Fumie Suguri

[rtureck]

People have trouble differentiating between talent and disapproval of artists' personal lives.

I think in most cases their personal lives is none of our business with some exception. PIT's sexual orientation does not bother me one bit. PIT's rather scandalous relationship with teenage boys is controversial IMO. I have no problem enjoying his music. He has an amazing gift for melody. I am not aware that he is not well received in the international music community. I grew up with the usual Christmas season Sat matinee nut cracker stuff. I think his music is well liked generally. I do not think he had achieved greatness as a composer, that does not mean people can not enjoy his music.

Elizabeth Swartzkopf concert at Carnegie Hall way back when. The pickets demonstrating in front of the building were vociferous because she had been married to a Nazi General. It didn't bother Barry, he liked her voice (and so did I). There's more to this story but not here.

Didn't Schwarzkpof sang one of the best Mozart Cosi Fan Tutte aria Per pieta? (My dear please forgive) With a voice like that is is easy to forgive, besides married to a Nazi is different from being a Nazi.

Back to Fumie: She has a taste of GOLD. She'll want more.

The Japanese federation just announced Fumie and Arakawa as 2/3 their world team. WOW.

 

[rtureck]

Yuka looks so much like BOTH her parents. I bet I can guess at least one of the two pro skaters who could do Mozart.

Trivia question, so who is the other one? Hint, Fumie skated to Chopin piano concerto #2 F minor in worlds 2002. This pro skater used Chopin piano concerto #1 at world pro a few years ago.

More hints: The Satos can teach edges!!!

I was intrigued by your question earlier about whether the program would be stronger if it used just the piano concerto and left off the symphony. I don't really have an opinion on that. It does seem to me that when the symphonic part stops and the concerto begins, in Fumie's program, there is a distinct sense (to me) of, "OK the intoduction is over and now I'm ready to start my real program."

What do you think?

Well, after watching Fumie's program for 2 dozen times, I bow to Lori's genius. It is good that she used K550 in the first 1/4 of the program. The G minor symphony is cheered as Mozart's best symphony (imagine some musicologist think it is better than sym # 41 the Jupiter!!) It grabs your attention, and that is very important. You talk about melody that grabs you e.g. Schubert's ave Maria, Beethoven's moonlight sonata. The opening of K550 serves the same purpose.

 

[rtureck]

Re: my two cents

I really like her SP this season. And I think the pants suit it. Since it connects back to the "rock" aspect of the music. Orchestrated Rolling Stones isn't exactly traditional music, and pants on a ladies costume isn't traditional dress. It works, in an odd way. At least there aren't any strange pleather things hanging off it.

I think the pants work well, since her stretch needs some improving, the pants hide that a bit.

 

[shdotz]

A true lady

Fumie is a true lady ; in every way.

Her skating is beautiful and graceful; I liked the black pants and top. I hope she goes far in the skating world.

sh

 

[Rgirl]

[Rgirl] I have wondered about [skating to Bach] too. I think the reason is that it is too hard and puts too much of a burden on the skater and the choreographer. As opposed to opera, ballet, etc., where the program writes itself.

In baroque music, it seems like the emphasis is on counterpoint and ornamentation rather than on harmony. This means you don't get a huge swelling crescendo to pace your most eye-catching move to, but rather you have to have interesting things going on all the time, maybe more than one. You can't play Bach while you are doing a five second straight on entrance to your triple Lutz.

Also, I think that many of the pieces that you suggested have a chamber quality about them, even if scored for larger instrumentation. To take what is basically chamber music and amplify it electronically so that it fills a huge arena -- I think that risks compromising what we liked about the music in the first place.

Just my amateur opinion.
Mathman

I think you're right about the difficulty of Bach and skating. In dance, it's different because you don't HAVE to leave time to put in the jumps Yet I've danced to Bach--in addition to what I've mentioned, a couple of his concertos--and especially in the concertos, there are high points and crescendos that I would think would make for ample excitement at least in a SP. To me, the precision of Bach combined with the passion--not romatic passion, but for lack of a better word, mathematical passion--made me adore dancing to it and made it a big hit with the audiences.

Besides, Bach has such an enormous ouvre, you'd think somebody could find something to skate to from one of the greatest composers who ever lived.

I have other composers I'd like to see skaters use, but that's for another thread.
Rgirl

 

[Doggygirl]

WOW...

...all of you with such intense knowledge of the classics are really amazing! I am far from amazing on that front, so LOL I'll just comment on the pants.

I loved Fumie's skating both short and long at the GPF. She was just so elegant and lovely to watch. Maybe the pants in the SP hid some sins - I'm not sure. I will say that personally I found the pants very distracting, especially with the skirt on top. I suppose if a lady were to wear "leggings" I would probably rather see a unitard (take it all the way I guess) than the skirt on top.

Fumie is just such an elegant skater that I like simple, elegant dresses on her....

On a related point, I will make a more strategic type comment. As we can see from this thread, that costume choice was somewhat controversial - some people like it and some (me) found it distracting. If I were competing in amateur figuring skating, and in Fumie's position (I don't see her as a "made" skater yet ala someone like Michelle) as an up and coming skater, I think I would make more conservative costume decisions that would be most likely to appeal to any judge.

just my 2 cents...

DG

 

[Mathman]

Doggygirl, I think that Lori Nichol is deliberately bringing out a brasher and bolder side of Fumie's skating with this SP. Maybe the "controvesial" costume is part of it.

Mathman

 

[Doggygirl]

Hi Mathman!

I am not privvy to the "behind the scenes" decisions, and you are quite probably right. Just expressing my opinion...

The costume decision certainly drew a lot of attention, and possibly in Fumie's situation that's a good thing. In any case, I love her skating and will watch her with interest even if she decides to wear a Batman costume.

DG

 

[gracefulswan]

i have to say that i'm not a big fumie fan yet. her lines are not all that great even though she emotes adequately enough... her body stretch, feet, layback, spirals (don't i recall with a bent leg?), and poor loop tech... eh... nothing stands out so much.. grabs ya.

i'm just not a fan of her style like i am of some others... like kwan or cohen.. or even liashenko..

 

[shdotz]

Skating to Bach

Bach composed many and various types of music; principally, he was a church musician and he performed his own music as opposed to playing that which was composed by others.

Bach is the composer of harmonics. He studied with Buxtehude; Buxtehude also did harmonics but on a smaller ("thinner") scale. Bach is accepted as being the composer of harmonics, that is, he took it to a higher level and no one has equalled his compositions.

That is not to say that other composers were not his equal in composition for music. This IS to say that Bach is the master of harmonics (chords) on the 8-note scale (as opposed to the 12-tone).

Another truth is that if 10 musicians were given a Bach composition to learn and play, each musician would have a variation in interpretation, and the educated listener would distinguish that fact; but, as long as the performer is stylistically correct it's usually acceptable.

Let the skater interpret. It's real for the skater.

sh