Category Archives: Congratulations/Results

Warrior for Peace, choreographed

I am pleased to share Julie Bartoletti and Carly Higgins Sargent’s (of Dance FX) interpretation of Warrior for Peace spoken word soundtrack:

Watch this space for another choreographic interpretation as a duo from Susan’s School of Dance, as soon I have a link to its video. If you are interested in this track, it is $9.99. Please email me with the request and I will send a PayPal invoice for that amount.

Encumbered performed by Eden Ryder

Squirrel Trench Audio is proud to have done the editing and mastering of the soundtrack for the routine titled Encumbered, performed by Eden Ryder and choreographed by Ausia Jones. This piece won 2nd place Contemporary at YAGP, and also won 2nd place nationally at Complexions’ Elite Dance Tournament at the LA Finals 2015.

Eden Ryder and Ausia Jones are students of Jacqueline Porter and The Dallas Conservatory.

The soundtrack for Encumbered is now available on Legitmix.

Get more Squirrel Trench remixes at Legitmix

Don’t forget: what you do is amazing

I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to all of you amazing dance teachers, ographers, studio owners, guest teachers, and everyone else who helps young people develop their dance abilities. Thank you for allowing me to be a part of your wonderful dance community.

Dance is a precious art form that requires a spectacular amount of dedication, knowledge, skill, and training. From concept to choreography, music to costumes, hair to make-up, and every movement, hundreds upon hundreds of hours go into a single routine of three minutes…. three amazing and beautiful minutes, never repeated in exactly the same way twice.

-a-deep-breathAt times, it may be hard to remember all the positives of dance, especially when you are dealing with crazy parents who don’t read the material you send, and students who don’t want to put in the time and effort, yet want to dance like Misty Copeland. It’s easy to be frustrated about the time and energy required to recruit new students, update your web page, chase parents who are late with their payments, coordinate recital ticket sales, pay the bills, and the thousands of other tasks on your plate which aren’t nearly as fun as inventing new choreography or being in the studio teaching your kids.

At those difficult times, take a deep breath, stop for one minute, and remember that:

  • you are creating something of exquisite fragility and beauty, lasting but a few performances before a new routine takes its place
  • you are making the world a better place with the beautiful routines you create in it
  • most importantly of all, you are building beautiful human beings, giving them a purpose, a pride, and dedication in the craft that they love so much

It’s the last one on the above list that is the most lasting and impactful. You never know when that small child you teach is going to herself grow into a beautiful dance teacher, and inspire yet another generation of dancers to take flight.

Never forget.

What you do is beautiful.

What you create is beautiful.

Who you touch, is beautiful.

No one can do it exactly the way you do, with as much care and passion for your students.

Break a leg this recital season, and don’t let the drama-mamas nor pompous-papas get you down!

Congrats to Boca Dance Studio 1st Place Overall!

Katie Westrich of Boca Dance Studio has taken 1st Overall at Ticket to Broadway competition, with a routine that features a custom Squirrel Trench-created soundtrack! This wedding-themed production routine is quite elaborate, featuring a large gazebo prop, dancers of all ages, and a variety of music and dance styles! Congrats to Katie and all of her dancers! Enjoy this fun routine!

I Get to Love You by Ruelle

Brand new, a beautiful and moving song for a lyrical routine, the heartfelt I Get to Love You by Ruelle. Not only is this song lovely to listen and dance to, the official music video features the talented dancer, Ms. Brianna Roland, who has won numerous competition titles using Squirrel Trench Audio-created remixes. She is the first dancer seen in the video, and is featured throughout it.

Squirrel Trench Audio has three edited lengths of this routine, ready for your next competition or recital lyrical or contemporary routine, at 2:55, 2:43, and 1:57.

Get more Squirrel Trench remixes at Legitmix

Enjoy the official video featuring Brianna Roland:

To learn more about the titles that Ms. Roland has won with Squirrel Trench Audio-created soundtracks, here is info about her Starbound senior title (2013), Starquest title (2012), and OnStage New York title (2013).

Congratulations to Connecticut Miss Outstanding Teen 2015

Is it possible to fuse funk with Irish Dance? The answer is yes, as proved beautifully by Tara Shaye Lynch. Tara’s mother asked me to create a 90-second custom clean edit of Uptown Funk last year, and congratulations to Tara for winning Ms. Cheshire Outstanding Teen of 2015 with it! Enjoy this fun 90-second routine:

Squirrel Trench Audio’s clean versions of Uptown Funk remain one of our best selling tracks on Legitmix, and prices have been reduced to $4.99 for any version that you may need.

Get more Squirrel Trench remixes at Legitmix

Eden Ryder – Encumbered

It is always with great joy that I get to see a video of a dance routine for which I’ve done the music editing. The latest comes from Roberta Ryder, whose daughter Eden performed contemporary choreography by Ausia Jones, set to the song Death of Murad by Nathaniel Mechaly from the Taken 2 motion picture soundtrack. The piece is titled Encumbered. Congratulations to Eden and Ausia for creating a remarkable routine, and also scoring 2nd place in Junior Contemporary at YGAP!

 

Revealing the Royals – Desiree’s Dancers

Choreographer/teacher Desiree Johnson runs Desiree’s Dancers in David City, Nebraska, a subsidiary of Barb’s School of Dance in Columbus, Nebraska. Desiree contacted me about a year ago to craft a custom remix for her production called Revealing the Royals. Assistant choreographers for this routine were Melinda Allen, Becky Brandenburg, and Kayla Hollatz. Here is a video of this four-minute masterpiece. Congratulations to Desiree and all of her dancers on a spectacular creation!

Rafaela Montanaro – Pole Sports champion

I am extremely honored to have been chosen to create an original remix for international pole sports champion Rafaela Montanaro. This remix incorporates a classic performance of Le Cygne, combined with an original techno orchestration for part of the piece. Last night, Rafaela competed her original routine at the U.S. Pole Championships in New Orleans, and took second place. This award qualifies her entry into the World Championship in London in July. Congratulations Rafaela!

Savannah Ballet’s Little Mermaid

IMG_1624I am extremely honored to have helped the Savannah Ballet with the music and sound design for their production of The Little Mermaid. The premier performances were this past weekend (April 24 & 25, 2015), and received rave reviews from those that attended. Managing Director Abby McCuen asked for my assistance in assembling a collection of about a dozen songs into a cohesive 45-minute set for Act I of the ballet. It was an exciting and challenging project, and Abby received several compliments on it. Here are a couple of photos from this beautiful performance. Click on either one to enlarge it.

For more photos, view Savannah Ballet’s photo album on Facebook.IMG_1780