Pointe Center Combination with Pirouettes
Anatomy of a Ballet Combination
Did you ever have to diagram sentences when you were in school? I remember doing that, and realizing that every sentence has certain parts that are required and some that just add variety and interest. The same is true of a ballet combination. Every class needs to progress through pliés, tendus, degagés, rond de jambe, grand battement, and every combination has parts that should be included or can be added to make it more interesting. We shouldn’t only work on our artistry during rehearsal and performance. Artistry begins in the classroom, and by adding dimension to your combinations you allow your students to experiment and grow. A good rule of thumb for most combinations is to keep it at an even number of phrases, so you’d have two sets of eight, four sets of eight, or eight sets of eight, for example. This simply makes sure you finish a combination at the end of a phrase rather than in the middle.
Change tempos
Just as the progression of exercises at the barre generally alternate between slow and fast tempos to give the muscles a chance to stretch before contracting quickly again, it’s possible to design your combinations in this way, too. I loved taking classes from teachers who knew how to add stretching to a fast degagé combination, or who added some double time rond de jambes in a rond de jambe a terre combination. One simple way of incorporating this into your combinations is to take the steps at a slower pace the first time through, and without changing the tempo of the music, move the steps into double time so they are twice as fast. You can do this also by turning a slow tendu combination into a faster degagé combination, or a faster degagé combination into a slower grand battement combination.
Use epaulement and give each combination a goal
Another thing to remember when constructing your combinations is to use epaulement, or shouldering (head and arms). It’s important to use the arms at the barre so that when dancers move into the center they don’t look stiff and uncomfortable using their arms and head. Each combination can have a goal that contributes to the overall goal of that class. You may decide to devote a whole class on attitude. You can balance in attitude at the barre, practice embôité turns or attitude turns in the center, practice renversé, grand jeté with bent back leg. In a class like this you may do balançoire at the barre in attitude. A good teacher can take a specific movement and make a whole class out of it. Adding a balance to the end of a barre combination is always a good way to finish, because it allows the dancer time to stop and pull everything together for a moment before moving on to the next step or combination.
Music for Ballet Class
Recommended Music for Ballet Class
MUSIC FOR YOUR BALLET CLASS – Finis Jhung, Bill Brown, Basic Ballet 8 and 9
MUSIC FOR INTERMEDIATE BALLET CLASS – Finis Jhung, Scott Killian, Basic Ballet 5
BALLET MUSIC FOR 24 CENTER EXERCISES – Finis Jhung and Webster Smith, Basic Ballet 6 and Basic Ballet 7
NEW BALLET MUSIC 1 – Finis Jhung and Anna Korab, 27 Barre and Center Exercises
LISA HARRIS APRES LE PLIÉ Music for Ballet Class
LISA HARRIS VARIATIONS, Music for Ballet Class
BALLET MUSIC FOR CLASS, AT HARKNESS HOUSE Raymond Wilson, Pianist/Supv. by Sandra Balestracci Item 5031
BALLET MUSIC FOR CLASS, AT HARKNESS HOUSE Raymond Wilson, Pianist/Supv. by Mikhail Korogodsky Item 5032
BALLET MUSIC FOR CLASS Sophie Velberg, Pianist/Supv. by Sandra Balestracci Item 5054
BALLET MUSIC FOR CLASS Sophie Velberg, Pianist/Supv. by Mme. Halina Item 5050
BALLET MUSIC FOR CLASS Douglas Corbin, Pianist/Supv. by David Howard Item 6002
BALLET MUSIC FOR CLASS Douglas Corbin, Pianist/Supv. by David Howard Item 6003
25th ANNIVERSARY – David Howard,Douglas Corbin
BALLET MUSIC FOR BARRE AND CENTER FLOOR, Sophie Velberg, Pianist/Supv. by Mme. Halina Item 5049
BALLET MUSIC FOR BARRE AND CENTER FLOOR, Karl St. Charles, Pianist/Supv. by Mme. Halina Item 5044
Classical Ballet: Combinations for Ten Complete Advanced Classes
I just completed compiling combinations from classes I either took or those I taught dating all the way back to 1985! I’m publishing it through Lulu and was hoping to make it a coil bound book so it would be easier to manage while teaching a class. However, after going through the process of publishing the book I realized that only perfect bound books are eligible to receive an ISBN, so I had to go back and redo it. I’m waiting for my proof copy to arrive in the mail, and if I get real artsy I can create my own cover design as well. They say that you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but on Lulu those with custom covers sell four times as much as those without.
How to Pick Up Combinations Quickly
I was reading someone’s blog the other day, and one of the comments was from a young dancer who was having trouble remembering combinations in ballet class. I thought this would make a great blog post because I, too, was one of those dancers who stood in the back and tried to blend in. Eventually I became one of the quickest to pick up combinations and was no longer afraid to stand in the first spot at the barre or go with the first group in the center. Here are some of my ideas about how you can pick up combinations quickly. Continue reading “How to Pick Up Combinations Quickly”