''Western Symphony'' is a ballet made by

New York City Ballet New York City Ballet (NYCB) is a ballet company founded in 1948 by choreographer George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein. Balanchine and Jerome Robbins are considered the founding choreographers of the company. Léon Barzin was the company' ...

co-founder and founding choreographer

George Balanchine George Balanchine (; Various sources: * * * * born Georgiy Melitonovich Balanchivadze; ka, გიორგი მელიტონის ძე ბალანჩივაძე; January 22, 1904 (O. S. January 9) – April 30, 1983) was ...

to American folk tunes arranged by

Hershy Kay Hershy Kay (November 17, 1919 – December 2, 1981) was an American composer, arranger, and orchestrator. He is most noteworthy for the orchestrations of several Broadway shows, and for the ballets he arranged for George Balanchine's New York City ...

. It premiered on September 7, 1954 at the

City Center of Music and Drama New York City Center (previously known as the Mecca Temple, City Center of Music and Drama,. The name "City Center for Music and Drama Inc." is the organizational parent of the New York City Ballet and, until 2011, the New York City Opera. and th ...

in New York. The ballet was originally presented in practice clothes without scenery. Scenery by John Boyt and costumes by

Karinska Varvara Jmoudsky, better known as Barbara Karinska or simply Karinska (October 3, 1886 – October 18, 1983), was the Oscar-winning costumier of cinema, ballet, musical and dramatic theatre, lyric opera and ice spectacles. Over her 50 year caree ...

were added in 1955. Lighting was originally by

Jean Rosenthal Jean Rosenthal (born Eugenia Rosenthal; March 16, 1912May 1, 1969) is considered a pioneer in the field of theatrical lighting design. She was born in New York City to Romanian-Jewish immigrants. northern.edu, retrieved May 20, 2009Fippin, CaroBio ...

and subsequently Mark Stanley. Set in the

Western United States The Western United States (also called the American West, the Far West, and the West) is the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. As American settlement in the U.S. expanded westward, the meaning of the term ''the Wes ...

, the ballet features cowboys and dance hall girls (or saloon girls).

Setting

The ballet follows no plot but presents several short stories throughout the ballet (similar to ''

Serenade In music, a serenade (; also sometimes called a serenata, from the Italian) is a musical composition or performance delivered in honor of someone or something. Serenades are typically calm, light pieces of music. The term comes from the Italian w ...

'') outside a saloon. It is almost a

satire Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming ...

classical ballet Classical ballet is any of the traditional, formal styles of ballet that exclusively employ classical ballet technique. It is known for its aesthetics and rigorous technique (such as pointe work, turnout of the legs, and high extensions), its ...

with imitations of ''

Giselle ''Giselle'' (; ), originally titled ''Giselle, ou les Wilis'' (, ''Giselle, or The Wilis''), is a romantic ballet (" ballet-pantomime") in two acts with music by Adolphe Adam. Considered a masterwork in the classical ballet performance canon, ...

'' and ''

Swan Lake ''Swan Lake'' ( rus, Лебеди́ное о́зеро, r=Lebedínoye ózero, p=lʲɪbʲɪˈdʲinəjə ˈozʲɪrə, link=no ), Op. 20, is a ballet composed by Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in 1875–76. Despite its initial failur ...

'' (second

movement Movement may refer to: Common uses * Movement (clockwork), the internal mechanism of a timepiece * Motion, commonly referred to as movement Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * "Movement" (short story), a short story by Nancy Fu ...

). The ballet originally had four movements:

Allegro

The Allegro is for four cowboys, eight girls (divided into two groups of four) and a lead couple. The lengthy Allegro goes for about ten minutes.

Adagio (Waltz)

The Adagio (

Waltz The waltz ( ), meaning "to roll or revolve") is a ballroom and folk dance, normally in triple ( time), performed primarily in closed position. History There are many references to a sliding or gliding dance that would evolve into the wa ...

) is for a lead couple and four girls representing horses. This movement is set at night. The cowboy is chasing after the lead girl who eludes him and eventually, after some flirtation, leaves without him.

Scherzo

The Scherzo was removed ''ca.'' 1960 due to the complex nature of the female

bravura In classical music a bravura is a style of both music and its performance intended to show off the skill of a performer. John Alexander Fuller-Maitland, ''A dictionary of music and musicians (A.D. 1450-1889)'p. 271-272/ref> Commonly, it is a virt ...

dancing required.

Rondo

The Rondo has a lead couple but is for the entire cast.

Music

Hershey Kay adapted and arranged the music from traditional Western melodies: * ''

Red River Valley The Red River Valley is a region in central North America that is drained by the Red River of the North; it is part of both Canada and the United States. Forming the border between Minnesota and North Dakota when these territories were admitted ...

'' * ''Old Taylor'' * ''

Rye Whiskey Rye whiskey can refer to two different, but related, types of whiskey: * American rye whiskey, which is similar to bourbon whiskey, but must be distilled from at least 51 percent rye grain * Canadian whisky, which is often referred to as (and o ...

