‘It Isn’t Wrong Because It Isn’t Russian’ - Erik Bruhn, Rudolph Nureyev in Class Together

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9 жыл бұрын

This is perhaps unique film of Erik Bruhn and Rudolph Nureyev working in class together. It's probably from the early to mid 1960s.
Bruhn is the talking head, explaining the professional relationship between the two dancers.
He talks about his own pre-eminence in the world of dance before Nureyev's defection to the West. And that there had been little to inspire him prior to the Russian's arrival.
Of rivalry, Bruhn interesting and honestly says he wouldn't have wanted Nureyev around, were they the same age - there was in reality a ten year difference between the two.
Discussing their working methods in class, Bruhn says they never corrected each other. And goes on to say how Rudi would indicate something was not Russian, as criticism, and that he would explain it was Danish not Russian and it was not wrong.
These dancers have an obvious rapport - and it's a joy to watch them repeating each others' movements and watching themselves in the mirror, and generally having fun.
Pity the camera man/woman guillotined the dancers so much!
Enjoy!

Пікірлер: 142

@Oakleaf700 7 жыл бұрын

Such ethereally beautiful dancers.

@JohnRaymondHall 7 жыл бұрын

absolutely!

@simaraft7373 9 жыл бұрын

You just want to see and hear more and more -- unlike so many artists today who spew endless boring nonsense.

@JohnRaymondHall 9 жыл бұрын

Sima Raft the footage here comes from a documentary on Bruhn reviewed here: www.nytimes.com/2001/01/12/arts/12CHOI.html i can't remember where i got it but can upload it to YT - it's remarkably candid and insightful!

@velv.v9575 4 жыл бұрын

What a beautiful voice has Bruhn..

@lauratyler2936 3 жыл бұрын

And a beautiful soul .

@luckyluke3619 Жыл бұрын

@@lauratyler2936 Yes indeed! I knew him personnally and have wonderful memories from our collaboration in the 1980th when he was artistic director with the NBC. A genuine and generous soul who just simply was passionnate about his art form and willing to share his knowledge with others (unlike the other one mentionned in this video)

@user-gq7ec9ep9s Жыл бұрын

Прокуренный, к сожалению.

@catherineblair5648 9 жыл бұрын

Hi Alex, I've had to listen to Erik, several times now, his voice and beautiful face come pouring back to me, listening and watching him spellbound, as a child. This is an beautiful, honest, historical piece of history being told here. I was very interested that Erik explained to Rudi, that his way of dancing was Danish, not Russian, and Rudi accepted that. It was and is very important that we all embrace, cherish, nurture, every ballet technique, from every culture, and it's origins and history, so dancers can learn from one another, and then enrich their lives, and ours. There is NO right or wrong, it is just different. My father David Blair, adored the Bournonville style, and went out there in '63, to learn, and then brought it back, plus teachers, to the Royal Ballet. That's how he met Erik, Bruce Marks and Toni Lander ete, and 5 years later, went on to make the film "Giselle", with Fracci, and them all. He wanted all different styles of ballet to be "Shown Off" and loved Balanchine too. That's why I can get upset even deeply hurt, when an audience member, who thinks he's a major critic, but hasn't gone through the whole process of learning to dance ballet, shows no RESPECT, for so many sublime but different, techniques. You're always in my thoughts, and thank you so much for this. Love and blessings, as always. xxx

@louisesmedley-hampson1828 9 жыл бұрын

Catherine Blair I have seen your comments under some of the YT ballet clips and for me they add an exciting extra dimension of interest. I remember your Daddy's dancing well and have books and books of press clippings from that time, including one of you as a newborn baby twin. Did you study ballet yourself and pass your knowledge on as a teacher?

@catherineblair5648 9 жыл бұрын

Louise Smedley-Hampson Oh how wonderful Louise! Please would you get in contact with me! My email address is;mscatherineblair@yahoo.com I'm desperate to see your press cuttings etc, of my beloved Daddy, sadly, a lot have got lost, and I'm writing a book, growing up in a ballet family. I really need your help please. Fond best wishes, Catherine. PS. Yes, I did study to be a ballet dancer, but then trained to be a concert pianist, and composer, etc!

