Top 5 worst music choices from Skate America

[rain]

It seems like there are some music choices this season that range from puzzling to downright awful. There were certainly a few here this weekend. What were your least favourites?

Mine are, in particular order:
1. Miura/Kihara's weird LP music. Why, just why?
2. Chock/Bates FD music
3. Tarasova/Morozov LP music. (this does less than nothing for them)
4. Vincent Zhou SP. Ban Josh Groban. Awful Starry, Starry Night cover.
5. Hubbell/Donohue's RD Janet Jackson.

 

[Ic3Rabbit]

There were alot that had me
Brezina FS, all those music cuts that didn't go together lol
The Polish Ice Dancers.

 

[4everchan]

I didn't like nessun dorma sung by a soprano instead of a tenor.
I didn't like Nathan's (sorry my dear) choice of Requiem for an Olympic season and the trip-hop section
Whoever picked Einaudi is not my friend and there were a couple
I have to agree with Vincent's starry night.. .sigh...

and yes, Brezina's FS and the Polish Ice dancers... oh lord.... I am not sure I liked Trusova's Cruella either...

On a very surprising and positive note : though I am a purist when it comes to classical music, WOW at SHOLERO's !! this was really exciting

 

[anonymoose_au]

1. Fix You cover for Alexa and Brandon, that was some tomfoolery.
2. Audrey Shin's FS - The voice overs were so creepy!
3. Kaori's SP, didn't sound very Gladiator
4. T/M FS, it's not terrible music but it's a drag and also has Aliona and Bruno connections and makes them look like copycats.
5. Nam's SP music, because apparently that costume was used for a Frank Sinatra program which was way more fun.

Best music

Uncle Cactus's FS, I was dancing along!

Sholero, everything about that program was boss.

Vincent's Vincent because if I had a song with my name as the title you better believe I'd skate to it too

 

[Arriba627]

1) Brezina's FS. So many songs it sounds like someone is switching the radio channels fast
2) Amber's EX. To borrow someone else's line "This isn't a book report, it's a skating program." Talking about slashing one's wrists? Nice.
3) The Nessun Dorma soprano.
4) Kaori's FS. Go back to The Piano.

 

[Fourleaf Clover]

Nathan's LP-
The drab music really emphasized the emptiness of the program. I guess classical music is really not for him.

Shun Sato's LP-
It's POTO which is bad enough, but it also has some really bad cuts. Gah!

 

[Flying Feijoa]

Best music

Uncle Cactus's FS, I was dancing along!

Yay me too! His music is like Marmite, I'm a fan of both
Vincent's music is Vegemite, in principle I like it, just not when served up by Josh Groban...

I actually like both Nathan and Shun's LP music, both are a little voidy which suits my current mood. Though I feel Nathan's programme might be more fun if he picked Dies Irae instead of Lacrimosa...

 

[4everchan]

Yay me too! His music is like Marmite, I'm a fan of both
Vincent's music is Vegemite, in principle I like it, just not when served up by Josh Groban...

I actually like both Nathan and Shun's LP music, both are a little voidy which suits my current mood. Though I feel Nathan's programme might be more fun if he picked Dies Irae instead of Lacrimosa...

i don't know... the lyrics of lacrimosa are already just bad (grant rest oh lord merciful god jesus to the guilty man who rises from the ashes to be judged)... the dies irae's ones are much darker...

Wrath day,
This day
Everything will be ashes
Like David and Sybil announced.

What a terror it will be,
When the Judge will come
To judge us all harshly.

Wrath day,
This day
Everything will be ashes
Like David and Sybil announced.

What a terror it will be,
When the Judge will come
To judge us all harshly.


With severity,
Judge (us) with severity


there is enough judging in figure skating already LOL

 

[viennaskater]

Soucisse/Firus FD French music - the vocals are so distracting. Several skaters have picked French music probably because of the Worlds in Montpellier but I don't think it works in most cases.
Trusova's awful jarring FS music - what the Heck is that??
Polish couple's FD music - I tend to like strange music choices but this just feels uncomfortable.
Fournier-Beaudry/Sorensen FD music - voiceovers! No no no!
Daria Usacheva's SP music - can't stand that 'Never Enough', it was disgusting enough in the 'Greatest Showman'.

 

[Seven Sisters]

First, the “double dippers” who have not one but two bad selections, Kaori Sakamoto and, Miura/Kihara (Hallelujah I enjoy in real life, but I hate it for skating; that “Woman” dirge is just plain awful)

Special awards to those with just one truly bad choice: Audrey Shin’s “enhanced” Moonlight Sonata, and Chock & Bates with their Billie Eilish medley

I actually like Nathan’s FS music and think I get where he is going with it, and I, too, really like the Sholero!

 

[rain]

Soucisse/Firus FD French music - the vocals are so distracting. Several skaters have picked French music probably because of the Worlds in Montpellier but I don't think it works in most cases.
Trusova's awful jarring FS music - what the Heck is that??
Polish couple's FD music - I tend to like strange music choices but this just feels uncomfortable.
Fournier-Beaudry/Sorensen FD music - voiceovers! No no no!
Daria Usacheva's SP music - can't stand that 'Never Enough', it was disgusting enough in the 'Greatest Showman'.

I forgot how much I hated Usacheva's overwrought SP music! That was awful. It was skating her, rather than her skating it. Just too much.

 

[4everchan]

First, the “double dippers” who have not one but two bad selections, Kaori Sakamoto and, Miura/Kihara (Hallelujah I enjoy in real life, but I hate it for skating; that “Woman” dirge is just plain awful)

Special awards to those with just one truly bad choice: Audrey Shin’s “enhanced” Moonlight Sonata, and Chock & Bates with their Billie Eilish medley

I actually like Nathan’s FS music and think I get where he is going with it, and I, too, really like the Sholero!

where is Nathan going with a funeral mass? Enlighten me because i certainly do not get it.

