Ekaterina Gordeeva and Sergei Grinkov
Something I've discovered very recently is the beautiful, but tragic, story of Ekaterina Gordeeva and Sergei Grinkov. For those who don't know who these two are, they are Soviet/Russian pairs skaters who were Olympic Champions in both 1988 and 1994. Here are their gold-medal winning performances from the 1988 Calgary Olympics (first the short program, than the long program). For those running short on time, both of their long programs are my favorites.
Gordeeva and Grinkov's 1988 Short Program (to Bizet's Carmen):
G&G's Long Program, skated to a Classical Medley (to excerpts from: Mendelssohn's Italian Symphony, Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 2, an orchestrated version of Chopin's Revolutionary Etude, Chopin's Piano Concerto No. 1, and Mozart's Overture from The Marriage of Figaro)
Their technique is absolutely astonishing (look at their lifts, throw jumps, spins, etc.). I absolutely love their class, unison, and style of skating and movement (such obvious ballet influence!) that is so typical of the Soviets. The joy of skating and being together is completely apparent, especially on Ekaterina's (or Katya's, as she was known) expressive face.
After the Olympics, the pair continued to skate together and fell in love. They married in April 1991, and had an ADORABLE daughter, Daria, the following year. Eventually, they turned professional in 1992, skating in many shows, before taking advantage of a new International Skating Union rule that allowed them to regain their Olympic eligibility. As I mentioned before, they competed at the 1994 Lillehammer Olympics and won the pairs skating title there, as well. Here are their performances from that competition:
G&G's 1994 Short Program (to Romero's Zapateado and Farrucas):
G&G's 1994 Long Program (to Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 8 "Pathétique" and Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 14 "Moonlight"):
Their new maturity comes across very clearly in these new performances, despite (as the video says) their young ages of 22 and 27 for Ekaterina and Sergei, respectively. I love the Spanish attitude position at approximately 00:41 in the short program, and the spunk, and the body positions (especially the arms!) so suited to the Spanish music. And the long program... I think it's one of the most beautiful skating programs I have ever seen (as are all of Gordeeva and Grinkov's performances, but still!). Despite a couple of technical errors, their impeccable unison, expressive artistry, and unity create a truly memorable and beautiful performance.
Gordeeva and Grinkov are some of the figure skating world's very favorite skaters. They're performances were absolutely breathtaking: their artistry, technique, and togetherness were, and still are, special and unique from any other pairs skaters. I'm doing a bad job of explaining how amazing they are: watch the performances for yourself, and you'll see exactly what I'm doing such a bad job of putting into words!
If you can even believe it, their small but very happy family was torn apart when Sergei, at only 28 years old, had a heart attack and died, leaving behind Ekaterina and 3-year-old Daria.
My heart absolutely broke when I found this out. I had read a lot about the two, and seen many videos, and they seemed to be completely happy together. If their story (being paired up while still young, growing up together, training and competing together, winning the Olympics, falling in love and having a daughter, winning ANOTHER Olympics, etc.) isn't a fairytale, I don't know what is. I can't even imagine how painful Sergei's death was for Ekaterina.
A number of skaters who were good friends of both Ekaterina and Sergei put on a televised skating gala called "Celebration of a Life," in which Ekaterina returned to the ice, alone, in a gorgeous, tragic tribute to Sergei.
Here is her tribute, skated to Mahler's Symphony No. 5's Adagietto:
I truly believe this is one of the most moving and beautiful things I have ever seen.
I came across this video, before I had ever known about Ekaterina Gordeeva or Sergei Grinkov, and was crying by the end. Ekaterina, who had always been so expressive and joyful on the ice, gives a truly heartwrenching, but beautiful and genuine performance here. A remarkable tribute, one of my favorite performances ever.
Wow, that was really long! I just couldn't leave any of those videos out. :) The next ones are more individual videos, so don't be scared off by this post's length!
Alina Somova
I've mentioned Alina Somova, prima ballerina with the Mariinsky (ex-Kirov) Ballet, before on this blog. She was propelled to fame quickly, dancing Odette-Odile, the lead role in Swan Lake, at only 18 years old: unheard of in one of Russia's star ballet companies. She was named a principal dancer not long after.
Alina has been the victim of a number of criticisms. Beginning in the 1990s, the Mariinsky Ballet has favored tall ballerinas with high extensions. To some, Alina Somova was crossing the line: she is incredibly flexible, easily raising her leg to her ear; some had had enough of what they believed was bad Mariinsky management.
