Pushing the artistic boundaries of skating

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

I agree, that's one of my favourite SPs of his. And a perfect example of how the system can still allow for great choreography and interpretation, but have the difficulty as well. Those footwork sequences were to die for (maybe one too many head snaps though, lol).

 

[christinaskater]

Akiko is truly astounding in terms of musicality and artistry.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ohsTB5gGaXk Here she skates with violinist Iwao Furusawa plays the violin.

Her body becomes one with the music. Such a rare gift. She gives a feeling of flight and magic when she skates. The last time I really felt the magic was when a certain Michelle Kwan left the sport. I am really happy she is pushing the boundaries of musicality and artistry.

Daisuke and Akiko are like really special skaters.

Carolina is also phenomenal. I became a fan when I saw her skate to "Prelude to an Afternoon Faun" at Worlds 2011. She also became one with the music. Her interpretation of "Bolero" is simply phenomenal.

Akiko, Daisuke and Carolina are killing it in solo skating.

 

[dorispulaski]

Akiko is a special skater, but what exact artistic boundary did she push or break?

 

[mikeko666]

Abbott, Kostner and Suzuki seem to have their own ideas and visions and are actually capable of materializing them on the ice. Answering to doris' question above,　I believe Suzuki's "O" is truly unique because she used the music from Cirque du Soleil, but didn't try to recreate "O" on the ice. She created a totally different story on the ice instead, and how to interpret it was left to each person who watches.

Takahashi is the best instrument to many choreographers, and he is so good at getting inside of their heads and materializing their visions. He often gives back more than what his choreographers asked for.

 

[plushyfan]

I also adore Dai's Swan! He is a real dancer! I would like to see him dance on floor.

 

[draqq]

Pushing artistic boundaries in figure skating means, for me, innovative choreography and an emotional commitment to that choreography.

Jeremy Abbott's Exogenesis is incredible in this regard, mainly because it's a self-choreographed program. Daisuke Takahashi usually commits to his programs as well, though I felt his programs toward the end of the last skating season was him trying to act how his Russian coach wanted him to act. I would also add Akiko Suzuki

For other skaters, the vast majority of programs are choreographed by another person, so it's difficult for the skater to inject themselves into the movements of the work. And I agree that the IJS has turned presentation into technical artistry with Skating Skills and Transitions.

Another person I would say is Jeffrey Buttle, now as a choreography. He's done wonders for Patrick Chan's Elegy, and I would say that Chan's final minute in La Strada showed to me that he actually has an emotional range.

 

[alfoalfo]

For me, pushing the artistic boundaries equates to creative revolution (I.T example would be VHS to DVD) and i dont think anyone has really done this post IJS from the looks of things. however i have defintely seen creative evolution (DVD to BluRay), so in this sense I think Yuna, Caro and Akiko have it down pat. Mainly because their program's always stand out from the rest. I only follow the ladies and am a casual men's fan, but for the men, from what I've seen thus far, Daisuke and Lambiel definitely lead the pack.

This is very off topic, but here goes, Im a fan who unfortunately missed out on the 6.0 days and was introduced to the sport when it was strictly IJS (Yuna brought me here lol)... Apparently IJS limits the artistic and pushes the technical- so when someone in another thread (I think it was Mathman) mentioned that Yuna's Les Mis LP was a 6.0 program and many others agreed, I was pretty surprised- can someone please tell me why and how it's different?

 

[CanadianSkaterGuy]

This is very off topic, but here goes, Im a fan who unfortunately missed out on the 6.0 days and was introduced to the sport when it was strictly IJS (Yuna brought me here lol)... Apparently IJS limits the artistic and pushes the technical- so when someone in another thread (I think it was Mathman) mentioned that Yuna's Les Mis LP was a 6.0 program and many others agreed, I was pretty surprised- can someone please tell me why and how it's different?

I think they were referring it to be a 6.0 worthy program, which it certainly would have been considering she was the last to skate and delivered a flawless program, including 3Z+3T. IJS seemingly has less emphasis on artistry because programs have more difficulty so it limits the time and energy a skater can take to be artistic (usually it's a choreographic limitation). But as many have shown Takahashi, Chan, Kostner, Kim, Asada, etc. it's certainly possible to incorporate difficulty while maintaining a significant level of artistry. Only the top echelon of skaters are capable of balancing both. In the past, a clean skate - as determined by clean jumps - and being the last to skate would often merit a 5.9/6.0, but now a "perfect" skate is determined by what goes on in between the elements as well as the elements themselves.

 

[alfoalfo]

I think they were referring it to be a 6.0 worthy program, which it certainly would have been considering she was the last to skate and delivered a flawless program, including 3Z+3T. IJS seemingly has less emphasis on artistry because programs have more difficulty so it limits the time and energy a skater can take to be artistic (usually it's a choreographic limitation). But as many have shown Takahashi, Chan, Kostner, Kim, Asada, etc. it's certainly possible to incorporate difficulty while maintaining a significant level of artistry. Only the top echelon of skaters are capable of balancing both. In the past, a clean skate - as determined by clean jumps - and being the last to skate would often merit a 5.9/6.0, but now a "perfect" skate is determined by what goes on in between the elements as well as the elements themselves.

Thanks for the reply! Right, so Yunas LP (as well as the top 2~3) was just well balanced between art and tech ability.
so the IJS now, it's all very mathematical and involves a lot of formulas etc, did 6.0 also incorporate reputation as well?

 

[gkelly]

so the IJS now, it's all very mathematical and involves a lot of formulas etc, did 6.0 also incorporate reputation as well?

Not officially. But in practice, undoubtedly it did, even more than IJS.

 

[Bea]

The Kerrs haven't been mentioned in this thread yet but their programs have often been referred to as innovative ones. For example their Enigma free skate seems to me quite unusual for ice dancing. And they had the Linkin Park free dance in the olympic season which is something that not many skaters would risk I guess. I love these programs and their other ones too.

 

[karne]

Wouldn't it make sense that sibling pairs/dance couples would have to push the artistic boundaries more often because a whole genre that makes up probably 80% of programs is closed to them? (ie, romance?)

 

[Bea]

Wouldn't it make sense that sibling pairs/dance couples would have to push the artistic boundaries more often because a whole genre that makes up probably 80% of programs is closed to them? (ie, romance?)

It does make sense of course. However it's still something new to the spectators regardless of the reason why they choose themes like those.

 

[Olympia]

Wouldn't it make sense that sibling pairs/dance couples would have to push the artistic boundaries more often because a whole genre that makes up probably 80% of programs is closed to them? (ie, romance?)

What an interesting thought! That never occurred to me, but the minute you mentioned it, it makes such good sense. Sometimes a limitation in one direction brings innovation in another--much the way that the Hays censorship code in Hollywood created such imaginative movie love stories. The Duchesnays are another example of expressiveness achieved by a couple who couldn't skate romantically because of the "squick" possibilities.

Another thing that strikes me is that often the most innovative skaters aren't the ones at the very top. They are a little less invested in pleasing the judges, perhaps, so they don't mind losing points by trying something new. (Of course there are exceptions, such as Torvill and Dean and John Curry.) I'm thinking of people such as Rahkamo and Kokko, Norbert Schramm, and Igor Bobrin.