Concerto Barocco
Encyclopedia
Concerto Barocco is a ballet made on students at the School of American Ballet
by George Balanchine
, subsequently balletmaster and co-founder of New York City Ballet
, to Johann Sebastian Bach
's Concerto in D minor for Two Violins
, BWV
1043. An open dress rehearsal was held on May 29 1941, in the Little Theatre of Hunter College
, New York.
The official premiere took place June 27 1941, at Teatro Municipal in Rio de Janeiro
as part of American Ballet Caravan
's South American tour, and Concerto Barocco subsequently entered the repertory of the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo
. The City Ballet premiere was October 11 1948, as one of three ballets on the program of its first performance at New York City Center
.
Three years later Balanchine replaced the original costumes with leotards and tights, in what has come to be regarded as signature costume for his contemporary works. He said that in the first movement of Concerto Barocco the two ballerinas personify the violins and that, "If the dance designer sees in the development of classical dancing a counterpart in the development of music and has studied them both, he will derive continual inspiration from great scores."
School of American Ballet
The School of American Ballet is one of the most famous classical ballet schools in the world and is the associate school of the New York City Ballet, a leading international ballet company based at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City. The school trains students from the...
by George Balanchine
George Balanchine
George Balanchine , born Giorgi Balanchivadze in Saint Petersburg, Russia, to a Georgian father and a Russian mother, was one of the 20th century's most famous choreographers, a developer of ballet in the United States, co-founder and balletmaster of New York City Ballet...
, subsequently balletmaster and co-founder of New York City Ballet
New York City Ballet
New York City Ballet is a ballet company founded in 1948 by choreographer George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein. Leon Barzin was the company's first music director. Balanchine and Jerome Robbins are considered the founding choreographers of the company...
, to Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
's Concerto in D minor for Two Violins
Double Violin Concerto (Bach)
The Concerto for 2 Violins, Strings and Continuo in D Minor, BWV 1043, also known as the Double Violin Concerto or "Bach Double", is perhaps one of the most famous works by J. S. Bach and considered among the best examples of the work of the late Baroque period. Bach wrote it between 1730 and 1731...
, BWV
BWV
The Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis is the numbering system identifying compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach. The prefix BWV, followed by the work's number, is the shorthand identification for Bach's compositions...
1043. An open dress rehearsal was held on May 29 1941, in the Little Theatre of Hunter College
Hunter College
Hunter College, established in 1870, is a public university and one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York, located on Manhattan's Upper East Side. Hunter grants undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate degrees in more than one hundred fields of study, and is recognized...
, New York.
The official premiere took place June 27 1941, at Teatro Municipal in Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
as part of American Ballet Caravan
American Ballet
The American Ballet was the first professional ballet company George Balanchine created in the United States. The company was founded with the help of Lincoln Kirstein and Edward Mortimer Morris Warburg, managed by Alexander Merovitch and populated by students of Kirstein and Balanchine's School of...
's South American tour, and Concerto Barocco subsequently entered the repertory of the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo
Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo
Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo was a ballet company created by members of the Ballets Russes de Monte-Carlo in 1938 after Léonide Massine and René Blum had a falling-out with the co-founder Wassily de Basil...
. The City Ballet premiere was October 11 1948, as one of three ballets on the program of its first performance at New York City Center
New York City Center
New York City Center is a 2,750-seat Moorish Revival theater located at 131 West 55th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues in Manhattan, New York City. It is one block south of Carnegie Hall...
.
Three years later Balanchine replaced the original costumes with leotards and tights, in what has come to be regarded as signature costume for his contemporary works. He said that in the first movement of Concerto Barocco the two ballerinas personify the violins and that, "If the dance designer sees in the development of classical dancing a counterpart in the development of music and has studied them both, he will derive continual inspiration from great scores."
original
- Marie-Jeanne
- Mary Jane Shea
- William DollarWilliam DollarWilliam Dollar was an American ballet dancer born in St. Louis but he was reared in East St. Louis, Illinois. His parents, Mr. and Mrs. William Dollar lived at 491 North 22nd Street and operated a grocery store and meat market in East St. Louis.William studied with George Balanchine, Michel...
first cast
- Wendy WhelanWendy WhelanWendy Whelan is a principal dancer with the New York City Ballet and guest artist with Morphoses/The Wheeldon Company.-Early life:A native of Louisville, Kentucky , she began her dance training with local teacher Virginia Wooton at the age of three...
- Rachel RutherfordRachel RutherfordRachel Rutherford is a soloist with New York City Ballet. She began her training at age eight at the Joffrey Ballet School, entered the School of American Ballet in 1987, where she received the D.A.N.C.E. scholarship allowing her to study in Spring 1992 at the Royal Danish Ballet...
- Albert EvansAlbert EvansAlbert Evans , was a British Labour Party politician.A master engraver, Evans became involved in the Labour movement in the the 1920s, and was elected to Islington Borough Council in 1936...
second cast
- Megan Johnson
- Abi Stafford
- Justin Peck
2009 Spring
- Wendy WhelanWendy WhelanWendy Whelan is a principal dancer with the New York City Ballet and guest artist with Morphoses/The Wheeldon Company.-Early life:A native of Louisville, Kentucky , she began her dance training with local teacher Virginia Wooton at the age of three...
- Ellen Bar
- Albert EvansAlbert EvansAlbert Evans , was a British Labour Party politician.A master engraver, Evans became involved in the Labour movement in the the 1920s, and was elected to Islington Borough Council in 1936...
2009 Saratoga Springs
- Teresa Reichlen
- Ellen Bar
- Justin Peck
Saturday, October 9th
- Abi Stafford
- Ellen Bar
- Justin Peck
Reviews
- http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F20C16F73E5F1A7A93C5AB178CD85F458485F9Sunday NY Times, John MartinJohn Martin (dance critic)John Martin became America’s first major dance critic in 1927. Focusing his efforts on propelling the modern dance movement, he greatly influenced the careers of dancers such as Martha Graham...
, July 27, 1941] - http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F20C17FF3E5C167B93C5A9178AD95F478485F9Sunday NY Times, John MartinJohn Martin (dance critic)John Martin became America’s first major dance critic in 1927. Focusing his efforts on propelling the modern dance movement, he greatly influenced the careers of dancers such as Martha Graham...
, November 7, 1943] - http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F10B11F63F5816738FDDAF0A94D0405B8588F1D3Sunday NY Times, John MartinJohn Martin (dance critic)John Martin became America’s first major dance critic in 1927. Focusing his efforts on propelling the modern dance movement, he greatly influenced the careers of dancers such as Martha Graham...
, August 26, 1945]
- http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F00B17FC345F1B7B93C2A81782D85F418485F9NY Times, John MartinJohn Martin (dance critic)John Martin became America’s first major dance critic in 1927. Focusing his efforts on propelling the modern dance movement, he greatly influenced the careers of dancers such as Martha Graham...
, September 10, 1945] - http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F40B13F83B55177B93C6A81782D85F458585F9NY Times, John MartinJohn Martin (dance critic)John Martin became America’s first major dance critic in 1927. Focusing his efforts on propelling the modern dance movement, he greatly influenced the careers of dancers such as Martha Graham...
, September 14, 1951] - http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/30/arts/dance/30ball.htmlNY Times, Alastair MacaulayAlastair MacaulayAlastair Macaulay is a dance critic for the New York Times. He was previously chief dance critic at The Times Literary Supplement and chief theater critic of the Financial Times, both of London...
, April 29, 2009]