Canadian Pairs 2019/2020 Season News and Updates

[aftershocks]

So exactly what were we hoping for? I'm not sure specifically, but I had hoped to be pleasantly surprised and fully engaged with their choices. I certainly did not expect a retread of Michael Buble for their sp (since Luba skated to a Buble rendition when she first paired with Dylan).

And while choosing a Quebec artist is a good idea for a fp, where were their dynamic thinking-outside-the-box caps?

 

[ChiquitaBanana]

So exactly what were we hoping for? I'm not sure specifically, but I had hoped to be pleasantly surprised and fully engaged with their choices. I certainly did not expect a retread of Michael Buble for their sp (since Luba skated to a Buble rendition when she first paired with Dylan).

And while choosing a Quebec artist is a good idea for a fp, where were their dynamic thinking-outside-the-box caps?

The symphonic version from the album Rivière is powerful, classical yet not an overused music. Tell me what you wanted them to skate to...

 

[Rock2]

Je voudrais voir la mer

Provided to YouTube by Select Je voudrais voir la mer · Michel Rivard · Orchestre symphonique de Montréal Rivière… et autres chansons symphoniques ℗ Spectra ...

youtu.be

It is really interesting at 3:22. That’s very skatable and I totally see Lubov with her great glide and floating through the program. I totally love that version.

FSUers, don’t panic!

Yes, it has a chance IF:
*you orchestrate the begeezus out of it like this
*you remove the vocals
*you ignore the first few minutes of the song

#fightingchance

 

[ChiquitaBanana]

ETA:
I wonder what the inspiration for Rivard's song is? I guess he just loves the sea. And btw, in the lyrics @Lanja transcribed, Rivard included a reference to a whale calling to its lover. Maybe there's some connection with Moby Dick. Still, the lyrics and the song, in the way it sounds, seems a strange choice for a pairs program. It's kind of fey, eh?

Simply a guy living in a cosmopolitan city daydreaming of going to the sea. He describes poetically what make oceans and seas magical. This is a genuine poem.

 

[ChiquitaBanana]

Yes, it has a chance IF:
*you orchestrate the begeezus out of it like this
*you remove the vocals
*you ignore the first few minutes of the song

#fightingchance

I really like the first few minutes because it reminds me of Prelude a l’apres-midi d’un faune from Debussy

Claude Debussy, Prélude à l'Après-midi d'un faune

Claude Debussy, Claude-Achille Debussy (1862- 1918), Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune, L'Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, Charles Édouard Dutoit. The art ...

youtu.be

If the great Curry and Kostner could skate to similar music, why wouldn’t it work?

To each his own.

 

[Alvyne]

A translation of the lyrics. Obviously less poetic in English than in French

I would like to see the sea
And its silver beaches
And its white cliffs
Proud in the wind
I would like to see the sea
And its moon birds
And his horses of mist
And its flying fish

I would like to see the sea
When it is a mirror
Where pass without seeing each other
Clouds of wool
And on stormy nights
In the wrath of heaven
Hearing a whale
Calling his love

I would like to see the sea
And dance with her
To defy death
I would like to see the sea
And dance with her
To defy death

I would like to see the sea
Swallowing a ship
His gold and cannons
To hear the laughter
Of a hundred million children
Who are not afraid of water
Who want to live
Without holding a flag

I would like to see the sea
His imaginary monsters
His flying Dutchmen
And his warships
Its marine cemetery
And his coral bed
Where sharks sleep
In satin sheets

I live in a bubble
In the middle of a city
Sometimes my heart is grey
And behind the window
I feel the boredom falling
On the pale faces
And under the heavy footsteps
What do passers-by hang around
So from the bottom of my heart
A wind from the sea rises
As loud as the storm
As sweet as a love
And the ocean calls me
With a velvet voice
And draw in my body
The moving one
The moving wave

I would like to see the sea
I would like to see the sea

I would like to see the sea
Inflating with sunlight
Become a jewel
As big as the earth
I would like to see the sea
Inflating with sunlight
Become a jewel
As big as the earth

I would like to see the sea
I would like to see the sea

 

[aftershocks]

The symphonic version from the album Rivière is powerful, classical yet not an overused music. Tell me what you wanted them to skate to...

