In the spirit of Fashion Week, I decided to take note of some of the music played over the course of the Men’s prêt à porter and Women’s Haute Couture shows for Fall / Winter 2010/11 and Spring / Summer 2010 respectively.

Personal favorite song choices were The XX’s “Intro” at Qasimi – which I thought very appropriate for an opening sequence, and the Khronos Quartet’s “Different Trains I: America – Before the War” at Romain Kremer. Other popular choices were to have romantic piano versions of dark edgier sounds as in Nirvana’s “Lithium” at Cerruti and Clint Mansell’s “Marion Barfs” at Tillmann Lauterbach. Playlist below:

Note: Designers’ names in bold click through to videos of their shows.

QASIMI
The XX – Intro
The XX – Heart Skipped a Beat

DRIES VAN NOTEN
Moloko – Sing It Back (Boris D’Iuglosch Musical Mix)
Yeah Yeah Yeahs – Heads Will Roll
50 Cent – Candy Shop

GASPARD YURKIEVICH
John Martyn – Go Down Easy

KRIS VAN ASSCHE
Fight With Tools – Flobots

TILLMANN LAUTERBACH
A piano variation on Clint Mansell’s Fall: Marion Barfs

ROMAIN KREMER
Khronos Quartet – Different Trains I : America – Before The War

YVES SAINT LAURENT
Nine Inch Nails, The Hand That Feeds (DFA Remix)

CERRUTI
Piano version of Nirvana’s Lithium

Women’s Haute Couture:

CHRISTIAN DIOR
Sade – Soldier of Love
Alicia Keys – Wait Til You See My Smile
Alicia Keys – Love Is My Disease

GIORGIO ARMANI PRIVE
Eternal Basement – Out Dreaming (Lovely Sunrise)

ANNE VALERIE HASH
Brigitte Fontaine & Khan – Fine Mouche (Original Tango Piano version)
Wendy Carlos – A Ghost Piano

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And every season, there’s always (atleast) one designer that chooses the Pixies’ “Where is my Mind?” as an impact song for the last walk-through (this year we heard it at Lauterbach’s show). Michael Jackson’s “Beat it” proves to be the fashion scene’s “elevator” music as it slips in at some point or another while standing in line, or rushing between venues.

So to mix things up once more, I’ve imagined a list of suggestions for future shows (or for personal use if you’re the city street strutting type). And no, I have not included Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance” which seems like a much too obvious choice.

1. Gang Gang Dance – Blue Nile
2. Hot Chip – Take It In
3. Keepaway – Yellow Wings
4. Little Boots – New in Town (Fred Falke Remix)
5. Bat for Lashes – Two Planets
6. Beach House – Norway
7. Alain Bashung – 2043
8. M83 – We Own The Sky
9. Lali Puna – People I Know
10. Florence & the Machine – You’ve Got The Love (XX remix)
11. One Inch Punch – Pretty Piece of Flesh
12. Black Lips – Drop I Hold
13. Vitalic – Trahison
14. Coeur de Pirate -  Comme des Enfants (Le Matos Andy Carmichael Remix)
15. Benjamin Biolay – La Superbe (particularly for Haute Couture)

Most of these tracks are available for live streaming on Les Flâneurs’ Hype Machine.

Photography by Michael Stephens featuring Tillman Lauterbach’s Fall / Winter collections for 2010-2011.