@catherineblair5648 9 жыл бұрын

Louise Smedley-Hampson Please see my comments to you dear Louise, on this page! Thank you so much, and I can't wait to hear from you.

@JohnRaymondHall 9 жыл бұрын

Catherine Blair hi - lovely to hear from you - it's been a while. yes, Bruhn's voice is wonderfully resonant and soothing - and yes i like his honesty, in fact right through the documentary from which this came - rare i think for one so famous - usually there's a tendency to gild the legend. yes, i liked it that he challenged the notion that Russian was best - that there can be just differences in traditions pity i only saw Bruhn on stage once and Carabosse in a London Festival Ballet 'Sleeping Beauty' i was just wondering what of Bournonville your father danced? i can't remember if i saw him in this style of dance - he would have been very well suited to it! love and blessings back xxx

@louisesmedley-hampson1828 9 жыл бұрын

Didn't the RB do the 'Napoli' pas de six? I think I have a calendar photo somewhere with a very young Merle Park and Lynn Seymour. Catherine, I'll get back to you tomorrow. Love Louise.

@user-xn1wi8pz6o 5 жыл бұрын

У Эрика обворожительный голос,бархатный,нежный,любящий

@JohnRaymondHall 5 жыл бұрын

да, он очень чуткий, самоуничижительный и проницательный в себе. я разместил документальный фильм, посвященный только ему - ты видел это?

@user-xn1wi8pz6o 5 жыл бұрын

@@JohnRaymondHall да,я видела,фильм очень хороший,прекрасный Эрик,изящный,легкий,аристократичный,как настоящий принц и этот его дивный голос,красивые руки и чудные волосы,танцовщик от бога

@user-tk8hs8rj4z 5 жыл бұрын

@@user-xn1wi8pz6o "Бог" всегда пишется с большой буквы. В данном случае, правильнее : от Дьявола.

@user-cd2bq6yv2u 3 жыл бұрын

О,да я слушала его и балдела .Какой голос!!!

@rmp7400 Жыл бұрын

@@user-tk8hs8rj4z Some would not agree with your assessment/accusation - I am among them

@zhizhi9138 6 жыл бұрын

Language of dance. Love for dance. Love for artistic expression.

@JohnRaymondHall 6 жыл бұрын

exactly! :)

@junefun55 5 жыл бұрын

Tears are streaming down my face. So little personal happiness and so much genius. It’s a price/the price at this level of talent. 💙💙

@JohnRaymondHall 5 жыл бұрын

yes, i was incredibly touched too - the price is so great and it is for us which is so moving

@susannevollmer2347 2 жыл бұрын

Erik Bruhn - a Condor!

@Shortypants1215 9 жыл бұрын

So glad to see this video back! Thank You!

@adelastratila9593 4 жыл бұрын

Fenomenali tutti e tre,in particolare adorabile Rudy Nureyev .

@user-ru3uw9cv1g 6 жыл бұрын

Прекрасные танцоры!

@JohnRaymondHall 6 жыл бұрын

абсолютная правда!

@vasilisakojina447 5 жыл бұрын

!!!Гениальные!!!

@andrewpinchuck7931 2 жыл бұрын

Танцовщики. Танцоры на дискотеке.

@cs5771 9 жыл бұрын

Well of course he understood your sense of humor - he was in love with you! Beautiful dancers. :)

@JohnRaymondHall 9 жыл бұрын

Cecelia Jarra :)

@daffo595 8 жыл бұрын

also probably gave him AIDS and failed to tell him

@JohnRaymondHall 8 жыл бұрын

hadn't made that connection :( though Nureyev was pretty sexual with many people. but yes maybe.

@avesraggiana 7 жыл бұрын

Erik Bruhn died of lung cancer. He was an inveterate chain smoker.

