THE BALLET

The ballet, or dance staged!

When the dance becomes a play performed on a stage to be seen by spectators, we
talk about ballet. Usually runs a ballet with beautiful scenery and costumes. It
's like a play or an opera, but instead of dancing or singing, dancing.
The Court Ballet
At the time of the great King Louis XIV of France (who loved the opera), it rose
from the ballet at the Royal Court, in his great Palace of Versailles, with lav
ish sets and dazzling lighting effects. Louis XIV luimême danced very well: one
day, at the age of 15, he was featured in one of those ballets in a costume wit
h feathers and gold, in the role of the Rising Sun! This show was danced in 1653
and he was entitled Le Ballet de la Nuit. Because of this ballet and this costu
me that Louis XIV was nicknamed the "Sun King".
the "court ballet" (very popular in France) will be at the origin of French oper
a (called "lyrical tragedy" [cf. Lully]), which maintains a very strong taste fo
r dance ...
The ballet for all
Initially, the Court ballets were reserved for kings, princes and nobles. The pe
ople there were not admitted. But later it began to make ballets for the general
public in large auditoriums. Since that time, the ballet has become a big succe
ss.
Ballet
Becoming a dancer or ballet dancer takes several years of practice. Know the fiv
e basic positions and learn the different movements, postures and figures dance.
You've probably heard about the posture of the "big gap" for example. In the ba
llet shoes are used satin, canvas and board, called "slippers". The Slippers "ti
p" are used only by the ballerinas (that is to say the girls, not boys) with end
s cut square and are strengthened to enable them to dance on tip toes with a lig
htness . The costumes are also very gracious one knows the famous ballerina tutu
.
The choreographer and his choreography
The choreographer is like the conductor, but for the dancers. He chooses the ste
ps and movements to be performed. Some ballets tell stories. Instead of playing
like stage actors or sing like opera, dancing and mime the story. You may have a
lready seen the Nutcracker Tchaikovsky: one can follow the action by simply watc
hing the dancers, sets and costumes while listening to music. To find out how an
d where to move, the dancers of The Nutcracker comply indications of the choreog
rapher. It is said that the dancers follow the choreography. Nutcracker has been
performed for the first time in Russia (Tchaikovsky was a Russian composer) wit
h a big success. The choreographer came from France and it was a perfect name fo
r his business: Marius Petipa!
The ballet at the opera since the invention of the Opera (1600), composers have
often included short ballets sung between scenes.
The Dance of the Hours for Walt Disney: a ballet for hippos!
The Italian composer Amilcare Ponchielli (1834-1886) came to prominence with his
opera La Gioconda. In the third act of this opera, there is a little ballet to
the music very catchy called The Dance of the Hours. You will hear this ballet a
t the beginning of the concert of the Orchestre Métropolitain. You can see Mr.
Ponchielli the photo on the right. He composed nine operas in all but only La Gi
oconda is still played today. It was played at the Opera de Montreal in spring 1
999. The Walt Disney film Fantasia illustrates several works of classical music
in cartoons. One of these works is precisely the Dance of the Hours. It shows da
ncing ostriches, hippos, elephants and crocodiles disguised as ballerinas!
Some famous ballets ballets tell these stories may very well known (in parenthes
es, the name of the composer of the music of the ballet): Creatures of Prometheu
s (Beethoven) Giselle (Adolphe Adam) Coppelia (Leo Delibes) Don Quixote (Ludwig
Minkus) Swan Lake (Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky) The Sleeping Beauty (Pyotr Ilyich T
chaikovsky) The Nutcracker (Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky) The Firebird (Igor Stravin
sky) Petrushka (Igor Stravinsky) Daphnis et Chloe (Ravel) El amor brujo (Manuel
de Falla) Shop whimsical (Ottorino Respighi after Rossini) Romeo and Juliet (Ser
gey Prokofiev) Cinderella (Sergei Prokofiev)
Mr. Diaghilev and the Ballets Russes
In the early 20th century,€one manager (that is to say, a show organizer) named
Sergei Diaghilev (1872-1929) brings together the best dancers and choreographer
s of his country (Russia) and founded a company he calls "The Ballets Russes . T
he whole band moved to Paris where their modern performances and daring are all
the rage.
To the music of his new ballet, Diaghilev used by modern composers such as Debus
sy, Ravel and Stravinsky, for example. He asked the great painters like Picasso,
Miro and Derain draw the sets and costumes. The results are truly magical! It i
s for the Ballets Russes that Respighi composed La Boutique Fantasque.
