Movies
on Classical Composers -Their Lives, Loves, and Times
SPECIAL FEATURE:
2006 DVD Premiere of the 1991 award-winning film Tous
les Matins du Monde |
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BEETHOVEN
IMMORTAL BELOVED
This 1994
movie about LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN's secret
love is a good enough way to give those "unwashed"
in classical music a broad overview of the great composer's
life and works. The film takes off from the posthumous discovery
of Beethoven's letter to one "Immortal Beloved"
whose identity the movie attempts to pin down. However,
to date only speculation abounds as to the addressee, and
her name will probably be forever shrouded in mystery. Beethoven,
who never married, was thought to be a misanthrope who lived
a tortured inner life, aggravated by the deafness that enveloped
his later years; yet he created some of the world's greatest
music that spoke not only of life's sufferings but also of
its great joys. While the movie illustrates all these with
some degree of success, one should not rely on it for historical
accuracy. It is masterfully scored, with excerpted performances
by the cream of the crop among today's classical musicians
- Murray Perahia, Emmanuel Ax, Bryn Terfel, Renee Fleming,
etal - with Sir Georg Solti conducting the London Symphony
Orchestra.
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CHOPIN:
Three movies on the Polish composer/pianist - and they all
focus on his famous love affair with the writer George Sand
CHOPIN: DESIRE FOR LOVE
A Polish film on FRÉDÉRIC CHOPIN,
Poland's most famous composer, which premiered at the 2002
Shanghai Film Festival, with recorded perfomances on the soundtrack
by Polish virtuoso Janusz Olejniczak, and such better known
classical artists as Yo-yo Ma, Emmanuel Ax, Vadim Brodsky
and Pamela Frank. 
IMPROMPTU
This
1991 comic movie, the title of which alludes to any one of
FRÉDÉRIC CHOPIN's
famous "Impromptu" piano pieces, features Hugh Grant
as Chopin and Judy Davis as George Sand, with character performances
by Emma Thompson and Bernadette Peters. FRANZ LISZT,
who was a friend of Chopin, also appears as a major character
in the movie which focuses exclusively on the "authoress"
George Sand's relentless and eventually successful pursuit
of the physically fragile Chopin. Being more a film about
George Sand, this is not the movie to see if you want to gain
more than a superficial knowledge of Chopin's life and his
music.
A
SONG TO REMEMBER
The oldest of the three Chopin movies, this 1945 film stars
Cornell Wilde in an Oscar-nimonated performance as Chopin
and the beautiful Merle Oberon as George Sand. The dramatic
treatment of the movie, directed by Charles Vidor, is of course
typical of the era.
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Glenn
GOULD
 32
SHORT FILMS ABOUT GLENN GOULD
What you see is what you
get - literally 32 short films, vignettes if you will, of
moments both of great and little consequence, in the life
of possibly the most celebrated eccentric pianist of modern
times, who was also a composer - albeit less known to us as
such. Told from the points of view of people whose lives he
touched and/or who touched his, the movie is biographical
but not in the conventional way - and quite enjoyably so.
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LISZT:
2 very different movies on the flamboyant composer
 LISZTOMANIA
This movie by Ken Russell,
possibly the most outrageous and most controversial film director
of all time -and perhaps also the most prolific - is one of
two movies on the most flamboyant of classical composers,
FRANZ LISZT. Available only on VHS, the 1975
movie is also about Richard Wagner (by virtue of the professional
and familial relationship between the two composers) and as
expected takes artistic liberties with historical fact; definitely
not for the strait-laced.
SONG
WITHOUT END
This 1960 movie by Charles
Vidor who also directed the 1945 movie on Chopin, "A
Song to Remember", features acclaimed British actor Dirk
Bogarde as FRANZ LISZT. Like LisztOmania,
this movie which is also available only on VHS, is no documentary.
The film features much of Liszt's most popular piano pieces,
but the video cover art gives ample hint that the movie deals
quite a bit with Liszt's romances than with his music. Unlike
LisztOmania, this movie is a biopic crafted in the traditional
mode, perhaps of interest more as a part of a great actor's
filmography than as a great composer's fictionalized biography.
