Kammermusik No. 2 (ballet)

Kammermusik No. 2
Choreographer	George Balanchine
Music	Paul Hindemith
Premiere	January 26, 1978 (1978-01-26) New York State Theater
Original ballet company	New York City Ballet
Genre	Neoclassical ballet

Kammermusik No. 2 is a ballet choreographed by George Balanchine to Paul Hindemith's music of the same name. The ballet premiered on January 26, 1978, at the New York State Theater, danced by the New York City Ballet.

Production

Balanchine's last ballet, Ballo della Regina, was not challenging for the orchestra, so he told the musicians his next ballet would be set to a more complex score, Hindemith's Kammermusik No. 2, for solo piano and twelve solo instruments.^[1][2] It features two lead couples, originated by Karin von Aroldingen, Sean Lavery, Colleen Neary, Adam Lüders, and a corps de ballet of eight men, which is an unusual feature. Therefore, the ballet had been referred to as an inverted Concerto Barocco.^[1][3] The costumes were designed by Ben Benson, and the original lighting was by Ronald Bates.^[3]

Kammermusik No. 2 was described by Balanchine's biographer Bernard Taper as "one of the most ingenious and technically accomplished ballets Balanchine had made, and one of his least ingratiating."^[4]: 349 Karin von Aroldingen, one of the original cast members, called the ballet "Kammer-computer" as it is "speedy." She added, "even the pianist can't play the notes. It took us forever to learn it. The movement is very angular, very fast. If you lose concentration for one second, you ruin it all."^[1] Sean Lavery, another original cast member, believed that Balanchine "knew exactly what the corps were doing when the principals were doing something else. He was so fast, so in tune with the music, so ahead of himself, that we couldn't keep up with him."^[1]

Following Balanchine's death, the rights to Kammermusik No. 2 and five other ballets went to von Aroldingen.^[5]

Original cast

• Karin von Aroldingen
• Sean Lavery
• Colleen Neary
• Adam Lüders
• John Bass
• Joseph Duell
• Peter Frame
• Kipling Houston
• Jay Jolley
• Laurance Matthews
• Peter Neumann
• Francis Sackett

Source:^[3]

Performances

Kammermusik No. 2 premiered on January 26, 1978, at the New York State Theater,^[4]: 418 with Robert Irving conducting and the piano played by Gordon Boelzner.^[3] The company does not revive the ballet as often as other ballets.^[6] It has been revived by Los Angeles Ballet,^[7] Boston Ballet^[8] and Louisville Ballet.^[9]

Critical reception

Following the premiere, New York Times critic Anna Kisselgoff commented that Kammermusik No. 2 "confirms again that no other choreographer today works on the same high conceptual level as Mr. Balanchine."^[3] Reviewing a performance six years later, she wrote that it "remains as startling and jarring as ever ... it will never become an audience favorite."^[10]

References

1. Buckle, Richard (1988). George Balanchine: Ballet Master : a Biography. p. 296. ISBN 978-0-241-12180-1.
2. Goldstein, Leon (May 6, 1984). "A Ballet Musician Recalls Balanchine". The New York Times.
3. Kisselgoff, Anna (January 28, 1978). "Balanchine's Kammermusik No. 2' Has Its Premiere at the City Ballet". The New York Times.
4. Taper, Bernard (1987). Balanchine: A Biography. ISBN 978-0-520-06059-3.
5. Mead, Julia C. (October 2, 1997). "Karinn von AroldIngen: A Balanchine Disciple". East Hampton Star. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014.
6. Macaulay, Alastair (May 2, 2012). "Balanchine's Gift for Joining What Nature Has Sundered". The New York Times.
7. Bleiberg, Laura (February 22, 2010). "Dance review: Los Angeles Ballet's Balanchine program". Los Angeles Times.
8. "Boston Ballet to Present Kaleidoscope, 3/17". BroadwayWorld. March 4, 2016.
9. Ellis, Kathi E. B. (April 9, 2016). "Review: Louisville Ballet At Home With Balanchine". WFPL.
10. Kisselgoff, Anna (February 13, 1984). "Dance: City Ballet's 'Kammermusik'". The New York Times.

External links

• Kammermusik No. 2 on New York City Ballet's website
• Kammermusik No. 2 on the George Balanchine Trust's website