Subgenre Sampler

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Tár (Tar) (2022): Dir. Todd Field
Feat. Cate Blanchett, Nina Hoss, Noémie Merlant…; A striking and rigorously intelligent drama from the director of IN THE BEDROOM that interrogates the process, pressures and politics in the…
Pavarotti (2019): Dir. Ron Howard
Feat. Luciano Pavarotti; Director Ron Howard continues his foray into musical documentary, following THE BEATLES: EIGHT DAYS A WEEK with this in–depth look at the life…
Eulogy, The (2018): Dir. Janine Hosking; Australia's greatest, and perhaps most overlooked, classical pianist Geoffrey Tozer is the subject of this documentary presented by music educator…
Score: A Film Music Documentary (2016): Dir. Matt Schrader; An interesting insight into the art of composing film scores that gleans commentary from a diverse range of more than 60 composers (including Hans…
Marguerite (2015): Dir. Xavier Giannoli
Feat. Catherine Frot, Andre Marcon, Michel Fau…; Touching French version of the story inspired by the life of Florence Foster Jenkins, a socialite who believed she was in possession of a beautiful…
Music of Strangers: Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble, The (2015): Dir. Morgan Neville; From the director of the Oscar winning 20 FEET FROM STARDOM comes this beautiful portrait of the international music collective founded by legendary…
Seymour: An Introduction (2015): Dir. Ethan Hawke; Award–winning documentary on the life and career of classical pianist Seymour Bernstein, who abandoned fame as a performer in favour of a…
In Search of Chopin (2014): Dir. Phil Grabsky; The life and music of Polish–born pianist and composer Fryderyk Chopin is explored in the detailed format of dir. Grabsky's previous "In Search…
Devil's Violinist, The (2013): Dir. Bernard Rose
Feat. David Garrett, Jared Harris, Joely Richardson…; The acclaimed violinist David Garrett makes his acting debut in this biopic of Italian violinist and composer, Niccolò Paganini, from the director…
Grand Piano (2013): Dir. Eugenio Mira
Feat. Elijah Wood, John Cusack, Dee Wallace Stone; This tantalizing Grand Guignol, styled in the spirit of Italian Giallo and Brian De Palma, finds concert pianist Elijah Wood stalked by an unseen…
In Search of Haydn (2012): Dir. Phil Grabsky; Lucid, unpretentious biography of 'the father of the symphony' Joseph Haydn drawing on interviews with both musicians and historians. The third…
Performance (A Late Quartet) (2012): Dir. Yaron Zilberman
Feat. Catherine Keener, Christopher Walken, Philip Seymour Hoffman…; A celebrated string quartet in New York struggle to stay together through a combination of illness and relationship woes in this nuanced ensemble…
Classical Destinations (TV Series) (2011): Welsh singer Aled Jones fronts this latest addition to the 'Classical Destinations' canon. Dubbed the "ultimate travel guide to classical music", the…
Curse of the Gothic Symphony, The (2011): Dir. Randall Wood; A group of brave and committed musicians take on an 80 year curse in an attempt to stage one of the longest, largest and most technically difficult…
Mrs. Carey's Concert (2011): Dir. Bob Connolly, Sophie Raymond; Invigorating doco on the power of music. At a Sydney girl's school, Mrs Carey butts head with her obstinate students as they prepare for a…
James Rhodes: The Piano Man (2010): With childhood abuse, drug addiction and suicide attempts behind him, James Rhodes is not your typical concert pianist. But with his passion and…
Last Night of the Proms (2010): That very British institution, 'The Proms' at the Royal Albert Hall, is captured in all its pomp and circumstance in this rousing live recording of…
Mozart's Sister (2010): Dir. Rene Feret
Feat. Marie Feret, Marc Barbe, David Moreau…; Exuberant romp through pre–revolutionary France following the life of Mozart's talented older sister who was soon sidelined as her family's…
Wagner and Me (Stephen Fry Wagner & Me) (2010): Dir. Patrick McGrady
Feat. Stephen Fry; A passionate documentary in which Stephen Fry explores his love for the world's most controversial composer, Richard Wagner – a passion that…
Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky (Coco & Igor) (2009): Dir. Jan Kounen
Feat. Anna Mouglalis, Mads Mikkelsen; Fashion icon Coco Chanel and composer Igor Stravinsky share a passionate, illicit love affair in this lavish period romance, which more or less takes…
Genius Within: The Inner Life of Glenn Gould (2009): Dir. Peter Raymont, Michele Hozer; The definitive filmic account of the enigmatic Canadian–born pianist and cult figure that reveals a wealth of never–before–seen…
I, Don Giovanni (2009): Dir. Carlos Saura
Feat. Lorenzo Balducci, Lino Guanciale, Emilia Verginelli…; Veteran Spanish director Carlos Saura conducts this lavish, darkly–tinged story behind the making of Mozart's opera masterpiece, 'Don Giovanni'.
