LOL! These things are funny, and impossible sometimes.
Some of my choices... Fred Astaire over Gene Kelly. Lots of guys can dance like Gene Kelly did. Nobody can dance like Fred. Plus I prefer his singing, too.
Count Basie over the Duke. The Basie Band is my all-time fave big band. "April in Paris" done six ways to Sunday and it swings every which way. It's their joie de vivre and Basie's piano style. Ellington's band had more range and at times, more depth, but at that point they're really an orchestra more than a band.
Balanchine over Martha Graham. More of a balletomane than a modern dance gal. Also, Balanchine's musicality as a choreographer is irresistable to me. There was a really interesting documentary with Suzanne Farrell recently. Almost painful to watch. Farrell was Balanchine's last great muse, but she left the company when feelings between them became, uhm...complicated. Balanchine had a tendency to fall madly in love with his ballerinas. She felt suffocated and although she loved and admired him, she didn't return his feelings that way. Very complicated stuff. Eventually, she returned to the company after a few years with Maurice Bejart's company. Plus there was a husband involved, too.
Mark Morris over Twyla Tharp, but only because I love his insane, twisted version of the Nutcracker. I think the Rat King is Elvis (Presley in the sparkly white jumpsuit phase).
Rodgers & Hart over the Gershwins. Another impossible choice, but if stuck on a desert island, I'd go for the Rodgers and Hart. Maybe I just prefer the Ella Fitzgerald song book albums for R&H.
Stax vs Motown. I have only one Stax album, but that's probably the kind of thing that cjl is more hip to.
Elvis Costello over Steeley Dan. Easy peasy since I'm such a freak for EC. That's a choice for impassioned vocals over cool instrumentals I guess.
Batman over Spiderman. Yeah, Spidey's got his issues, but Batman is so much darker, complicated, and adult.
Ballet over opera. I've never been to an opera, ever. I'm sure I'm missing something, but it's out of my budget to indulge much in that sort of thing, whereas I used to go to the ballet all the time in my twenties.
New Yorker under Ross or Shawn. The editors who shaped the magazine and have rabid followings apparently. I'm too lazy to follow such things any more!
Paul Taylor vs Merce Cunningham. I'd go for Paul. More fun quite frankly. Merce's stuff is more intellectually interesting and daring, but not as fun to watch.
Lester Young or Coleman Hawkins. Major sax men in jazz world. I can't choose either, don't know either well enough although I have albums for each. Lester worked with Billie Holiday quite a bit at one point, so you might like his work if you're a Billie fan.
Swing over bebop. Again, more fun. The best swing bands were like a force of nature, combining great arrangements with solo improvs. Bebop is more intellectually interesting, but I can't sustain the focus for listening to it for very long.
Norah Jones over Diana Krall, any day! I think Krall is overrated and I still think that even though Elvis Costello just married her! Neither of them has much of a vocal range, but Jones has a way of selling a song that elevates her above singers with more powerful chops but no subtlety of feeling.
Ella over Billie. There's a quality of joy in Ella's singing that thrills me to no end. Ella is my all-time desert island top choice for vocals (female). Billie is great for heartbreak, but that's so mood-specific and I'm not into the wallowing anymore. Plus, you can't compare Billie's much shorter career output to Ella's decades of live and recorded albums. We have the luxury of enjoying Ella's artistry develop and deepen over so many years.
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branchandroot
Culture Meme
Date: 2004-07-08 10:03 am (UTC)Some of my choices...
Fred Astaire over Gene Kelly. Lots of guys can dance like Gene Kelly did. Nobody can dance like Fred. Plus I prefer his singing, too.
Count Basie over the Duke. The Basie Band is my all-time fave big band. "April in Paris" done six ways to Sunday and it swings every which way. It's their joie de vivre and Basie's piano style. Ellington's band had more range and at times, more depth, but at that point they're really an orchestra more than a band.
Balanchine over Martha Graham. More of a balletomane than a modern dance gal. Also, Balanchine's musicality as a choreographer is irresistable to me. There was a really interesting documentary with Suzanne Farrell recently. Almost painful to watch. Farrell was Balanchine's last great muse, but she left the company when feelings between them became, uhm...complicated. Balanchine had a tendency to fall madly in love with his ballerinas. She felt suffocated and although she loved and admired him, she didn't return his feelings that way. Very complicated stuff. Eventually, she returned to the company after a few years with Maurice Bejart's company. Plus there was a husband involved, too.
Mark Morris over Twyla Tharp, but only because I love his insane, twisted version of the Nutcracker. I think the Rat King is Elvis (Presley in the sparkly white jumpsuit phase).
Rodgers & Hart over the Gershwins. Another impossible choice, but if stuck on a desert island, I'd go for the Rodgers and Hart. Maybe I just prefer the Ella Fitzgerald song book albums for R&H.
Stax vs Motown. I have only one Stax album, but that's probably the kind of thing that cjl is more hip to.
Elvis Costello over Steeley Dan. Easy peasy since I'm such a freak for EC. That's a choice for impassioned vocals over cool instrumentals I guess.
Batman over Spiderman. Yeah, Spidey's got his issues, but Batman is so much darker, complicated, and adult.
Ballet over opera. I've never been to an opera, ever. I'm sure I'm missing something, but it's out of my budget to indulge much in that sort of thing, whereas I used to go to the ballet all the time in my twenties.
New Yorker under Ross or Shawn. The editors who shaped the magazine and have rabid followings apparently. I'm too lazy to follow such things any more!
Paul Taylor vs Merce Cunningham. I'd go for Paul. More fun quite frankly. Merce's stuff is more intellectually interesting and daring, but not as fun to watch.
Lester Young or Coleman Hawkins. Major sax men in jazz world. I can't choose either, don't know either well enough although I have albums for each. Lester worked with Billie Holiday quite a bit at one point, so you might like his work if you're a Billie fan.
Swing over bebop. Again, more fun. The best swing bands were like a force of nature, combining great arrangements with solo improvs. Bebop is more intellectually interesting, but I can't sustain the focus for listening to it for very long.
Norah Jones over Diana Krall, any day! I think Krall is overrated and I still think that even though Elvis Costello just married her! Neither of them has much of a vocal range, but Jones has a way of selling a song that elevates her above singers with more powerful chops but no subtlety of feeling.
Ella over Billie. There's a quality of joy in Ella's singing that thrills me to no end. Ella is my all-time desert island top choice for vocals (female). Billie is great for heartbreak, but that's so mood-specific and I'm not into the wallowing anymore. Plus, you can't compare Billie's much shorter career output to Ella's decades of live and recorded albums. We have the luxury of enjoying Ella's artistry develop and deepen over so many years.
I think I need to make some cd mixes for you!
punkinpuss