Do you like skating shows with live musicians?

Mathman · Jul 10, 2019

Yukina Ota .https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0xzyybMDFw

Yukina: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KgIHb4FoRbE

More Yukina: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FqtGejdR1AM&t=9s

One more. (OK, this music isn't live, bu her supporting cast makes up for it):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQnJoyWNa-k

NanaPat · Jul 10, 2019

I do like skates to live music. But I don't like it when the video shows long (in time) shots of the musicians instead of the skaters. The musicians aren't that interesting to look at; I'm happy just to listen to them.

Also, in the first video, one of the cellists had a seriously messy bow. It made me want to march on the ice armed with my Swiss army knife (scissors deployed) and cut off all the dangling broken hairs. So, I'm weird. But I have never felt that way about a skater's costume.

Interspectator · Jul 10, 2019

It really depends on the musician. Every year, Fantasy on Ice invites various live musicians which I love, or hate!
This year was a win for fans of the singer Toshl and fans of Yuzuru as they had an immediate chemistry and made this spectacular performance together. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5nan4qdI4Y

Toshl had this Winnie the Pooh shirt totally blinged out and wore it during their performance. :rock:

https://twitter.com/RED_far/status/1144556275071639552

TallyT · Jul 11, 2019

Interspectator said:
It really depends on the musician. Every year, Fantasy on Ice invites various live musicians which I love, or hate!
This year was a win for fans of the singer Toshl and fans of Yuzuru as they had an immediate chemistry and made this spectacular performance together. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5nan4qdI4Y

Toshl had this Winnie the Pooh shirt totally blinged out and wore it during their performance. https://twitter.com/RED_far/status/1144556275071639552

And not just with Yuzu - Stephane's piece with Toshi was lovely, they complemented each other beautifully.

It definitely can add extra life and drama but has to depend on the quality of the musicians and how well they mesh with the skaters (the singers at FAoI last year were good, but just didn't click as well IMO, but the performances of Hare ku yoi with live piano just were.... just wow). The violinist this year whose name I never got this year was wonderful, NobuCruise's Mission Impossible was that much more fabulously wild and fun with live violin, and Alina's Carmen cut actually sounded quite good in the hands of an expert (I also liked the way Alina, like Yuzu, seems to respond to an empathetic and skilled musician)

She also played for Yuzu's Origin encore. Which was simply and purely to die for. :bow:

And no I'm not in the least bit biased.... :laugh:

Harriet · Jul 11, 2019

Art on Ice usually has live musicians and the match between singer and skater can sometimes be phenomenal: this is Elladj Baldé skating to Emeli Sandé's 'Clown' in 2018 for an example.

elbkup · Jul 11, 2019

^^^

for posting this!! :love:

:luv17:

elbkup · Jul 11, 2019

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=awUAwu9gRJ4

Amei · Jul 11, 2019

For the most part no, because the cameraman tends to focus a lot on the singer and you miss a good portion of the program.

tokoyami · Jul 11, 2019

I really enjoyed Javi's performance to a different, live arrangement of Malaguena at this years Faoi

Sabrina · Jul 11, 2019

For me it is a yes and no. I love music and I often attend concerts, but mixing live music with skating is not what I really like. And that's because I either look at the musicians or the skaters. It is true it's enough only to listen to the music, but then, why live music. Maybe an orchestra might work better, like in ballet, but I doubt they are able to accommodate an orchestra, and it might be too cold for the poor musicians.

skylark · Jul 11, 2019

Never seen such a show live, but on video, I don't like them. I like my eyes to be on the figure skaters at all times!

Having said that, I seem to recall seeing Nicole Bobek skating to live music ... or was it improvising a program to recorded music without warning ahead of time as to what the music was going to be? Or was it both? :con2:

Either way, Nicole was So Good at creating a moment and a memorable skate using spontaneous movement, as opposed to interpreting a planned program. I think that ability to intuit and be one with the music and/or musicians and what's happening in the moment, making it a collaborative creative program, was one of her talents ... and it's the essence of making a performance with live musicians something original and special.

Ic3Rabbit · Jul 12, 2019

NO. I hate it.

As far as pp comment on orchestras, it can and has been done.

synesthesia · Jul 12, 2019

I like it when it's a perfect symbiosis. Some of my favourite live collaborations (including a couple with an orchestra):

Medalists on Ice 2009

Daisuke Takahashi with orchestra - Luv letter
https://youtu.be/hb_EWdhVNQI

Ice Legends 2016

Mao Asada/Ice Legends cast with Khatia Buniatishvili - Le Poème (Ballade no. 1)
https://youtu.be/Rx5VkcOegGE?t=69

Art on ice 2017

Stephane Lambiel/Deniss Vasiljevs with Züricher Kammerorchester - Four Seasons
https://youtu.be/HhVQjyzz2-Q

Meryl Davis/Charlie White with Züricher Kammerorchester - Adagio for strings
https://youtu.be/DE1mksrSNuc

Christmas on ice 2017

Daisuke Takahashi with Glory Gospel Singers - Alabaster box
https://youtu.be/M0HnMG3yFgU?t=37

Art on ice 2015

Tessa Virtue/Scott Moir with Nelly Furtado - Say it right
https://youtu.be/0M37t6YnWF8

Clairecz · Jul 12, 2019

Of course! I love it!
I'd say there's not much difference for me when watching videos... though the first skating video I've ever seen was this J. Sale and D. Pelletier skating to Vivo per lei sung live by Andrea Bocelli, by that time I didn't know anything about skating and saw it just because I was obssessed with A. Bocelli (I still am

)

And of course, some shows as Opera on ice are meant to have live performances...