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MAHLER
BRIDE OF THE WIND
This is
an artistically crafted end-of-the-20th century period film
(by acclaimed director Bruce Beresford) about ALMA
MAHLER and her tempestuous marriage to the great
composer GUSTAV who is by necessity a major
character in the film. Alma was muse to the celebrated artists
(including painters, architects) of her time and a composer
(mostly of song) in her own right. Although historically
accurate for the most part, the film should not be equated
with documentary by any means. The music by Stephen Endelman
includes excerpts from the works of Gustav and Alma Mahler,
performed by some of today's foremost classical artists (Pierre
Boulez and Claudio Abbado conducting the Vienna Philharmonic
Orchestra as well as pianist Jean-YvesTthibaudet
and soprano Renée Fleming, both of whom
also make a cameo appearance toward the end of the film) and
is available separately as an audio CD.
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 MAHLER
This is
another "outre" movie about classical composers
by cult-film director Ken Russell, who for all his outrageous
irreverence, definitely knows his classical music. Among 21st
century filmmakers he is the only one who seems to have a
strong affinity, or better yet, a wildly imaginative obsession
with the creators of classical music - he has made quite
a number of films on classical composers both for the cinema
and television. In this movie originally released in
1975, he combines art with some psychoanalysis and treats
his subject matter with off-the mainstream but still relatively
benign humor.
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Marin
MARAIS /
SAINTE COLOMBE
 TOUS
LES MATINS DU MONDE (All the Mornings of the World)
Winner of 7 French CÉSAR Awards in 1991, including
Best Picture. DVD Premiere: March 7, 2024
This award-winning movie
originally produced in 1991 is about the 17th century composer
MARIN MARAIS and his teacher/mentor, renowned viol musician
and composer SAINTE COLOMBE about whom very little is known
with historical certainty. The film, which won 7 César
awards (the French equivalent of Hollywood's Oscar) and stars
today's most popular French actor Gérard Depardieu,
is now reissued as a digitally restored and remastered 2-DVD
Special Collector's Set that includes excellent bonus materials
that are both interesting, educational and enjoyable.
CLICK HERE for more about the movie.
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MOZART
 AMADEUS
Winner
of 8 OSCARs in 1984, including Best Picture, Best Actor, Best
Director, Best Screenplay, Best Sound...
Based on the acclaimed
play by Peter Shaffer, this movie is perhaps the most enjoyable
introduction to the life and works of WOLFGANG
AMADEUS MOZART, the musical genius of all time.The
story revolves around the composer Antonio Salieri's intense
jealousy of Mozart and is told in flashback mode from his
point of view. Much is fictionalized in this regard
but the resulting historical accuracies can be overlooked
or forgiven for this worthy trade-off: the movie opened
the door wide to the enjoyment of classical music and to an
appreciation of Mozart by people who otherwise would have
been at best indifferent to the genre.The music is of course
mostly Mozart, superbly performed by the Academy of St. Martin-in-the
Fields conducted by Sir Neville Marriner. Now available in
both the original version and as a digitally restored and
remastered 2-DVD "Director's Cut" set that includes
previously deleted scenes and such extras as interviews and
a documentary on the making of the movie.
3
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PUCCINI
The movie's
story line springs from GIACOMO PUCCINI's purported
affair with a household maid who is hounded to the point of
suicide by his jealous wife. The unhappy situation brings
grief to an already anguished Puccini. The movie suggests
a connection between this episode in Puccini's life and his
creation of the self-sacrificing character of Liu (Art imitates
life!) in stark contrast to the ice princess Turandot
in his last opera of the same title; and further, that
Puccini's inability to finish the opera reflects an unsatisfied
need for closure with respect to the incident - never mind
that at the time Puccini was suffering from and subsequently
died of throat cancer following surgery. There are of
course excerpts from Puccini's operas as well as a documentary
footage of Turandot (performed by the Scottish National
Opera).
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SCHUMANN:
2 movies about the romance of Robert and Clara Schumann that
don't play loose with the facts
SPRING
SYMPHONY ("Frühlingssinfonie")
This German movie originally produced in 1983 is a dramatization
of the romance of ROBERT and CLARA SCHUMANN against the backdrop
of her father's (Friedrich Wieck's) vehement opposition to
the relationship. Of course we all know who won in the end,
but with the unfortunate subjugation of Clara and her widely
acknowledged musical talents as a perhaps unintended but necessary
consequence. Unlike most biographical movies, this film which
stars attractive Natassia Kinski as the physically and artistically
gifted Clara and Herbert Gronemeyer as Robert, does not stray
from historical fact. The title refers to Schumann's
first symphony, a celebration of his passion for Clara. The
sumptuous music is conducted by Maestro Wolfgang Sawallisch.
The film received the 1984 Bavarian Film Award for best
direction, and won a German Film Award for Natassia Kinski
in 1983.
