Vocal music with lyrics | Golden Skate

Vocal music with lyrics

MissCleo

On the Ice
Joined
Oct 27, 2005
How could Emily Hughes skate to Carmina Burana earlier this season with the rule that vocal music is not permitted? Another example would be Fumie's long last year. Does the rule exclude choral music? Whats the loophole?
 
How could Emily Hughes skate to Carmina Burana earlier this season with the rule that vocal music is not permitted? Another example would be Fumie's long last year. Does the rule exclude choral music? Whats the loophole?

If I remember, the vocal stuff was omitted in emily's version. i wonder if they worked at removing it with a music engineer, or what, but I don't believe it was there...
 
IINM the loophole is that vocal music can be used if no words are involved. Apparently there is software that can ... slur the pronunciation so that no particular words are distinguishable.

So basically, it's _lyrics_ that aren't allowed.
 
Like Mafke wrote, I think the loophole is that vocals are allowed if voice is used as a musical instrument, ie not to actually say words. I think commentators at Skate Canada last year were wondering whether Fumie's music would warrant a deduction -- I suppose there is some fuzziness in the definition.

Kypma
 
IIRC, a couple of skaters used Duel of Fates from Star Wars Episode 1 (and it is in Ep. 3 as well) and that was allowed because the lyrics weren't considered lyrics (it was an ancient lang or something?)

but I could be wrong with that info.
 
I too think that vocals are allowed if you can't understand the lyrics. For instance several skaters used "conquest of paradise" from the "1492" soundtrack - it's a choir, and the lyrics are in latin.
 
How could Emily Hughes skate to Carmina Burana earlier this season with the rule that vocal music is not permitted? Another example would be Fumie's long last year. Does the rule exclude choral music? Whats the loophole?

I think if emily had any vocals it was just operatic singing... ahhhhhh stuff. Fumie used Karl Jenkins music, the singers are not speaking real words. They are nonsense syllables that make music like an instrument.
 
Gee, "my" Todd used both of these - part of "O, Fortuna" & another part of Carmina Burana and "1492." I sort of remember some controversy about using vocals at the time he skated to part of "Carmina Burana (2001/2002) in his SP. Apparently the issue got resolved somehow, and I'm glad he got to skate to the program Carmina Burana/Mythodea because I just love the power and intensity of that program (my favorite version of it being the interpretive free he did of it at the 2002 Hershey's Spring Challenge).
 
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"dead" languages in vocals are allowed. Some people may understand Latin (I do) because they learned it in school, but it is no longer a spoken language, and therefore is considered 'dead'. No one knows how spoken Latin actually sounded.
 
My problem with lyrics in skating is that some people may get carried away with the vocal and just agree that the skater is wonderful to be associated with that recording.

Skaters, imo, are very limited to what music will work for competition and what will work for show. Of course, there is much more music that should never be used in figure skating.

Joe
 
My problem with lyrics in skating is that some people may get carried away with the vocal and just agree that the skater is wonderful to be associated with that recording.
That is so true. Professional skaters know this well, LOL. Or exhibitions, like Johnny Weir's Unchained Melody.

The same goes for some classical music, too. Turandot is such great music that I automatically think the skater is doing something amazing whenever I hear it.

One thing that Lori Nicole did for Michelle Kwan was to give her little-known music (Taj Mahal, Lyra Angelica, Arianne, Red Viloin, Black Swan) that did not carry any comfortable choreographic expectations with it. This allowed the program to be utterly unique and uniquely Michelle.
 
My problem with lyrics in skating is that some people may get carried away with the vocal and just agree that the skater is wonderful to be associated with that recording.

My main problem is a little different (though related). Unless the skater has a _really_ strong personality* they risk looking like they're shoved into second place - just the accompaniment to the vocals.

*I think that at any given time there's probably no more than half dozen eligibles (and often less) that aren't liable to be overpowered by vocals.
 
And another thing! (he said, muttering about 'these kids nowadays').

Many elite skaters are kind of sheltered and .... young. Their taste tends toward the superficial and utterly depressing. I always want performers to have better taste than they usually do, I was crushed when I heard Debi Thomas tell and interviewer how much she liked Paula Abdul and now I sigh heavily when I read that Johnny Weir is heavily into Christina Aguilera....

The prospect of young elite skaters performing to their favorite disposable pop songs is just .... just .... (words fail).

Full disclosure: I like all sorts of disposable pop crap myself, I just don't have any illusions that it's deep or lends itself to 'interpretation'.
 
Oh Mafke have some fatih in us younguns! Also, surely there would be at least one voice of reason that would speak out to keep someone from skating a competitive program to "Genie in a Bottle":biggrin:

How much are ice dancers using vocals? I can't recall any vocal pieces used for ice dancing that was horrible. If they can deal with it tastefully, can't other disciplines?
 
Gee, "my" Todd used both of these - part of "O, Fortuna" & another part of Carmina Burana and "1492." I sort of remember some controversy about using vocals at the time he skated to part of "Carmina Burana (2001/2002) in his SP. Apparently the issue got resolved somehow, and I'm glad he got to skate to the program Carmina Burana/Mythodea because I just love the power and intensity of that program (my favorite version of it being the interpretive free he did of it at the 2002 Hershey's Spring Challenge).

He also used Duel of Fates which had the 'dead' language of Latin ;)
 
now I sigh heavily when I read that Johnny Weir is heavily into Christina Aguilera....

I am a big opera and classical music fan, but I do appreciate an excellent voice, even in popular music, and Christina Aguilera has one of the best I've heard. I would be alarmed if Johnny liked Britney Spears, or Jessica/Ashlee Simpson.
 
I am pretty sure that Emily's Carmina Burana didn't have any lyrics at all. I believe that they were taken out. I heard it numerous times at Skate America and I am pretty sure that there were no lyrics. With computer and sound equiptment and professional music mixers...you can't do anything to a piece of music now a days.
 
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