'' * ''Lolly-Too-Dum'' * ''Good Night, Ladies'' * ''Oh, Dem Golden Slippers'' * ''

The Girl I Left Behind Me "The Girl I Left Behind", also known as "The Girl I Left Behind Me", is an English folk song dating back to the Elizabethan era. It is said to have been played when soldiers left for war or a naval vessel set sail. According to other sources th ...

'' Although the movements are entitled Allegro, Adagio (Waltz) and Rondo they don't really remain true to their titles. There is an extended Adagio ''

pas de deux In ballet, a pas de deux (French language, French, literally "step of two") is a dance duet in which two dancers, typically a male and a female, perform ballet steps together. The pas de deux is characteristic of classical ballet and can be fo ...

'' section in the Allegro, and similarly with the Adagio, the Waltz speeds up to a lively tempo.

Original cast

* First movement: Allegro *

Diana Adams Diana Adams (March 29, 1926 – January 10, 1993) was a principal dancer for the New York City Ballet from 1950 to 1963 and favorite of George Balanchine, later becoming a teacher at — and dean of — the School of American Ballet. Adams was bor ...

::''and 8 women'' * Herbert Bliss ::''and 4 men'' * Second movement: Adagio * Janet Reed ::''and 4 women'' *

Nicholas Magallanes Nicholas Magallanes (November 27, 1922 – May 2, 1977) was a principal dancer and charter member of the New York City Ballet. Along with Francisco Moncion, Maria Tallchief, and Tanaquil Le Clercq, Magallanes was among the core group of dance ...

* Third movement: Scherzo *

Patricia Wilde Patricia Wilde (July 16, 1928 – July 17, 2021) was a Canadian-born ballerina and dance instructor. She was a principal ballerina of New York City Ballet, where she danced every major role in the repertoire, many of them created especially for he ...

::''and 4 women'' *

André Eglevsky André Eglevsky (21 December 19174 December 1977) was a Russian-born ballet dancer and teacher who studied in France and, from 1932, danced with Colonel W. de Basil's Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo for several years, as well as other companies in E ...

* Fourth movement: Rondo *

Tanaquil LeClercq Tanaquil Le Clercq ( ; October 2, 1929 – December 31, 2000) was an American ballet dancer, born in Paris, France, who became a principal dancer with the New York City Ballet at the age of nineteen. Her dancing career ended abruptly when she ...

::''and 4 women'' * Jacques d'Amboise ::''and 4 men''

References

* ''

Playbill ''Playbill'' is an American monthly magazine for theatergoers. Although there is a subscription issue available for home delivery, most copies of ''Playbill'' are printed for particular productions and distributed at the door as the show's pr ...

'', New York City Ballet, Wednesday, April 30, 2008 * ''Repertory Week'', New York City Ballet, Spring Season, 2008 repertory, week 1

Recording

1959 KAPP records Inc. produced a recording by the New York City Ballet Orchestra, Robert Irving, Conductor. Side one was "Stars and Stripes" and side two was "Western Symphony". KAPP Classics High Fidelity (KCL-9036)

Television broadcasts, filmography and videography

Television

* Australian television (Fourth movement ''Rondo'') 1958 * French television, FR3 (''Balanchine à Arc et Senans'') 1977 * PBS, Dance in America, ''Balanchine'' (Fourth movement ''Rondo'') 1984 * PBS, Dance in America, ''Balanchine in America'' (excluding the Third movement ''Scherzo'') 1990 * PBS, Dance in America, ''The Balanchine Celebration'' (Fourth movement ''Rondo'' and finale) 1993 * BBC 2 (London) 1993

Film

* Monitor Productions, 1955

Video

* The Balanchine Library, ''The Balanchine Celebration, Part Two'' (Fourth movement ''Rondo'', 1993), 1996 * Kultur, ''Balanchine'' (excerpts from the Second movement ''Adagio'' and Fourth movement ''Rondo''), 2004

Reviews

NY Times
by John Martin, September 8, 1954
NY Times
by John Martin, October 31, 1962
NY review
by

Clive Barnes Clive Alexander Barnes (13 May 1927 – 19 November 2008) was an English writer and critic. From 1965 to 1977, he was the dance and theater critic for ''The New York Times'', and, from 1978 until his death, ''The New York Post.'' Barnes had sign ...

, May 17, 1968
NY Times
by

Jennifer Dunning Jennifer Dunning (born February 4, 1942) is a writer and critic for ''The New York Times'' on the subjects of dance and ballet. She is the author of the 1985 ''But First a School: The First Fifty Years of the School of American Ballet'', the 1996 ...

, February 3, 1981
NY Times
by Jack Anderson, May 28, 2004
NY Times
by

Alastair Macaulay Alastair Macaulay is an English writer and dance critic. He was the chief dance critic for ''The New York Times'' from 2007 until he retired in 2018. He was previously chief dance critic at ''The Times'' and Literary Supplement and chief theater cr ...

, February 12, 2008
NY Times
by

, October 9, 2010

External links

Western Symphony
on the website of the Balanchine Trust {{Balanchine ballets 1954 ballet premieres Ballets by George Balanchine Ballets by Hershy Kay Ballets designed by Barbara Karinska Ballets designed by Jean Rosenthal Ballets designed by John Boyd New York City Ballet repertory