Thanks for responding. I'll look that up. I'm not sure what I wanted or expected from Luba/Charlie. As I said, I just hoped to be surprised and mesmerized. They can obviously go in any direction. There's an endless supply of music and musical genres (this is especially true now that figure skaters aren't limited to instrumental music). The hard thing is trying to find and listen to different sources of music, and then narrowing the choices down. Part of that process I suppose is about Luba/Charlie figuring out who they are as a team, and that takes time.

We have seen so many examples of good skaters who pick poor music that does nothing to enhance their skating. Tarasova/Morosov come immediately to mind. And I'm not hating on T/M, just stating what we all know to be the case. T/M have had a few classical pieces that have worked for them, and their fp music last season was pretty good, but they had hiccoughs with the sp, and I think they went back to a prior selection. I use T/M as an example of how difficult it is to find the right music. J/C are a team who have proven how selecting the right music can make a huge difference. J/C's choices were rather predictable earlier in their career, but over the last three years they made better choices that helped them make an impact with their skating.

Again, there are so many directions for Luba/Charlie to go in, but once again were they and their team truly using their thinking caps with this Rivard selection? Even the Buble sp choice is safe (which is okay for a new team), but why not go in a more impactful direction for a fp. Is it that hard? Maybe it is because a time element is involved in settling on a music choice so that choreography can be completed.

If they wished to use a Quebec artist, I already pointed out that there are plenty of better choices. I'll have to ponder what else I might like to see them skate to.

@ChiquitaBanana, can you provide a link to the Riviere album you mentioned?

 

[aftershocks]

Simply a guy living in a cosmopolitan city daydreaming of going to the sea. He describes poetically what make oceans and seas magical. This is a genuine poem.

Ah yes. I was not making fun of the lyrics. That's why I asked for an English translation because I desired to know what Rivard was saying about the sea. The lyrics sound melancholy, yet enchanting. And hearing the song in French, it definitely does sound poetic. Even the English translation is poetic in its sea imagery. It's just that the original arrangement and audio (at least on Youtube) is so light and seems insubstantial for a pairs program. I think it's possible to enjoy the song in a different context, but still the original version is very light and monotone.

Rock2 makes a good (albeit humorous) point about the sound of the original song conjuring up images of a huge stuffed animal comforting young children and singing them to sleep. That's also why I referenced 'fey' as a descriptor, i.e., 'mysterious, eccentric, childish, strangely charming yet unusual.'

I do like the Tanguay/Rivard duet version which appears to have a country music vibe, which is interesting for a French song.

https://youtu.be/Tgbo3q-BQ8Y

It has an ongoing crescendo and has been used in skating shows with great audience appeal.

https://youtu.be/hUmH0RXpLLQ

It is really interesting at 3:22. That’s very skatable and I totally see Lubov with her great glide and floating through the program. I totally love that version.

FSUers, don’t panic!

Thanks for the additional versions. Very interesting. We still don't know which version Luba/Charlie are using. We'll see what happens. The heavily orchestrated versions make a bit better impression than the Rivard monotone original.

Oh, and I suppose the Riviere symphonic reference you made is to the second video link in your above post. I'm going to take a wild guess and say that this is the version Luba/Charlie may be using, especially if that's Rivard singing with the orchestra. It's certainly an improvement and makes a better first impression than the monotone version.

 

[Colonel Green]

Justine & Mark have been assigned to the Warsaw Cup.

 

[dramagrrl]

I just want to go back in time and have Julianne and Charlie back. Sigh.

(Roll your eyes/quote me and then blah blah blah concussions etc. all you want.)

 

[aftershocks]

^^
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LIJyNByX5Q Seguin/Bilodeau Junior Pairs 2014 (Canada)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upAsRKPRpus Down memory lane 2015 Skate America

2018 Canadian Nationals -- Julianne et Charlie achieved their dream (overcoming the physical obstacles Julianne had faced for a couple of seasons):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhmVi_vCOI4 sp
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5932DJRh1c fp

I really liked and enjoyed both of those programs for them, although some people didn't--

Unfortunately, nothing lasts forever.

 

[puglover]

I know Julianne and Charlie did not have a good worlds but they were so beautiful at Canadian nationals in the free skate to "Where's My Love". I saw it live and was very moved. They wove a spell. Time will tell with Lubov and Charlie.

