Kaguyahime is one of Japan’s oldest fairytales. The story of the mysterious Moon Princess inspired Jirí Kylián to create a full-length ballet and to commission a score from the Japanese composer Maki Ishii. Through ist use of western percussion instruments and Japanese drums, the work combines both occidental and oriental elements, ist rhythmic vitality providing a musical structure for the poetic tale. Woodwind instruments extend the tonal colour, as does the use of traditional Gagaku music from the Japanese court.
When Jirí Kylián first discovered the fairytale, he found two compelling reasons to choreograph it. First, he was interested in the way the story combines realistic and supernatural elements as only fairytales can; and secondly, he was fascinated by what the tale reveals of Japanese culture through the interplay of the earth and the moon.
Jirí Kylián feels a great affinity for Stravinsky, who, like himself, was forced to leave his homeland. He describes the composer’s music drama L’Histoire du soldat as a “”surrealistic fairy tale for grown-up children””. His version of the piece uses the original French version libretto by Charles Ferdinand Ramuz. With scenery and costumes by John MacFarlane, this studio recording features Nacho Duato as the soldier who sells his soul to the Devil for wealth, but is forced to wander the world.
The onset of the First World War and the Russian Revolution of 1917 had drastic consequences for Stravinsky in his Swiss exile: his property was confiscated, and he thereby lost the rights to his works and the associated income, leaving him in a situation which isolated him as an artist. L’Histoire du soldat, with its diversity, its structure, the switching between narration, action, mime and dance, and its elements from tango, English Waltz and Ragtime, could not have been categorised under any genre which existed at the time. It was premiered on 28 September 1918 and in this version is brilliantly reinterpreted by the Nederlands Dans Theater.
Jiri Kylián uses Claude Debussy’s dreamlike Prélude à l’Après-midi d’un faune for this stylised portrayal of a process of self-discovery and acceptance. He created the solo work in collaboration with his wife, the dancer Sabine Kupferberg, who performs in this studio recording.
Jiri Kylián’s fantasy ballet about a naughty boy is set to an opera by Maurice Ravel, which the composer based on a libretto by Colette. Angry because he does not want to learn his lessons, the boy destroys his books and vandalises the room he is in. But his surroundings come to life, seeking revenge, and he finds himself in some tricky situations before the restoratio of normality. Lorin Maazel conducts the Orchestre National de Paris and a fine cast of young singers, and the enchanting scenery and costumes are by award-winning designer John MacFarlane. A short introduction by Kylián is included in this studio recording.
In his composition Les Noces (Svadebka), Stravinsky pictures the ceremony of a traditional Russian country wedding. The music, with its fast pace and intricate rhythmic structures, presents the composer’s greatest choreographic challenge and Jiri Kylián finds the theme an intriguing one: “Marriage is very strange, but also beautiful. In Russia, especially, it used to be rather mysterious as well, above all for the bride.” This performance was recorded in studio.
An invitation to attend a large gathering of Aboriginal dancers in Australia fuelled Jiri Kylián’s abiding interest in their traditions. Film of his experience there, together with footage of the work it inspired him to undertake with the Nederlands Dans Theater, form an introduction to a studio recording of the stunning ballet that resulted: Stamping Ground. This stunningly innovative and athletic piece of choreography is danced to music by Carlos Chavez.
This performance is also available with a documentary introduction, Road To The Stamping Ground.
Jiri Kylián’s ballet, set to Igor Stravinsky’s Symphony of Psalms, captures the archaic power of the music. The restrained gestures of a group of dancers contrast with the forceful and passionate movements of individuals and pairs who are set apart from them. The setting, designed by William Katz, enhances the suggestion of a ritual dance. This performance was recorded in studio.
Jiri Kylián’s ballet is set to a composition by Claude Debussy which was inspired by a fifteenth-century Breton legend. This tells how a cathedral was built on a seashore as a symbol to the Almighty that he would reign over the people. But they led godless lives and, as a result, the cathedral disappeared below the waves. This performance was recorded in studio.
This studio recording featuring the Nederlands Dans Theater captures a scintillating performance of Kylián’s ballet inspired by the music of his Czech compatriot, Janácek. It is danced against a backdrop of the Bohemian countryside, created by Walter Nobbe, and expresses his emotional attachment to his homeland. He chose the piece because it stands as an ode to freedom, beauty and the joy of living, and the result is a ballet full of energetic exuberance, combined with some moving lyric passages.
In his ballet Symphony in D Jirí Kylián demonstrates a remarkable ability to create a highly inventive and graceful ballet, which is, at the same time, extremely funny. Set to Joseph Haydn’s Symphony No. 101 in D (Clock) and Symphony No. 73 (The Chase), it is an affectionate send-up of classical ballet poses, and is performed with great wit and style by the Nederlands Dans Theater in this live recording.
