Confessions of an anxious ballet pianist day #23: Metre-less counts
An absence of metre is kind of cool. It’s like decorating a room white, having no books or furniture, and hanging Malevich’s White on White on the wall. You have…
Confessions of an anxious ballet pianist day #22: Inappropriate music choices
When I say inappropriate, I don’t mean in 4/4 rather than 3/4, or a barcarole instead of a mazurka. I mean inappropriate in the sense of “Oh no. Let the…
Confessions of an anxious ballet pianist day #21: The grand battement “march”
Ballet classes seem to be full of things that aren’t quite what they should be: polonaises that are really boleros, waltzes that are mazurkas, mazurkas that sound like minuets, rhumbas…
Confessions of an anxious ballet pianist day #20: Too much attention
As a pianist in a ballet class, being ignored feels awkward—but too much attention is even worse.
Confessions of an anxious ballet pianist day #19: Being late
Anxiety about turning up late for class or rehearsal is so basic to being a ballet pianist (for me, at least) that I almost forgot to add it to my…
Confessions of an anxious ballet pianist day #18: Page turns
I’m not a particularly tidy or obsessive person, except when it comes to scores that I have to play from. If it’s for a performance, I’ll want to know exactly…