Figure skating?

im really into skating i compete intermidet and i have through my double axel in my short and long program my music also has slow and fast parts. the only problem i have thats messing up my marks is my interpretaion of the music im not very good at doing the coreogrophy and being gracefull i allready take bellet and that has helped a little but not enough what can i do?|||Suppose NONE of us could hear your program music . . . how would you show us (by your entire body/facial language) what your music is about?





What kinds of emotions, if any, stir up inside you when you hear your skating music? How can you take what's inside and show it on the outside? How can you make your audience feel what you feel? How can you make your audience connect to your skating and want to watch you skate?





Think of skating as storytelling. You're the actor on stage. You need to attach personality to your program. Maybe connecting a character or scenario to your music would help you act out in your skating. You need to show visually the mood of the music - happy, sad, romance, bravery, etc.





Arms are not the only part of artistry - but it may help to start there. Think of creating different shapes throughout your program. Think of your entire arm all the way through the fingertips. Don't just "put your arm up" . . . think like you are reaching for a star or trying to reach out to someone in the audience. Think that you are "this small" on the ice and that your arm movements are going to help you look "bigger".





I like to think of skating as "dancing" on ice because I love dance. But some skaters who may love to skate may not be into dancing. Find your groove: turn on your favorite pieces of music - and pretend you are being taped for a dance/skate video - no matter what the music is. Turn on your old skating program pieces - see if you can re-interpret them better off the ice.





It may be good to enter some artistic events where LYRICS are allowed (where you would definitely be judged on music interpretation). ISI competitions give you a great opportunity to practice that - there's always one somewhere locally and it's a lot cheaper!! The lyrics give you a script - now you just have to interpret it with your skating.





And when you do your program "for real", I suggest you put on the act real thick!! We tend to tone down out there, so you almost need to overact to the point where you think it looks ridiculous (in actuality it'll be convincing!). Pour your heart out!





Music: The Magic of Figure Skating by Sonia Bianchetti


Here she talks about figure skating being both a sport and art http://www.soniabianchetti.com/writings_鈥?/a>





Keep up the ballet for sure . . . but that can also be "technical" grace. Skate from your heart emotionally and let your skating have "artistic" grace!





Hope that helps!|||Ahh!


I used to figure skate and I had the same problem.


Always keep your figure up, and just get really into the music.


Picture yourself like Michelle Kwan on the ice, and just thinking that could make you act better.


Just guessing, but that's what I would do.





Also- the ballet really helps. Keep it up!


My rink would offer ballet geared towards figure skating, maybe you could find a class like that too.|||you have to make sure you feel the music. a good idea would be to maybe put your program music on a CD or your ipod and listen to it before you go to sleep. image you are skating with feeling and grace. another suggestion would be just to practice your program with the movements but without the jumps or spins. make sure you are using your arm movements and just focus on the music.


Hope I could help.


Good Luck!!|||Here's a few tips that don't rely on "feeling the music" (that Peggy Flemingism always annoyed me for some reason).





1) Choose music that suits you, not just what your coach thinks you should skate to. Choose what suits YOU. For example, Elena Sokolova isn't particularly graceful. She often does pretty-pretty programs that simply do not suit her. She's obviously taken ballet since she was 3, but for some reason, it just doesn't work for her. Put her in an exhibition with disco-ey, techno music on and OH MY GOD, it's like a different skater out there. She just glitters, 10,000 watts of star power and you wonder, WHAT THE HECK IS HER COACH THINKING? Same thing with Tim Goebel. Hes not very emotive on the ice, but give him something bluesy and swirly and he's shockingly good at moving that way. It suits him. Put him on the ice with Night on Bald Mountain and it's just too painful to watch.





To this end, try on different musical styles. Load them on your ipod. Close the door. Close your eyes and dance in front of a mirror with no one watching and the draped drawn. Let yourself GO. No self-criticism. No self-consciousness. Just you and the music. Find out what moves you--how you move. Then, choose the music that moves like you do. Don't stick with just what you know. Try Baroque rondos and classical sonatas, big band quicksteps and cooool Jazz.





2) Air is HEAVY. It's thick. It's viscous. When you move your arms, remember that air is not air, it's water. Push against it, using your muscles to provide counter tension. Try practicing in a pool, get the feel of how fast your arms and legs move against the resistance of the water. Practice that in the ice too, trying to recreate that feeling of pushing your limbs through the air like it's water.





3) Arcs, not straight lines. Arms are not out straight, they are arched.





4) Hands are not the wings of an airplane. They are not stiff and you don't fly very far with the flaps down (limp wrists). No droopy wrists.





5) Point yer durn toes!





6) Finish every move. Don't move on to the next move unless you are finished from the tips of your fingers to the tips of your toes.





7) Be emotionally open to the idea that someone might see some part the real you. At some level, to connect emotionally in a performance, you have to be vulnerable. You have to let go. You have to tear out your heart and say, "See? Here? This is ME." You cant protect yourself emotionally AND really connect.





Good luck.|||Like someone has mentioned before, use the music you like, so you can get into it and FEEL something. If you don't feel something when you listen to it, its not your kind of music. Also, use arm movements and levels especially. Just listen to the music and do what you feel!|||it is not possible to teach that