 

[ManyCairns]

Hubbell/Donohue's Free music -- as I commented in the FD thread, I just wanted it to stop, and it even brought my husband out of his office down the hall to the living room to find out what "horrible music" I was listening to.

 

[readernick]

Agree on Miura/Kihara.. does their choreographer hate them? They are so joyful and talented and then to have those programs, just why? The SP music is boring and overused, but the LP music is frankly terrible.

Also, agree about Kaori. I still believe Benoit might be playing a joke on figure skating community this year given how terrible some of his programs are this year. Both of Kaori's are near the top of the worst programs this year. Why did he do this to her?

Daria's programs. I secretly believe that Daniil knows that Daria is the most artistic of the young skaters in his rink and doesn't want her to steal any limelight from those who are the Olympic contenders. That is the only explanation that I can think of for these music choices. She did manage to perform the terrible SP well, but the LP was just too bad for even a skater of her talent to rescue.

Fournier-Beaudry/Sorensen FD's spoken word program is bad enough for me to forget how incredibly attractive they both are...

Shun Sato's LP- I'm a biased Shun fan but I find the cuts that were made and the pieces that were chosen make no sense. Shun may not have the same amazing basic skating as Yuma but he does have very good SS and the SP shows he has artistic potential. I wish he had a better LP.

Among the programs that have been mentioned by others that I actually like:

Chock/Bates's programs. I am not a fan of Billie Eilish but this is the first Eilish program that works for me. On the other hand, I really love Daft Punk and think their FD has promise but I think they need to make a few changes to make it work completely. Basically, I like both programs but I can totally see how others wouldn't

Maybe, Nathan Chen's Lp? I'm really not sure how I feel about it. It's weird and possibly inappropriate to have such serious music used in the way it is in Nathan's program. However, it is also kind of unique? I need to see the program performed cleanly before I decide.

I'm glad I am not the only one who loves Sholero! Speaking of Shoma, his SP is not bad at all but I think he was originally planning on a SP to the Michael Jackson music he is using for exhibition as a SP. It's fantastic. I hope he goes back to that...

 

[Kathy1]

In order from fifth to most egregious, this is my ranking:

5. Unnecessary voiceovers
4. Excessive voiceovers
3. Pretentious voiceovers
2. Intrusive voiceovers
1. Moonlight Sonata voiceovers

 

[el henry]

where is Nathan going with a funeral mass? Enlighten me because i certainly do not get it.

In this we are in agreement. And this is in no way shape or form a comment on Nathan's skating gifts.

I do not have your professional knowledge of music, but I kept wondering, what is Nathan thinking. "Lacrimosa" is a funeral mass. Grief stricken and mournful. Ok, so folks ignore the original purpose of classical music all the time, but this time I just can't. And then a techno version of Lacrymosa? Are you flipping kidding me?

I don't care if it has been Nathan's, Shae's and Raf's lifelong dream for Nathan to skate to this music, just wow. I'm glad to see I'm not the only one who feels that way.

And yet for some reason weird Bolero works for me. Probably because it's not funeral music.

ETA: and I never understood Dies Irae as skating music either.

 

[4everchan]

In this we are in agreement. And this is in no way shape or form a comment on Nathan's skating gifts.

I do not have your professional knowledge of music, but I kept wondering, what is Nathan thinking. "Lacrimosa" is a funeral mass. Grief stricken and mournful. Ok, so folks ignore the original purpose of classical music all the time, but this time I just can't. And then a techno version of Lacrymosa? Are you flipping kidding me?

I don't care if it has been Nathan's, Shae's and Raf's lifelong dream for Nathan to skate to this music, just wow. I'm glad to see I'm not the only one who feels that way.

And yet for some reason weird Bolero works for me. Probably because it's not funeral music.

Shoma's weird bolero works really well because even if it's a powered up version, it keeps true to what a bolero is... a Spanish dance.

In the end, I love Nathan's skating so as I have said in another thread, I will forgive him just like I did for Patrick when he skated to mack the knife... Figure skaters do not have to cater to my musical needs... but hey!!! this is a forum where I can express them, so I do so However if ever Shae-Lynn wants to consult me to avoid such musical faux-pas in the future she knows where to find me LOL

 

[Seven Sisters]

where is Nathan going with a funeral mass? Enlighten me because i certainly do not get it.

I interpret this to be an elegy for the many lives lost during the pandemic.

Nathan strikes me as a thoughtful and intelligent young man, and it is not unknown for US skaters to choose meaningful music for the Olympic year (example, Jason with Sinnerman and Schindler’s List, though those choices are more obvious.)

 

[Ic3Rabbit]

I interpret this to be an elegy for the many lives lost during the pandemic.

Nathan strikes me as a thoughtful and intelligent young man, and it is not unknown for US skaters to choose meaningful music for the Olympic year (example, Jason with Sinnerman and Schindler’s List, though those choices are more obvious.)

This makes sense, I mean, he is/was pre-med at Uni

 

[Flying Feijoa]

What a terror it will be,
When the Judge will come
To judge us all harshly.


With severity,
Judge (us) with severity


there is enough judging in figure skating already LOL

Yup, Shin Amano-style, just like someone mentioned in the Crazy Predictions thread

Honestly I don't think Requiem is very appropriate, but following Russian Cup comps has increased my tolerance for contextually bizarre music. I'd prefer something along the vein of Philip Glass or Mao's Last Dancer, but if for some reason he has his heart set on doomsday classics, might as well go full-out