About

Where Ballet begins

AC Music Ballet Class is a streaming platform that supports dance professionals in building the musical structure of their classical ballet classes.

The music of the ballet class has been forgotten.

Reduced to mere accompaniment.

To background sound.

We refuse this.

Music structures movement.

It is its invisible architecture.

Breath. Discipline. Momentum.

AC Music Ballet Class was born from this demand.

A catalog of over 300 original piano compositions, by Touve R. Ratovondrahety, written for each exercise, from plié to révérence.

Each note has a function.

Each nuance has meaning.

AC Music Ballet Class also allows users to create their own playlists or access monthly playlists curated by Étoiles and Soloists of the Paris Opera, as well as renowned teachers from major institutions and internationally acclaimed choreographers.

Here, music does not follow.

It leads.

“What has always impressed me about Alexandra Cardinale, since she was in the classes I accompanied as a pianist at the Paris Opera, was her épaulements.

I always found them remarkably precise, giving her a singular look that extended into her arms and to the tips of her fingers.
This seems to me to be the legacy of the Paris Opera Ballet School of Madame Claude Bessy and the teaching of Madame Christiane Vaussard.
I recently had the opportunity to talk about Alexandra with Elisabeth Maurin, a Star dancer and professor at the Opera, and she told me: Alexandra? She’s an Artist—with a capital A.

Yes, it’s true. Alexandra has A STYLE.

Her magic lies in her ability to master the academic codes of dance while expressing a unique style that emanates from her entire being, a dance that is the signature of a unique person.
For a dance class accompanist, it is a great pleasure to be able to follow a language, like accompanying a singer revealing the depth of their interpretation.

Then, the exercises are no longer basic. They take on real meaning.

I am happy to collaborate with AC Music Ballet Class to present a way of doing things differently, that of Alexandra Cardinale, which facilitates the creation of personalized courses while offering a unique style environment that you will discover throughout AC Opéra Ballet Production.”

Touve R. Ratovondrahety

Biography of Touve R. Ratovondrahety

For over thirty years, Touve R. Ratovondrahety has served as the principal pianist of the Paris Opera Ballet Corps.

He holds a First Prize in organ and is also the principal organist of the historical Grand Organs of Sainte-Cécile in Paris. His concerts are imbued with improvisations that fluctuate between blues, ethnic music, rock, and classical style.

Before fully dedicating himself to the Paris Opera, he began his professional musical career at the Orléans Conservatory, then continued at numerous Parisian conservatories, including the prestigious CNSMDP (Conservatoire national supérieur de musique et de danse de Paris) and also at the Paris Opera Ballet School.

Guided and trained by Pietro Galli, his art was refined by accompanying the ballet classes of Master Raymond Franchetti.

He was also requested to accompany on piano archival documentaries highlighting masters such as Raymond Franchetti and Noëlla Pontois.

Over the years, the Paris Opera Ballet has regularly chosen him to accompany renowned teachers, including international guests such as Christiane Vaussard (Paris), Violette Verdy (New York City Ballet), Gilbert Mayer (Geneva/Paris), Loipa Araujo (Cuba), Piotr Nardelli (Belgium), Sandra Jennings (The George Balanchine Trust), among many others. These unique experiences allow him to adapt to each dance style.

World tours have taken him to countries such as Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Finland, Italy, Morocco, Portugal, Switzerland, Greece, the United States, Australia, China, Japan, and Brazil.

Touve enriches his musical activities in various ways, exploring film music composition like Swept Away by Thomas Grascoeur, which won over 40 awards in international festivals, immersing himself in the fashion world by creating haute couture runway music, or producing musical events for prestigious clients of La Fugue Agency, formerly the LVMH Group.

Among his notable achievements are Tang’Or, a composition for a choreography by Roland Petit performed by Zizi Jeanmaire and Eric Vu An, and his contribution to the music of the trailer for the show Les Etoiles au Château for the Hugo Marchand for Dance association, produced by Alexandra Cardinale Opéra Ballet Production.

His artistic journey has been enriched by encounters with Valérie Lemercier as a piano accompanist in the film La Main dans la Main by Valérie Donzelli, and alongside Jacques Weber in an adaptation of Cyrano de Bergerac, for which he also composed the music.

Currently, he presents the profession of a dance class accompanist in a documentary in progress, sharing his passion and experience with Arnaud Merlin of France Musique, thereby contributing to the preservation and promotion of dance and music.
Relentlessly, Touve R. Ratovondrahety seeks new artistic perspectives, harmonizing his passion for music with the world of dance.