@JohnRaymondHall 7 жыл бұрын

i read that though his death was attributed to lung cancer, according to biographer Pierre-Henri Verlhac, he might have died of AIDS. at that time many were ashamed of having contracted the disease and and declared in its later stage that they were suffering from another condition. but who knows and of course it doesn't matter.

@euridicesacramentomariani6953 3 жыл бұрын

Wonderful dancers!

@andreavirag8595 3 жыл бұрын

Wonderful video! :-) Thanks for sharing! Two iconic dancers!

@JohnRaymondHall 3 жыл бұрын

pleasure - and Bruhn talks real sense!

@jinxmas 5 жыл бұрын

Rudolph Nureyev had the most perfect extension/arch.

@user-kj8zm3qw9f 2 жыл бұрын

Очаровательный Эрик, изкий поклон тебе за Рудика, он продолжил и развил твою необыкновенную, выработанную только тобой, манеру танца. Вы оба эталоны танца.,но Эрик первый!

@rachelaspogard6587 2 жыл бұрын

Amazing dancers, both of them..

@Oakleaf700 8 жыл бұрын

My auntie used to look after Nureyev's house in East Sheen.. she said he left his tights everywhere.. and wanted her to run baths for him.. she said ''I'm not doing that'' :) She was probably one of the only people to say ''no'' to him. She was of the 'oldskool' and wouldn't run a bath for a man capable of running his own bath...had he been ill, or a child, quite different, but then, he was in his prime. His house is absolutely beautiful. We grew up there, in the area. Nureyev was superb to see dancing..mindblowingly good leaper.

@JohnRaymondHall 8 жыл бұрын

LOL - yes i bet one of the very few who said 'no' to him. curiously such tyrants like sometimes to be told 'нет' every now and then! i saw him a lot on stage as a kid in various places - yes a great jump!

@Oakleaf700 8 жыл бұрын

John Hall My Auntie was very indignant about the bath thing.. she siad to him ''I am not your servant''. It is too easy for people who are very 'respected' to be kowtowed to. Maybe Auntie reminded him of the Russian women like his mum or relatives.. she was very no nonsense, and wore a headscarf outdoors. wish she'd pinched a pair of the tights and given them to me :) but she was so honest, would never have done that- even if they were in the bin. Oldskool woman born 1914 :) His grave is beautiful! Auntie didn't like rugs. Their fringes go up the hoover :D

@JohnRaymondHall 8 жыл бұрын

your auntie sounds like a wonderful 'salt of the earth' kind of person - knows herself, will not humble herself to people with power and fame - and honest - great!

@Oakleaf700 8 жыл бұрын

John Hall There were quite a few people like that back then- She was lovely, that generation did have it harder. she was a solid Working Class person, hard working..when she died, her wedding ring was worn to a thin 'foil'...years of hard graft. I miss her a lot..extremely kind, but very 'no nonsense'. Maybe Nureyev noticed a stability there in a sea of starstruck people. I would have been awed, and would have run his baths for sure!

@LinHiril 8 жыл бұрын

He much respected people who stood up to him. He probably asked her over and over so she could say no. ;). Cute story. Thanks.

@brendadufaur37 Жыл бұрын

I wish they could have stayed together. I also wish Bruhn had not been a smoker - he was strongly addicted. It's so destructive.

@JohnRaymondHall Жыл бұрын

i wish the same, on both counts

@mariva39 3 жыл бұрын

Love them!

@passionballettopfru 9 жыл бұрын

fascinating!

@JohnRaymondHall 9 жыл бұрын

passionballet.topf.ru hi! yes it is - not a performance to really judge but interesting to see nevertheless - these two dancers obviously enjoyed working together. i only saw Bruhn on stage once and Carabosse in a London Festival Ballet 'Sleeping Beauty'. i think Galina Samsova was the Aurora.

@nessieness5433 3 жыл бұрын

Bruhn is more elegant in his moves.

