MassiveMusic Composes for Eurovision Young Dancers 2015

MassiveMusic created two original compositions exclusively for the 2015 Eurovision Young Dancers (EYD) competition, held last month in Pilsen, Czech Republic.

The competition brings together ten of the most talented young dancers in Europe and MassiveMusic’s composer Mark Adair created music for both the Group Dances and the Duel Dance.

Adair’s work, which premiered on an exciting night of competition, extends MassiveMusic’s successful partnership with Eurovision, having collaborated for a number of years developing work for both the Eurovision Young Musicians and Young Dancers competitions.

As to the inspiration behind the music, Adair comments: “The compositions were influenced by the drama and emotion of cinematic scoring, blending traditional and contemporary techniques and styles along with a hefty dose of tribal percussion. The tribal style is reflected in the choreography of the Group Dances, leading us to the final Duel Dance between the two selected leaders of the Young Dancers' tribes battling it out for this year's crown.”

Vladislav Yakovlev, Executive Supervisor for Eurovision Young Dancers, says: “We approached Mark back in 2013 to compose some music for the Eurovision Young Dancers competition in Poland. His Group Dance and Final Duel pieces went down so well with the dancers and TV producers that our panel of European TV Executives wanted to have him back this year as well! In between, Mark also wrote an excellent group piece for our classical competition, Young Musicians, which was played on TV from an open-air concert at Cologne's Cathedral, and was an integral part of our live show!"

First staged in 1985, the Eurovision Young Dancers competition is a biennial event, open to participants aged 16 to 21 who perform either ballet, contemporary, or modern dance. 

This year’s Group Dances were choreographed by award-winning dancer and choreographer Cameron McMillan and the Duel Dance saw the final two dancers compete for first place. Poland’s Viktoria Nowak was selected by the jury on the night as this year’s winner.