 

[Sk8mom123]

Justine & Mark have been assigned to the Warsaw Cup.

Happy for them

 

[aftershocks]

I know Julianne and Charlie did not have a good worlds but they were so beautiful at Canadian nationals in the free skate to "Where's My Love".

Yes. That's why I linked both programs from 2018 Cdn Nationals. That was a great moment for them after that free skate. We didn't know at the time it would be their Nationals swan song.

They had a decent Olympics too, but they did not take part in the team event since understandably D/R skated in both segments. After the Olympics, Julianne seemingly was drained. She had to have been pushing herself to be ready to battle to get to the Olympics. It's certainly not unusual to have a letdown after the major event is over, especially when as an athlete you've been dealing with health concerns that affect training. Anyway, they were not in great shape for Worlds either physically or mentally. Perhaps they should have not gone, but they'd missed Worlds in previous years due Julianne's injury setback, so that's probably why they decided to attend. The sp performance at Worlds presaged the end of their partnership.

 

[dramagrrl]

I was also lucky enough to be there live to see them skate at Canadians in 2018. I actually went to Vancouver for that competition for two main reasons - one was to see V&M at their last nationals, and the other was to see S&B live for (what I then thought would be) the first time.

I thought their LP at the Olympics was even better than their skate at Canadians, and they looked so happy at the end of it and had so many adorable photos of them hanging out in Pyeongchang together after the competition that I would not have thought that they would no longer be skating together a few months later. (I logistically understand the limitations of the concussions, etc. etc. and Charlie's "right" to pursue his goals, but I still wish things had been different in all ways.)

 

[ChiquitaBanana]

Isabella Gamez and David-Alexandre Paradis seem to have been assigned to Warsaw too.

 

[geoskate]

Re: Je Voudrais voir la mer, thanks to Alvyne for linking the other versions! They are more powerful than the original, and I think would have more impact in the arena. I particularly liked the Sylvie Tremplay version, since she has quite a powerful voice, and her version has a bit more of a rock flavour rather than a country flavour.

ETA: Also thanks to ChiquitaBanana for providing the versions with the symphony orchestras, which are quite different again, and have potential.

So it will be very interesting to see what version they use, and how they use it. It could actually work well, I think, depending on who has chosen their music versions and how they cut the music.

 

[barbarafan]

Justine & Mark have been assigned to the Warsaw Cup.

yes yes yes yes........

 

[barbarafan]

99 times of 100 you are correct, so thanks for being the voice of reason.

But nah. I'm comfortable at this point predicting I'm gonna hate this. Like, really hate it.

Such a little ray of sunshine. Thank-you for being you.

 

[barbarafan]

Re: Je Voudrais voir la mer, thanks to Alvyne for linking the other versions! They are more powerful than the original, and I think would have more impact in the arena. I particularly liked the Sylvie Tremplay version, since she has quite a powerful voice, and her version has a bit more of a rock flavour rather than a country flavour.

ETA: Also thanks to ChiquitaBanana for providing the versions with the symphony orchestras, which are quite different again, and have potential.

So it will be very interesting to see what version they use, and how they use it. It could actually work well, I think, depending on who has chosen their music versions and how they cut the music.

I am hopeful seeing as MFD is involved and (I don't know for sure if they will use him)I don't remember this gentlemans full name but a lot of teams use him for mixing music. All I remember is Hugo. Using sections of this long song he would be capable of adding bars of crescendo in between sections for elements if necessary.

 

[barbarafan]

This is a very well known song in Québec. The original is by Michel Rivard, a respected and well known singer songwriter since the 70s, first with his band Beau Dommage, then as a solo artist. Here are some covers of the song:

Annie Villeneuve

Je voudrais voir la mer

Provided to YouTube by The Orchard Enterprises Je voudrais voir la mer · Annie Villeneuve Berce-moi ℗ 2015 Amusic. Distribué par Sony Music Entertainment Can...

www.youtube.com

Guylaine Tanguay (duet with Michel Rivard)

Je voudrais voir la mer (avec Michel Rivard)

Provided to YouTube by Select Je voudrais voir la mer (avec Michel Rivard) · Guylaine Tanguay Inspiration Country ℗ Les Disques Création Released on: 2015-06...

www.youtube.com

Sylvie Tremblay

Je voudrais voir la mer

Provided to YouTube by The Orchard Enterprises Je voudrais voir la mer · Sylvie Tremblay Parfum d'orage ℗ 1994 Les Productions Candide (Licence exclusive Aud...

www.youtube.com

It is about the sea. Maybe they didn't want to skate to a love song.