@JohnRaymondHall 3 жыл бұрын

yes, a very different movement style

@katiamarin9425 3 жыл бұрын

Thank you

@JohnRaymondHall 3 жыл бұрын

pleasure Katia :)

@amparoospina562 4 жыл бұрын

Maravilloso

@JohnRaymondHall 4 жыл бұрын

yes! :)

@soniamouraomourao7420 4 жыл бұрын

🥰❤️🌟🌹

@sandatoacsen9858 3 жыл бұрын

💕💞

@Bnesque 8 жыл бұрын

Excuse my long silence. For me, they were powerful, well established people. In such situation, I always like let past being past, we have to deal with today. but when i heard Leo D's Academy speech of 'to my friends who know who they are' then witnessed his crazy bearding afterward, I came to think '"the more things change the more they stay the same' again. This entertainment world is still much depressing. Compared to that, these two guys are plausible.

@JohnRaymondHall 8 жыл бұрын

i have been silent too - so please excuse me too. :) i love that these two dancers could appreciate each other rather than see each other as competition - i guess in a way they were from slightly different dance eras and the explanation is partly here - plus they were frieneds/lovers for a time. that phrase from 'Il Gattopardo' "the more things change the more they stay the same" comes back t me in so many contexts. yes, entertainment today is so much about pleasing the audience in the most common denominator and in the simplest terms it's totally depressing - life is so complex - i think people are trying to ger away from this - but denial gets one no where, don't you think?

@Bnesque 8 жыл бұрын

John Hall in my eyes, they lived or younger us lived in the better ages where people believed in the better world next day with technical progress. we are disillusioned with it. economic crisis are all over and WW3 began already. i know people need cheap escape like Pokemon game. i blame the world wide tragedy some and progress of CGI some. with the great illusion created by CGI, many people became lazy. i blame the sound mixing system some, they can procreate catchy music by some loop which was stolen. well i believe i'm a bit old school in entertainment. lol

@atsugadri3155 3 жыл бұрын

@@Bnesque some ppl I know who love Pokemon are intellectually articulate and love the arts intensely. It isn't healthy to judge others interest 😊

@Bnesque 3 жыл бұрын

@@atsugadri3155 Sorry to offend you. but my point in this argument is technical progress is over all good? sometime there are master piece like "Death Stranding" sometimes terrifying factor like DNA manipulation. I'm very doubtful .

@cherylrichards2670 3 ай бұрын

Sometimes. There are no words

@JohnRaymondHall 3 ай бұрын

true

@edwardamosbrandwein3583 4 жыл бұрын

I meant "style" not "technique."

@christopherczajasager9030 3 жыл бұрын

Truky interesting and informative.Bruhn had a manlier style.

@sana11sana19 11 ай бұрын

Чудо танцовщики,люди

@edwardamosbrandwein3583 4 жыл бұрын

Is Danish ballet technique more subdued than Russian?

@seanwebb605 4 жыл бұрын

Edward Amos Brandwein Light and intricate foot work. Russian was very bold, explosive and strong.

@edwardamosbrandwein3583 4 жыл бұрын

@Henrik Kirk thx

@user-wk9hx6uw8l 3 жыл бұрын

О чём он говорит переведите хоть к вкраце

@sandatoacsen9858 3 жыл бұрын

Come e perche non si sono piu frecquentati ?!

@meralkeskin8511 4 жыл бұрын

Nureyev is a turkic .Russian say tatarian to all müslim turkic.Bashkır tribe is very important.Because they were unite all turkic under a state( hun empire) .Huns is blonde, green, blue eyed turkic.

@metamorphosa9838 Жыл бұрын

Rudolf described himself as a tatar, not bashkir

@JohnRaymondHall Жыл бұрын

yes, i was quoting Bruhn saying 'It Isn’t Wrong Because It Isn’t Russian’ in this doco

@meralkeskin8511 Жыл бұрын

@@metamorphosa9838atar also turkic.. All is Kıpchak turk.. 🤣 🤣 Kırghız, Kazakh, Tatar, Baskurd are Kıpchak.They divided very much.. Root is root.. Desti Kıpchak.. I also a Turkish Kıpchak.I am crying to my tribe..Unite Kıpchak.