Asada's Olympic Trail Begins: Music Choices Revealed!

Photo credit: Universal Sports

2013 World Bronze Medalist and my favourite skater Mao Asada has finally revealed her music choices for the upcoming Olympic season. The 2014 Winter Games which will be hosted by Sochi is less than a year away, and as the world head into the summer season, so has Asada with her busy schedule- juggling upcoming ice shows and mastering new programs for her 'seemingly' final competitive season.

The announcement of programs usually start around this time of the year but the big skaters tend to save it nearer the fall for a much more big reveal. Tumblr blogger tokitama posted today what Mao officially confirmed at a recent press conference, that she has in fact chosen musical pieces for the season. For her short program, Mao will be skating to Chopin's iconic Nocturne No.2 in E-Flat Major Op.9-2. Now many of you will be aware that this is a program that she has skated in the past therefore making it a repeat. It was Asada's short program in the 2006-2007 season, also choreographed by Lori Nichol, and so what will this mean?

Many skating fans are currently on the fence with this choice. How do you top what was an amazing original program? How will this play out in the new code of points? Many elements have changed since Asada's debut, and her original program mastered the music to the final note. Is it possible to out do what was already one of the best short programs in the last ten years?

Personally, I feel that Mao is going through a state of rejuvenation. Ever since she started rebuilding her technique, which many have questioned, it looks as though she's rediscovered a genuine joy for skating. I was watching a documentary on the English prima ballerina Margot Fonteyn the other day, and it was fascinating to see that during the time when she pondered on retirement (she was dancing in her late-fifties!), the Russian dancer Nureyev breathed life back into her and she danced for many more years after. Though not quite the same, Asada's programs from this season showed glimpses of the precocious sixteen year-old who beat veterans Sasha Cohen and Irina Slutskaya on her senior debut. Choosing to skate to the same Chopin piece she skated to in her girlhood seems to suggest that not only does she want to recapture those vital years, but also to bring her career to full circle. After all, we keep hearing rumours of retirement- what better way to finish that to look back to where it all began? It's all very poetic, I'm aware- but possible. Last season she sais she wanted to wear her hair in a high ponytail for the short programme because she wore it that way in her senior debut when she skated to Carmen. Perhaps, upon reflection- she's decided to bring back the best of Asada in her (dare I say it..) swan song. How will it work in the new judging system though? In the old version, Asada's step sequence was timed perfectly to the music, as well as featuring a beautiful spiral sequence. With the abolition of spirals and the manic movements in the SS that is 'required' to earn all the levels- how the hell is Lori Nichol going to rejumble all of this and create a new masterpiece? Only time will tell from this point forward!

For her free programme, she has chosen to skate to Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2, which is admittedly an overused piece of music in skating. Also, being that the games will be held in Mother Russia, choreographed by her surrogate mother-coach Tatiana Tarasova, it maybe a little on the nose. Is this a disadvantage for Mao? Yes and No. Yes, because people will have high expectations for her to create a wholly new and creative program that would make her programme standout from a diamond dozen. However, she has proven before that this isn't necessarily the case. Her original Chopin Nocturne, her Czardas free program and last season's Swan Lake were all overused pieces yet she managed to create versions that could hold their own in history. This is not like Ashley Wagner trying to outwit her Black Swan programme or the laughable announcement that both USA skaters Gracie Gold and Max Aaron who hasn't an artistic bone in their bodies, wishes to create innovative programs to Bizet's Carmen and Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty.

It's also an advantage because Mao can skate with a Russian sensibility, which may work in her favour (provided that both Tuktamysheva and Sotnikova fail to deliver..) Lest we forget, Mao lived in Russia for a good amount of time running up to the 2010 games. With Tat as her coach at the time, she's like Miki Ando in this sense- an honorary Russian skater! In Vancouver, she skated a little too Russian perhaps, which hindered her chances at beating long-time rival Yu Na Kim, but this season as we saw with her version of Swan Lake, she's taken everything she's learned since then into practice and managed to balance classical balletic elements and lyricism. Plus, she's skated to Tchaikovsky at the Grand Prix Final which was held in Sochi to a wonderful response. The odds of playing the Russian card seems to be in her favour thus far. Also, this Concerto is a little less robust and menacing than her Bells of Moscow free program. It features more opportunities for lyricism and has equal shades of light and dark that Mao can play up to. As innovative as Bells was, we all know that it was too grandiose, inaccessible and too European (for some commentators *ahem..NBC, CBC*) and evidently, it overwhelmed Asada's artistry. Again, we can only guess as to how all of this will all pan out, but Mao is planning to skate these programs in her upcoming ice shows, so until we see some video footage- only time will tell.

One thing that seems to be a unanimous comment on the fan boards however, is the fact that Mao's choice have often been safe and predictable. Many point out that unlike her compatriots Takahashi and Suzuki- both of whom charged Camerlengo for outstanding and exciting programs, Asada has never branched out and stuck with only Lori and Tarasova for her programs and all have been fairly similar- though well received. Let me just put in my two cents.

Mao and Yu Na are not so different in this aspect actually. Both have stuck with long time choreographers, not because they rest on their laurels, but because these collaborations result in gold more often than not. Kim with David Wilson and Asada with Lori have given the world beautiful artistic programs that continually inspire skaters and fans all over the world. Sure it would be nice to break free and try something crazy but in this most important season of their careers- is it worth the risk? For Kim, maybe. She has a reliable jumping technique that would cushion a shift if she wanted to. Unfortunately for Asada, the case is not the same. Her technical ability- though still superb and beyond the others below the field- is undoubtedly still in a fragile state. She's only just started finding her footing again and with the inconsistencies and the fickle tech panel, she can't afford to take big risks that can put off another chance at a gold medal. It's already hard specially with Kim back in shape and Kostner continually 'improving', it's too late to make any drastic changes. Furthermore, why change what doesn't need to change? We've seen already that Asada shines brighter in the lyrical style. She's not as much the power skater as she used to be, and aesthetically, she moves better and is rewarded more justly when she skates to someone like Chopin or Tchaikovsky- whose pieces sound like they were written for her.

Bottom line is- I think these pieces are great choices. Predictable yes, but also fitting and exciting. Hell, even Jeremy Abbott is re-using his Exogenesis program! It's ages away but I really do wish that the fall season be just around the corner. Also, I want to know what Yu Na will be skating to! She has a habit of choosing something socially relevant like that James Bond or Les Mis piece. Maybe she'll skate to the Great Gatsby soundtrack?

What do you think of Mao's choice?