While I do agree that Alina looked slightly unstable in her earlier years (she was so young, so skinny and so flexible!), many of her criticisms were completely unwarranted. A lot of them have put her under duress that she did not, and definitely does not now, deserve.
Alina has always been beautiful and musical. However, after she switched coaches to the amazing and lovely Tatiana Terekhova, she has soared to new heights, in my opinion.
Here is her performance as Nikiya in La Bayadere, the variation and death scene. Some believe this to be her crowning role.
Despite what many say, I believe this video alone disproves those who say Alina Somova cannot act. In addition to her amazing physical gifts, her use of her entire body and especially, in my opinion, her face, completes Alina's performance. One of my favorite moments is from 6:02-6:14: I think it's a beautiful moment of acting. It shows Nikiya's pain, weariness, and seemingly righteous anger at Gamzatti, who placed the snake in the basket.
This performance of the end of Act 1 of La Bayadere (one of my favorite ballets!), straight from the Mariinsky Theatre, is stunning. Hope you'll enjoy it!
Clara Schumann's Piano Concerto
My piano teacher prides herself on the fact that she "discovered" this concerto, and that it is rarely played by others. Chances are, even if you are a classical music fan, you have never heard this concerto. However, what a shame that is!
Listen:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=coAULW2ipiY&feature=related
(I really apologize: this is the best recording I've found, so even though I can't link the video into this post, I'd really encourage you to open this up in another window and listen!)
I think it's beautifully stylistically romantic, and frankly, brilliant and gorgeous. I wish it were played much more often; it's a shame it's relatively unknown. Enjoy the whole concerto: the second movement is slow, with only the piano and cello. It is definitely worth your time!
Daniel Cloud Campos
I'll admit, I don't know much about Daniel Cloud Campos. I'm a little bit into break dancing, just because I love Quest Crew to pieces. This video showed up in my YouTube feed after a couple of Quest Crew members favorited it, and it's become one of my favorite videos.
I think this video is refreshingly creative, funny, and so artistic. I love the cinematography, the bright colors, the jazzy beats, and especially the funky (but brilliant) concept! Not to mention Daniel Cloud Campos's awesome dancing. :D The end result is pretty incredible.
Ella Fitzgerald
This year, for the first time ever, I've gotten a little bit into swing jazz. Like most of the world, I am enamored with Ella Fitzgerald's amazing voice, phrasing, and musicality. I discovered this video late at night one time, and could not stop watching it. How does someone even have a voice like this? And at a live concert, too!
What a classy, legendary performance!!
The King's Speech
Although this movie came out last year, I still want to talk about it here. I absolutely loved the movie, and the music (a nice mixture of classical and newly composed music) was incredible. Here is the sequence in which King George VI makes his speech, to the second movement of Beethoven's Seventh Symphony.
Sorry it's not completely synced, by the way!
I think the entire film, and especially this scene, is very well done. The grand scale of the music and situation is met dramatically with amazing attention to detail (costumes and sets!), and great cinematography.
Amy Winehouse
I'll admit, I didn't know much about Amy Winehouse before she died tragically at age 27 this year. But before that, I wasn't into soul music either. She's now one of my favorite artists of all time.
She almost didn't make it to the 2008 Grammy Awards at all: problems with drugs and alcohol made it virtually impossible for her to gain a visa to enter the United States. She finally did obtain one, but not in time to arrive at the Grammy Awards. So instead, she performed via live stream from London to Los Angeles.
Here is her performance of You Know I'm No Good and Rehab. Later in the program, she won 5 Grammy's for her album Back to Black.
I think it's such a tragedy that she had to live the life she did, riddled with so many drugs. She was a talented artist with an incredible voice; I loved her soul/R&B/jazz style. I know the world will continue to enjoy her music for years and years to come.
These are just some of my favorite YouTube videos and some information to go along with it. I worked hard to make sure these videos are the best quality possible, so please contact me if you find another video with better commentary, picture, or sound quality! Also, don't hesitate to contact me if you want more information, or are correcting my information.
Hope you enjoyed that plethora of videos, some of my favorites from 2011!
HAPPY NEW YEAR!! Best wishes to you all in 2012!
Hope you enjoyed that plethora of videos, some of my favorites from 2011!
HAPPY NEW YEAR!! Best wishes to you all in 2012!