The Russian ballet
The French school, traveling, had brought Russia to its teaching. The great mast
ers were hired to teach in succession under the Tsars (The Pick, Didelot, Petitp
as, St. Leon, Johanson, Cecchetti). It is this fusion of styles that were create
d for the Ballets Russes, with the playwright that was Diaghilev who had the gen
ius to bring together the talents of the most prestigious early century Fokine,
Nijinsky, Nijinska (sister Nijinsky), Pavlova, Volinine Massine, Sinkhole, Zvere
f, Spessitzeva, Ida Rubinstein, Balanchine, Markova, Marie Rambert, Ninette de V
alois, Lifar. Sergei Pavlovich Diaghilev (1872-1929) is a critic who has underta
ken to raise awareness of Russian art in Paris. In 1899 he began organizing arti
stic events, dealing with the choice of works for which he travels in search of
novelty, the funding it provides by his connections. In 1904 he organized perfor
mances in St Petersburg and Paris and organized an exhibition in 1906, concerts
in 1907, an opera in 1908 before turning to dance. So in spring 1909 a young Rus
sian troops and Exalted descends on the stage of the Chatelet and causes an incr
edible fireworks display: it is the "Ballets Russes" by Serge Diaghilev, and it
is they who will bring back traditions that was believed lost and they have pres
erved, nurtured, transcended. But the Russian ballet troupe has actually created
until 1911. The Russian dancers under the auspices of Diaghilev then work with
all the artists of the day: Leon Bakst, Alexandre Benois, Russian, both of which
made the scenery and costume designs of the Ballets Russes, and Picasso and Coc
teau, finally Eric Satie, Stravinsky, Ravel, Manuel de Falla, Debussy, for music
. Thus the Russian ballet troupe is that Diaghilev attaches equal importance to
the choreography, décor, to the score and performance. Diaghilev wants to imple
ment a complete show, an aesthetic of surprise with avant-garde artists that cha
llenge some traditions are strong. They took place in Rome, London, Monte Carlo,
Paris and the United States and South America before breaking up in 1929. Subse
quently elements dancers and choreographers of the Ballets Russes were scattered
around the world, everywhere they have shone without discussion, anywhere they
have occupied prominent positions: Balanchine to New York to Paris Lifar, Fokine
Stockholm Marie Rambert and Ninette de Valois in London, Massine everywhere, an
d many became professors of international renown, allowing dancers to reach the
top of the dance and pass them the traditions of an art in perpetual evolution.
It is strange that the only castaway of this unique adventure in the history of
dance is precisely that which had been the soul: Nijinsky. In 1918, when he was
28, he had the internet. It was crazy. He died in 1950.
Major ballets created by the company (choreographer / composer)
1910: Scheherazade (Fokine / Rimsky-Korsakov), The Firebird (Fokine / Stravinsky
). 1911: Petrushka (Fokine / Stravinsky), Sadko (Fokine / Rimsky-Korsakov). 1912
: The Afternoon of a Faun (Nijinsky / Debussy), Daphnis and Chloe (Fokine / Rave
l), Tamar (Fokine / Balakirev). 1913: Games (Nijinsky / Debussy), The Rite of Sp
ring (Nijinsky / Stravinsky). 1914: Le Coq d'Or (Fokine / Rimsky-Korsakov). 1915
: Sunny Night (Massine / Rimsky-Korsakov). 1917: Parade (Massine / Satie), The W
omen of Good Mood (Massine / Scarlatti), Contes Russes (Massine / Liadov). 1919:
La Boutique Fantasque (Massine / Rossini-Respighi). 1920: The Three Cornered Ha
t (Massine / De Falla), Pulcinella (Massine / Stravinsky), Le Chant du Rossignol
(Massine / Stravinsky). 1923: The Wedding (Nijinska / Stravinsky). 1924: Les Bi
ches (Nijinska / Poulenc), The Blue Train (Nijinska / Milhaud), The Bore (Nijins
ka / Auric). 1925: The Sailors (Massine / Auric). 1926: Jack in the Box (Balanch
ine / Satie). 1927: The Cat (Balanchine / Sauguet), No Steel (Massine / Prokofie
v).€1928: Apollo musagète (Balanchine / Stravinsky). 1929: The Prodigal Son (B
alanchine / Prokofiev).
