200 years after Chopin's birth, the Space Shuttle Endeavour, like a giant piano, took the music of Chopin into orbit.
A recording of Horowitz's historic 1986 recital in Moscow, the program also includes highlights of his return to his native Soviet Union--his first visit in 61 years.
Cecil Taylor was the grand master of free jazz piano. "All the Notes" captures in breezy fashion the unconventional stance of this media-shy modern musical genius, regarded as one of the true giants of post-war music. Seated at his beloved and battered piano in his Brooklyn brownstone the maestro holds court with frequent stentorian pronouncements on life, art and music.
This Emmy-nominated TV special highlights rare performance footage filmed between 1968 and 1969 at various US venues and locations, including the Westbury Music Fair, The Village Gate, and RCA Studios in New York City. Also featured are candid and personal interviews with Nina herself, revealing her unique views on music and life -- all expressed with her trademark intensity.
An intimate portrait of the legendary pianist Murray Perahia. The documentary observes Perahia at work on the interpretation of some pieces by Chopin and Schumann. It shows him as conductor of the famous Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, follows him into the recording studio and a master class in Hanover and finally captures a concert performance at a Warsaw Chopin recital in February 2010.
Pianomania takes the audience on a humorous journey through the secret world of sound and accompanies Stefan Knüpfer in his extraordinary work with the greatest pianists in the world. To select the instrument that corresponds to the vision of the virtuoso, according it to his desire and accompany him until he goes on stage, Stefan Knüpfer has developed nerves of steel, a boundless passion and above ability to translate words into sounds.
A musical tribute to the piano's 300th anniversary celebrates the legacy, grandeur and showmanship of this instrument. Hosted by "Piano Man" Billy Joel and taped before a live audience in Washington, D.C., this special mesmerizes audiences with its grand salute.
It is about a music school in Philadelphia, The Paul Green School of Rock Music, run by Paul Green that teaches kids ages 9 to 17 how to play rock music and be rock stars. Paul Green teaches his students how to play music such as Black Sabbath and Frank Zappa better than anyone expects them to by using a unique style of teaching that includes getting very angry and acting childish.
The fifth project of the Living Architectures series, Inside Piano is composed of three films on three symbolic buildings of Renzo Piano's career. A visit throughout the prototype-building of the Centre Pompidou. An immersion in the soundproof world of a submarine floating in the depths of the Parisian underground. A journey aboard a luminous magic carpet of a highly sophisticated architectural machine. A humorous, caustic and quirky point of view.
Acclaimed pianist Víkingur Ólafsson shares his deep connection with music, from Icelandic songs to the works of Bach, Mozart, Rameau, and Philip Glass. He explores how these pieces shaped him and how his feelings differ when performing works like the Goldberg Variations or Bartok’s Folk Song. Ólafsson invites us into his world where musical knowledge, Nordic roots, and creativity merge in his interpretations.
Three young prodigies and their families exploring the popular and competitive world of piano playing in China.
The documentary follows Chilly Gonzales from his native Canada to late '90s underground Berlin, and via Paris to the world's great philharmonic halls. Diving deep into the dichotomy of Gonzales' stage persona, where self-doubt and megalomania are just two sides of the same coin.
Video-essay about the pianist Carlos César Rodríguez.
This is a film that encapsulates the essence of a great pianistic age that married virtuosity and musicianship with the most thrilling aspect of individual showmanship.
Filmed over the course of four years, Grabsky and his Seventh Art team followed leading concert pianist Leif Ove Andsnes's attempt to understand and interpret one of the greatest sets of works for piano ever written: Beethoven's five piano concertos.The end result is a beautifully-crafted film with lavish cinematography, a signature of Grabsky and Seventh Art's style. Considered one of the top pianists of the age, Leif Ove Andsnes offers rare insights into the mind of a world-class pianist and access to his personal and professional life. Against the wonderful background of Leif Ove Andsnes playing these five pieces, we also peel back the many myths of Beethoven's life. Perhaps above all it is the fresh new biography of Beethoven that is most revealing.
Director — and piano player — Clint Eastwood explores his life-long passion for piano blues, using a treasure trove of rare historical footage in addition to interviews and performances by such living legends as Pinetop Perkins and Jay McShann, as well as Dave Brubeck and Marcia Ball.
A short film that poetically explores the sterile landscape of music consumption in the streaming era.
On a cold winter morning, a lone piano stands curbside in New York City. All day long, passersby stop to play. They collect and disperse, measure and push. Who abandons a piano? Plinking slightly out-of-tune over the white noise of Broadway's cars, buses, trucks, and sirens, the piano awaits its fate. Solo, Piano - NYC is a 5-minute film of the last 24 hours of a once-wanted piano.
An intimate documentary portrait of world-class improvisational and traditional pianist Mike Garson as he tours, performs, and teaches.
Set amongst the unlikely backdrop of cowboy boots, rodeos, and global geopolitics, thirty of the world's most promising musicians travel to Fort Worth, Texas to compete in the renowned Van Cliburn International Piano Competition. Vying for gold and their shot at classical piano stardom, the contestants must endure six grueling performances, multiple elimination rounds, and a discerning panel of jurists. Behind the scenes, we uncover the stories of adversity, sacrifice, and heartbreak driving the pianists to perform at the highest level. As fan favorites and early contenders are eliminated, one unassuming genius rises to the top.