SONG OF LOVE
The inimitable Katharine Hepburn pulls it off brilliantly
as Clara (Wieck) Schumann in this 1947 Hollywood version of
the famed historical romance between a supremely talented
artist abandoming her blossoming career for the love of then
struggling composer Robert Schumann. Still available only
on VHS, this black and white film is, like the later German
version of the love story (see above), quite faithful to the
truth. Johannes Brahms (who was in love with Clara) and Franz
Liszt are among famous musical personages of the time who
appear in the movie which opens with Clara Schumann playing
in concert the grand finale of Liiszt's Piano Concerto No.2.
Of course the music of Schumann and Brahms are also heard
in the film (played by Artur Rubinstein on the soundtrack).
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J.
STRAUSS, Jr. - If "Waltz" is in the movie title,
then it must be about Johann Strauss or somehow inspired by
him. Below are some "oldies"...
THE GREAT WALTZ
This 1938 movie is a musical that was popular in
its time. It is a schmaltzy-waltzy fantasy, a Hollywood operetta,
if you will, about Johann Strauss, Jr., who is the only
historical figure among the movie's fictionalized characters,
among which is an opera singer played by a real opera singer,
Polish soprano Miliza Korjus.
 THE
GREAT WALTZ
Same title, different movie. This is a VHS
version of a special 1955 TV production on the life and works
of Johann Strauss, Jr., a musical featuring, of course, Strauss'
waltzes and operettas in which opera singers performed.
THE WALTZ KING
The newest of the "oldies", this 1963 biographical
movie is based loosely on the conflict between Strauss, Jr.
and Sr. regarding the younger Strauss' pursuit of a musical
career in the footsteps of the elder. The film stars the beautiful
Austrian actress Senta Berger as Henriette Treffz, Strauss'
first wife.
... and a couple of "newbies:"
JOHANN STRAUSS - THE KING WITHOUT A CROWN
This 1987 Spanish drama based on the life of Johann
Strauss was released in PAL/Region 2 DVD format and will not
play on a standard US DVD player.
JOHANN STRAUSS - DANCE AND DREAM / THE WALTZ KING
This is a 2-part DVD - the first is a lot of singing
and dancing mostly to the music of Johann Strauss, the second
is a docudrama narrated by popular British soprano Lesley
Garrett.
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TCHAIKOVSKY:
2 movies produced at about the same time; the vastly different
treatments of the same subject are a study in contrast.
THE MUSIC LOVERS
This 1970 Ken Russell film casts the brilliant
Glenda Jackson as the nymphomaniac wife of PETER ILYITCH
TCHAIKOVSKY, sympathetically portrayed here by Richard Chamberlain.
The movie which deals with Tchaikovsky's unbearbly tortured
life, is thought to be one of Russell's best. It is more subdued
than his later outrageous treatments of Liszt and Mahler,
though it is not without his notorious surrealisms. To date,
the movie isl available only on VHS.
TCHAIKOVSKY
This production,
a 1971 Academy Award nominee for Best Foreign Film, is a biodrama
of the great Russian composer's life. If your preference is
reverential, bereft of vulgarities, with minimal use of artistic
license, as strictly faithful to historical fact as possible,
and great romantic music to top it all, this movie is the
one for you.
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| VERDI
THE LIFE OF VERDI
The DVD version
is apparently a low-quality transfer from the original VHS
version of a spectacularly excellent 7-part docudrama on
the life of the great opera composer which was released
in 1984 and ran in the US as a 10-hour series on PBS. Originally
in Italian, the movie was directed by Renato Castellani
and filmed on location in Italy,France, England and the
Soviet Union. Photography is great and the music even greater
- sung by some of the greatest opera stars of all time.
The film is still available, mostly used, from various sources
in VHS format (4 tapes).
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WAGNER
WAGNER - the complete epic
RICHARD
WAGNER, who lived in the turbulent years of the 19th
century, was a man as complex as his operas - he was composer,
conductor, thinker/writer, librettist, stage designer/director,
political activist, husband, father, lover all rolled into
one. Thus a film on his life can only be of epical proportions.
This film by Tony Palmer fits the bill - great cinematography
and an excellent cast led by Richard Burton as Wagner and
Vanessa Redgrave as his second wife Cosima with appearances
by Laurence Olivier, John Gielgud, Ralph Richardson, Joan
Plowright and Franco Nero, as well as by opera singers Gwyneth
Jones, Peter Hoffman and Heinz Zednik. This 4-DVD set runs
a total of 540 minutes or 9 hours only in full screen format.
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