But! When you are there personally, it's such a big difference, it's awesome. I was at Javi's ROI. And Javi's been saying that ROI is not only about skating, they wanted to bring in live music, do a light show, have acrobats performing - and they totally did that. They brought really famous Spanish musicians. And you could see how excited the skaters themselves were to meet them and to collaborate with them. And even if it would have been just for that, I was so happy for the skaters.

- Sara and Kirill skating to a song by Blaise Canto (Complicado)
- Annette Dytrt and Yannick Bonheur skating to Diana Navarro's El Perdon. I think the live performance added so much to it, the drama, the suspense, the feelings (and when I was too nervous watching them, I could watch the singer)
- Kurt Browning's battle with DJ Carlos Jean :love:

that's possible only live...
- Yuka Sato performing with Eva Ruiz (Karma). (Apart from Javi), this was the best skate of the night for me. They both created such an amazing atmosphere, that we spontaneously light up the arena with flashlights...
- and of course nothing tops Javi performing Prometo live with the biggest star Pablo Alboran himself, which was the greatest surprise for the public (I'd say 90 % of them were Spanish and as far as I know he's one of the biggest stars there, so) and a real dream come true for Javi. :love:

TallyT · Jul 12, 2019

Clairecz said:
Javi performing Prometo[/URL] live with the biggest star Pablo Alboran himself, which was the greatest surprise for the public (I'd say 90 % of them were Spanish and as far as I know he's one of the biggest stars there, so) and a real dream come true for Javi.

That. Was. Glorious. I don't mind admitting that the first time I saw a clear video of Prometo, I got really really misty-eyed.

Live music does bring an added element of freshness and individual touches (as they are never quite the same)

WeakAnkles · Jul 12, 2019

Shoot me now but I only really love competitive skating. I just tend to find most show(off) and exhibition(ist) programs Too Corny For Words.

I know. I know. We all have our moral failings...

:drama:

ronngnoz · Jul 12, 2019

no because the music sounds weird compared to the skating

Lambari · Jul 13, 2019

I think it's interesting when they actually enhance the performance as supposed. The choir here was a good addition since the choreography has the children and it adds to the atmosphere.

With pianists you can also have good shots like the one at 2:25 in this performance, with the piano near the viewer and the skater at the background. And If they have to show the musicians they're better off using the 'see through' effect at 2:58.

I tend to prefer orchestra or pianists, since with singers they usually focus too much on the singer's face like others mentioned here. But when they actually don't focus on the singer, it can be great like how it was useful to mimic the atmosphere of a rock concert here.

Obviously this is just my excuse to post these performances.

NanaPat · Jul 13, 2019

Lambari said:
I think it's interesting when they actually enhance the performance as supposed. The choral here was a good addition since the choreography has the children and it adds to the atmosphere.

With pianists you can also have good shots like the one at 2:25 in this performance, with the piano near the viewer and the skater at the background. And If they have to show the musicians they're better off using the 'see through' effect at 2:58.

I tend to prefer orchestra or pianists, since with singers they usually focus too much on the singer's face like others mentioned here. But when they actually don't focus on the singer, it can be great like how it was useful to mimic the atmosphere of a rock concert here.

Obviously this is just my excuse to post these performances.

Those are great examples of camera work that enhances the experience BY SHOWING MUSICIAN AND SKATER IN THE SAME SHOT. The close-up of the choir was also OK because it was brief and because the choir was also shown in shots with the skater. It's the alternating shots of skater, then musician, then skater, etc that are annoying to me.

TallyT · Jul 13, 2019

Lambari said:
I think it's interesting when they actually enhance the performance as supposed. The choir here was a good addition since the choreography has the children and it adds to the atmosphere.

With pianists you can also have good shots like the one at 2:25 in this performance, with the piano near the viewer and the skater at the background. And If they have to show the musicians they're better off using the 'see through' effect at 2:58. I tend to prefer orchestra or pianists, since with singers they usually focus too much on the singer's face like others mentioned here. But when they actually don't focus on the singer, it can be great like how it was useful to mimic the atmosphere of a rock concert here.

Obviously this is just my excuse to post these performances.

Orchestras of course can melt right into the background... but the solo musicians especially in Japanese shows can be stars in their own right, so the TV audience IN Japan want to see them too :love:

Singers can work with the skaters as well to ensure how they act and move complements the skater's movements. I saw a (blog?) report from Toshi where he said he did discuss this, especially the main climax movements, with Yuzuru so that they fitted and at the end of Crystal Memories especially their final poses were reflective.

(A different and tiny maybe-Grinchy point, which I believe I have witnessed at least once or twice in skating and KNOW I did in dance, that the musicians can adjust if the skater gets off the pace, or has what I once heard described as "an unplanned deviation from criteria-based standards of competence"

Recordings are very unforgiving)

Do you like skating shows with live musicians?

Mathman

NanaPat

Interspectator

TallyT

Harriet

elbkup

Power without conscience is a savage weapon

elbkup

Power without conscience is a savage weapon

Amei

tokoyami

Sabrina

skylark

Gazing at a Glorious Great Lakes sunset

Ic3Rabbit

Former Elite, now Pro. ⛸️

synesthesia

Clairecz

TallyT

WeakAnkles

ronngnoz

Lambari

NanaPat

TallyT

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