumbsup:
Although I must say figure skating seems very limited in their choice of music. I mean there are endless pieces of music out there, and choices you could make, whether you want classic modern or rock.
Also, many versions and cut pieces are horrible.

poleptina · Mar 31, 2014

CarneAsada said:
But I have to disagree with the flat deduction for anything Rachmaninoff. It really depends on the piece.
+22 for Non Allegro from the Symphonic Dances (it's such a great piece, for me it evokes the image of mortuary workers dragging dead bodies across a ballroom floor)
+8 for Piano Concerto No. 4 (it is an unusual choice, but this bonus will be removed if more than 5 skaters/pairs in any discipline use this in one year)
+0.2 for Etudes-Tableaux
-7 for 3rd movement of Piano Concerto #3
-23 for 2nd and 3rd movements from Rach 2
-38 for Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini (and lifetime ban for using 18th variation)

And the Swan part needs more revision as well. Swan Lake should have cumulative deductions.
-30 for using any version of the famous theme
-30 for using Drigo's music for Odile

-75 for The Swan by Saint-Saens

Also there should be a -19 for tasteless arrangements of other pieces. For example, Adelina's Introduction and rondo capriccioso would get that deduction.
Poor edits and bad cuts get -3.

Meanwhile, does anyone else think that skaters doing Petrushka should get a bonus? My feeling for it is very positive, while I am neutral toward Firebird and I loathe The Rite of Spring.
+10 for Petrushka

THIS. Gawd I hate show tunes and most film scores too. They pretty much spoil any enjoyment I can get out the skating in advance.

Does a Skater's Choice of Music Influence You?

Winnie_20

cuon_alpinus

pointyourtoe

Kitt

Mathman

Alba

apgold

Alba

poleptina

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