Originally we enjoyed Ballet for the dance. The sheer grace and discipline was to be wondered at. Ballet and its music as we know it began in Renaissance Italy. The word ballet comes from ballo or balli. It was originally performed to an accompaniment of classical music and over many years has influenced dance music history. However, since the second half of the 19th century the role of the dance music Composer was appreciated. Principal ballet dancers stopped using hard shoes and began dancing in ballet pumps. This enabled a more free-flowing style of dance music to be used. The medley of simple dance tunes gave way to works of incredible musical worth. Classical composition has, over the years, given way to many modern dance music styles. Many choreographers from the 1960’s onwards used pop music together with a blend of modern and ballet techniques. Here are just a few of the composers and the ballets that we come to know and love over the years:-
● Swan Lake dance music composed by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky 1876
● The Nutcracker dance music composed by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky 1892
● Sleeping Beauty dance music composed by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky 1889
● Coppelia dance music composed by Léo Delibes 1870
● The Firebird dance music composed by Igor Stravinsky 1910
● Petrushka dance music composed by Igor Stravinsky 1911
● The Rite of Spring dance music composed by Igor Stravinsky 1913
● Pacquita dance music composed by Ludwig Minkus 1881
● Don Quixote dance music composed by Ludwig Minkus 1869
● La Bayadere dance music composed by Ludwig Minkus 1877
● Romeo and Juliet dance music composed by Sergei Prokofiev 1935
● Giselle dance music composed by Adolphe Adam 1841
● Les Sylphides dance music composed by Frederic Chopin 1893
● Cinderella dance music composed by Sergei Prokofiev 1813
● Sylvia dance music composed by Léo Delibes 1876.
● Midsummer Night’s Dream dance music used was Felix Mendelssohn’s incidental music for the Shakespeare play 1962
● Billy the Kid dance music composed by Aaron Copland 1939