Von Aroldingen will work with current principals of New York City Ballet for the two recordings, accompanied by the solo pianist of the New York City Ballet Orchestra. Under the working methodologies of the George Balanchine Foundation, the recordings of the two pieces will be supervised by a former NYCB dancer and now a George Balanchine répétiteur, along with the Foundation’s director of research.
Von Aroldingen’s career with NYCB spans 22 years, and a further 30 years as one of the company’s ballet masters. She joined American Festival Ballet at 16 and Frankfurt Ballet at 17. At NYCB she worked her way up the ranks and was named principal dancer in 1972. Balanchine choreographed 18 roles for von Aroldingen, and now she is a trustee of the Balanchine Trust, overseeing the distribution of Balanchine’s ballets worldwide.
The George Balanchine Foundation was established in 1983 to create programmes of work that educate the public and further Balanchine’s work. The Foundation’s Video Archives include the Interpreters Archive, in which dancers who worked closely with Balanchine teach their roles, and the Archive of Lost Choreography, recreating Balanchine ballets that are rarely performed and in danger of disappearing.