An interesting site: http://www.cndp.fr/balletrusse
Analysis of the "Rite of Spring" (1913) by Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971)
1 / composer:
Igor Stravinsky: born in St. Petersburg June 17, 1882 - died in New York April 6
, 1971. It is the third child of a singer who works for the opera in Kiev and St
. Petersburg. He studied music under various personalities, but bypassing the pr
otection. Raised in an artistic atmosphere (he started playing piano at 9 years)
, falls in love very young Stravinsky's musical theater. From 1905-1908, he work
ed regularly with Nicolai RimskiKorsakov orchestration. After his death, Stravin
sky to 26 years: he never studied with other masters. His meeting with Diaghilev
opens a period of composition strongly influenced by Russian folklore and revol
utionary in terms of style, rhythm and beauty. His collaboration with the founde
r of the Ballets Russes took him to settle in Paris where the Rite of Spring, wi
th choreography by Nijinsky, was created May 29, 1913. The works of this period
must have a fruitful influence on all the music from the early 20th century. 190
8-1914 The rutile form of the Russian period in 1910 with three ballets The Fire
bird Petrushka in 1911 these two works were appreciated and admired for its dram
atic effects, rich orchestration and melodies reminiscent of the Russian folk so
ng. 1913 The Rite of Spring 'massacre of Spring: choreography unconventional dis
sonances hard, asymmetrical rhythms. The dancers could not hear booed the orches
tra. After he became the emblem of a revolutionary musician. Taking refuge in Sw
itzerland during the war of 1914, Stravinsky returned to France where it attache
s (1919-1939): he can not return home because of the Russian Revolution (1917),
which deprives him of his fortune and the cut of his homeland. 1914-1920: Style
stripped in works composed for small ensembles and voice Rossignol 1914 1918 191
9 Soldier's Tale piano ragtime music Alongside his work as a composer, he began
a dual career as pianist and conductor. During World War II, it is the United St
ates, invited to teach poetry to music. He moved to Hollywood and took U.S. citi
zenship in 1945. 1920-1952: works are characterized by rhythms encountered less,
under the influences of composers 'classical'. 1920 1922 1923 1927 1930 1931 19
37 1942 1944 1948 1951 Pulcinella Fox Oedipus Rex Les Noces Symphony of Psalms C
oncerto in D for violin and orchestra concertos Dance Card Game Mass Scenes de b
allet The Rake's Progress
Abandoning the hostility he felt for the chromaticism of Schoenberg, he then app
lies the serial method to his own work. Influence of serialism after 1952 1954 1
956 1957 1958 1966 1967 In Memoriam Dylan Thomas Canticum sacrum, Agon: ballet m
ovements for piano and orchestra Requiem Canticles Fanfare for 2 trumpets
Although he died in New York, he was buried in Venice as he wanted to be near hi
s friend Diaghilev. Stravinsky is primarily a world citizen. His work retains a
fundamental unity based on a certain disrespect for the conventions of the music
al world around it has nonetheless contributed more than any other to change. Br
illiant composer, he had the intelligence to continually evolve to a time when t
he style of other composers was rather rigid. He absorbs every technique he endo
rses (Russian nationalism, primitivism, jazz, neoclassicism, bi-tonality, atonal
ity, serialism). His work has influenced the biggest trends in music of the 20th
especially in the field of rhythm and in the stamps and the orchestration.
2 / Analysis of the work:
Spectacle of a great pagan rite: wise old, sitting in a circle and watching the
dance of death of a young girl, they sacrifice to propitiate their god of spring
.
Music: Igor Stravinsky Created: Theatre des Champs-Elysées 29 May 1913 under th
e direction of Pierre Monteux by troops of Diaghilev's Ballets Russes. Sets and
costumes by Nicolas Roerich for a choreography by Vaslav Nijinsky. This ballet s
hocked and scandalized the Parisian public at the first provocative choreography
and by the violence of his music: They talked then "massacre of Spring! Indeed,
the celebrated spring here has nothing poetic: it expresses the savagery of a p
rimitive ritual, inspired by violent Russian spring (the debacle: When the river
s overflow their banks thaw). its of the and
Since€Many choreographers have taken this ballet: Leonid Massinet, Martha Graha
m, Paul Taylor, Maurice Béjart, Pina Bausch, Milicent Hodson ... Part I: Adorat
ion of the Earth A group of boys and girls are waiting for another at the foot o
f a Hill signals a good start for the sacred dances: the happy dance trance grad
ually grow wild. The boys having seized the girls, two rival tribes engage in a
fight that the old sage tries to calm. Introduction Auguries Spring Youth Dance
Game Spring Games Round kidnapping rival cities procession of wise land Dances P
art Two: the sacrifice on the hill at sunset, girls around the sage who is stand
ing next to a fire. One of them must be chosen to be sacrificed to the earth. Th
e ancestors contemplate the sacrifice. Boys and girls of the tribe were unleashe
d against the chosen one who dies at the end of a frenzied dance. The dancers we
ar the sacred stone to the deceased so that the rite accomplished. Introduction
Circles mysterious young Glorification of the Chosen Evocation of the Ancestors
Ritual Action of the Ancestors Dance sacral
"The Rite of Spring" may be closer to the symphonic poem as Stravinsky conceived
musical means in accordance with the rawness and brutality of the subject.
This work thus disrupts the sound parameters to exacerbate the violence of the b
ooklet.
Height duration intensity Stamp
Russian elements. superposition of melodic movements. complexity metric contradi
ction between the steady pulse and the presence of asymmetrical rhythms pounding
vibrant shades Variety of shades (pp to ff) Increased capacity concept of orche
stral sound blocks, variables, few instruments or the orchestra produce acoustic
effects Gross
The orchestration is heavily inspired by the Russian school (mainly Rimsky-Korsa
kov). The instrument families play tessituras varied and contrasting to give the
work a dynamic instrumental color. Strings Winds Percussion
Wood by 5 String Quintet
large and small cymbals, triangle, tambourine, grater, cymbals Brass: 8 horns, 5
trumpets, 3 regular, bass drum, tam-tam trombones, 2 tubas
Is also a version for piano four hands! The influence of Russian music is also r
eflected in the use of songs inspired by Russian folklore and in the use of irre
gular meters. An interesting site for analysis of this work: http://www.cndp.fr/
balletrusse/pedago/sacre.htm