April 8, 2009

Dancing with the Stars Doesn’t Need a Live Band

Written by: John
Sign up to receive all the latest Dancing with the Stars 2010 News, Rumors and Updates.
Filed under: add to del.icio.us

Let’s be completely honest here for a second. I think the singers on the show do pretty well considering the broad range of music that they have to sing. With that said, I have no idea why Dancing with the Stars even has a band and singers. We almost never see them except for at the beginning when Tom recognizes Harold Wheeler. So, if we aren’t going to see them, then what’s the difference in the Live music versus recorded music.

As a comparison, So You Think You Can Dance uses all recorded music and I’ve never once heard someone say they wish it was better quality or that it was live. The reality is that I’ve seen many people complain about the Live music on Dancing with the Stars not being up to par. It’s never bothered me personally, but seems like a waste of money that they could be spending elsewhere. Then again, maybe in this tough economic times we want them to employ as many people as possible.

I even attended the taping of Dancing with the Stars and the live band made no impact on my experience. In fact, I don’t even really remember them being there. So, I say out with the band, despite their incredible talent.

    • Tags: • • • •

    Look for similar articles under these categories: 
    • Tayo,
      There's copyright stuff even with a live band. Many other shows do it just fine with copyright. There are pros and cons to having a live band with copyright. I actually did an interview with someone who clears the music for SYTYCD: http://www.puresytycd.com/2009/06/25/clearing-t...
    • Tayo
      There's copyright stuff about performing to music. Have you guys thought of that?
    • Mike,
      Nice exaggeration of things. All of what you describe is quite different than a TV show where you're watching a recording of a live band and you don't actually even see the band at all.

      Plus, musicians are definitely needed. They need to do the recordings that should be used on the show.

      Although, I will agree that marching bands at college football games are useless as well. I do like them at high school games if they're done right.
    • Mike
      Hey you're right, fire those musicians -we don't need 'em.
      Let's get rid of all the marching bands in football games too! We don't need them, they could just play the fight songs over the loudspeakers.

      Oh yeah, who needs those annoying wedding bands either?? Lets put them out of the job too, we could just use our Ipods!!

      Come to think of it, all music worth listening to has already been recorded, right? So why do people waste their time getting a music performance degree?
      Lets get rid of the music degrees, too - who needs them when you could just play a cd?
    • Darla,
      Yep, no live music on a recorded television show.
    • What, no live music?!?!? Yeah, let's go back to American Band Stand, we loved it but come on!!
    • cat
      One thing I wanted to add. I found this post in a discussion on People TV watch where someone named ELIZ describes with great knowledge of both music and dance how the recording of the Habanera from Carmen in its original arrangement and performed by a world class orchestra and a world class mezzo soprano could have been interpreted by Gilles and Cheryl and how truly great it could have been. This also relates to Len's critique of Gilles - being older and probably familiar with music he must have thought about the original habanera when he made his "hectic" remark. What was hectic was the DWTS orchestra arrangement.

      This is the lilnk. The post is by ELIZ on April 11th:
      http://tvwatch.people.com/2009/04/07/poll-which...
      There are some posts before that - e.g. one from TANGOHOT, but the last one by ELIZ really goes into great detail in analyzing both the music and what could have been a truly amazing dance interpretation.
    • cat
      @Adrienne Duckworth: "In response to John, who doesn’t think that the show needs a live band–you are the type of person who is responsible for the decline of art in this country"

      Is having a pop singer meowing Habanera from Bizet's Carmen into a mike with her tiny voice not a decline of arts? This is an aria that was performed by world's best opera singers including the likes of Callas, Berganza, Baltza, Horne, etc.; more recently - Larmore, Graves, Gheorghiu, etc. It was performed in best opera theaters and with best orchestras and famous conductors. Here is Jennifer Larmore for you http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQKUmuP0sMs&...
      Here is Teresa Berganza on stage http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oby-hCgZLJc&...

      Do me a favor. Go on YouTube and listen to habanera performed by any of the singers mentioned above. Do it a few times with different performers. Then try to watch Gilles and Cheryl paso and concentrate on the music. Is this art?

      Wouldn't using a recording of performers that are best in each style of music performed be any less of an art than having a singer and musicians struggle with repertoire that is wrong for them?
    • Adrienne,
      Now you're just completely misunderstanding what I'm trying to say. I didn't say that you should get rid of music created by bands. I just said that the band didn't have to be live.

      The orchestra I heard was a recorded sound when it came through my television anyway. So, the show might as well take a high quality orchestra recording and send it to me that way.

      I never suggested using some synthesizer for all the music. I'm just suggesting using already recorded content instead of live music like what they do in So You Think You Can Dance. In fact, doing so will actually increases the show's ability to introduce people to a broad range of music that a live orchestra could never do justice (see the opera comments above).
    • Adrienne Duckworth
      In response to John, who doesn't think that the show needs a live band--you are the type of person who is responsible for the decline of art in this country, and also the addiction to fake techno music, which is nothing like the real thing, and if you had a pair of ears, you might notice the difference. The orchestra played so beautifully on At Last--there is no way you can get that sound with a bunch of synthesizers.
    • I agree that celebrity couples could be really interesting. I'm not sure I'd want to see Ellen on the show. She's amazingly funny, but she dances enough on her show.
    • Zula
      I think it would be interesting to have all Celebrity couples competing against each other. Including couples like Ellen & Phoria, although Ellen said she didn't want to be on the show.
    • Hi Lisa,
      A few people don't, but they're the minority.

      I should tell you that I'm not the show. So I have no influence who they put on the show. You'll have to go to abc.com or something to talk to the show. Not that they'll necessarily answer you.

      I do think Kelly Rippa would be an interesting addition to the show. Not sure about her husband, but Kelly would be entertaining to watch.
    • LISA FLANAGAN
      I really love the show, but of course who doesn't!!
      i was wondering if you ever considered kelly rippa for one of the stars and posssibly her husband mark as well. the world is in love with the both of them and loves the show as well IT WOULD BE GGGREAT!!!!!!!!!
    blog comments powered by Disqus
    Top - Home