The Motosonus Method was devised to give pianists and composers access to tools that would enable them to provide a very high quality of music for ballet class. In the simplest of terms the Motosonus Method provides ballet class pianists a set of laws for creating ballet class music with express methodologies which are meant to make the music far more useful in its role in the teaching setting of the ballet studio.
One of the key ways to do this is by using the beat placement and beat size and the melodic and harmonic content of the music to make a dissonance and consonance that matches the tension and relaxation occurring in the dancers’ muscles.
The most useful of these methods is the manipulation of the beat or pulse. It was discovered that the utilization of rhythm has a greater result on the dancers during the study of ballet than any other single component of the musical accompaniment.
The character of the music is created to go along with each ballet exercise by changing the location of the downbeat and also by changing the manner in which the downbeat is played. As an example, by anticipating the beat, sometimes called “rushing the beat,” and making it wider by rolling or arpegiating the notes, the pianist can give the music an expansive feel. This is used in the ballet exercises that require the heavier muscles of the body, and which require large sweeping motions from the dancers. When the bass notes are played dead on the beat, or “in the pocket,”, it creates a feeling of forward drive which is well suited for ballet exercises that demand a quickness and accuracy.
By intentionally manipulating the beat, the pianist can create a musical tapestry that compliments and augments the movements of the dancers, which both assists them in performing the exercises properly and also improves their progress in their journey toward their goals.
This post is brought to you compliments of Gaylord Pannitron. The Motosonus Method is utilized in The First Class Albums, a series of ballet class music CDs by composer/choreographer/pianist, Don Caron. You can check them out in Amazon’s Ballet Class Music library.