I like this version

Marie-Mai et Michel Rivard, "Je voudrais voir la mer" (chanson).

Enregistré le 21 juin 2014, aux "FrancoFolies" de Montréal, lors du spectacle de Marie-Mai, sur la Scène Bell de la place des Festivals, à Montréal (Québec).

www.youtube.com

 

[mocha-ice]

Isabella Gamez and David-Alexandre Paradis seem to have been assigned to Warsaw too.

They have been listed as representing Philippines in all their summer events...

 

[Andora]

I just want to go back in time and have Julianne and Charlie back. Sigh.

(Roll your eyes/quote me and then blah blah blah concussions etc. all you want.)

I get missing them. I still wish Paul Poirier had stayed with Vanessa, Pekarek with Silverstein, etc. etc. etc. Hell, when Julianne & Charlie skated meh programs in 2016-2017, and proceeded to not get back on track, I missed them. It doesn't change anything, and I think they weren't going to get much farther in their careers together, but that doesn't mean I'm so heartless and will forget all their better moments.

Glad Justine & Mark are still competing. Man, I hope they go places.

 

[Rock2]

Such a little ray of sunshine. Thank-you for being you.

I'm a gemini. No middle ground with me. Feast or famine. Equal doses of both.

If you want to check the CAN ladies thread I'm barfing up nothing but love for Ruiter and don't care that she's 13, I'm all in that she's special and will have a great career. Hype machine dialed up to 10.

I mean all is not lost for Luba and Charlie. I have to give props for knowing their audience. World's is after all in Montreal, and if this music is truly special there, they could lather up some fake PCS with a surging conclusion to the program. Choreo a highlight spread-eagle and an epic carry lift as the music swells, par example, add water, and shake. They might inspire the audience to rise to its feet, forgetting whatever might have (not) happened in the early part of the program.

I give them points for that. Strategy does play its part.

 

[Sylvia]

I am hopeful seeing as MFD is involved and (I don't know for sure if they will use him)I don't remember this gentlemans full name but a lot of teams use him for mixing music. All I remember is Hugo.

Hugo Chouinard (here's a recent Q&A with him): https://www.ice-dance.com/site/hugo-chouinard-the-man-behind-the-music/

 

[barbarafan]

Hugo Chouinard (here's a recent Q&A with him): https://www.ice-dance.com/site/hugo-chouinard-the-man-behind-the-music/

thanks

 

[RoseRed]

Ruest/Wolfe got the open spot at IdF.

 

[dramagrrl]

I mean all is not lost for Luba and Charlie. I have to give props for knowing their audience. World's is after all in Montreal, and if this music is truly special there, they could lather up some fake PCS with a surging conclusion to the program. Choreo a highlight spread-eagle and an epic carry lift as the music swells, par example, add water, and shake. They might inspire the audience to rise to its feet, forgetting whatever might have (not) happened in the early part of the program.

I give them points for that. Strategy does play its part.

They would have to get to Worlds first for that to happen.

 

[karmena]

^^
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LIJyNByX5Q Seguin/Bilodeau Junior Pairs 2014 (Canada)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upAsRKPRpus Down memory lane 2015 Skate America

2018 Canadian Nationals -- Julianne et Charlie achieved their dream (overcoming the physical obstacles Julianne had faced for a couple of seasons):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhmVi_vCOI4 sp
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5932DJRh1c fp

I really liked and enjoyed both of those programs for them, although some people didn't--

Unfortunately, nothing lasts forever.

No, it is not so. The joy and purity of their performances stays forever. ( in the hearts of those who witnessed these performances)

 

[aftershocks]

^^ Sure, the partnership doesn't last, and can't. But the memories they gave us on the ice do remain...

Still, they have both moved on as they must, to create new moments and pursue new adventures. That's life. It's nice there's Youtube to look back. Today's figure skating fans are fairly spoiled in that respect.