In Search of Beethoven (2009): Dir. Phil Grabsky; Dir. Grabsky's scrupulous follow–up to his IN SEARCH OF MOZART examines classical music's other pre–eminent composer, Beethoven, in…
Pianomania (2009): Dir. Robert Cibis, Lilian Franck; Something of an unofficial sequel to the Steinway documentary NOTE BY NOTE, this fascinating insight gives us a close–up look at the difficult…
Simone Young - To Hamburg From Downunder (2008): Dir. Ralf Pleger; Perceptive documentary following renowned Australian conductor and Sydney Opera House Director Simone Young on her return journey from Europe to…
Third Richard, The (2008): Dir. Danny Mulheron, Sarah Stretton; A labour of love for actor–director Danny Mulheron, this explores the life and music of his unheralded grandfather, Richard Fuchs, a gifted…
4 (Vivaldi - The Four Seasons) (2007): Dir. Tim Slade; In this remarkably unique and poetic documentary, a performance of each season of Vivaldi’s masterpiece is delegated to four prodigious violinists…
Glass: A Portrait Of Philip In Twelve Parts (2007): Dir. Scott Hicks
Feat. Philip Glass; Epic doco of seminal composer Glass covers his life, influences, and his working process. Filmed over 3 continents in 18 months, this is hugely…
Pavarotti Forever (2007): A post–humous compilation of opera arias, sacred songs and Neapolitan favorites from six of Luciano Pavarotti's landmark concerts (including…
Copying Beethoven (2006): Dir. Agnieszka Holland
Feat. Diane Kruger, Ralph Riach, Ed Harris…; Fictionalised account of the last year of Beethoven’s life which looks at the musical genius’ personal fall from grace and struggle for…
Four Minutes (Vier Minuten) (2006): Dir. Chris Kraus
Feat. Monika Bliebtreu, Hannah Herzsprung; Unrelentingly gritty German drama of redemption details the hostile relationship between an incarcerated piano player and her emotionally chilly…
In Search of Mozart (2006): Dir. Phil Grabsky; Thoughtful and well–orchestrated documentary about 18th century classical composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, which aims to not only put across…
Joan Sutherland - The Reluctant Prima Donna (2006): Dir. Steve Cole; Spotlight on Australian opera diva Joan ‘La Stupenda’ Sutherland, from her modest early years, through to international stardom via two…
Knowledge is the Beginning (incl. The Ramallah Concert) (2006): Dir. Paul Smaczny; Inspiring documentary about Daniel Baremboim's West–Eastern Divan Orchestra that illustrates how prejudices between young Arabs and Israelis…
Page Turner, The (2006): Dir. Denis Drecourt
Feat. Catherine Frot, Deborah Francois; A typically frosty, femme–centric French chamber–piece about a classical music prodigy whose career is sabotaged by a concert pianist,…
Salzburg Festival, The (2006): Dir. Tony Palmer; An epic and detailed look at the world's most revered classical music festival, which takes place annually in Mozart's birthplace, the Austrian town…
Vitus (2006): Dir. Fredi M. Murer
Feat. Julika Jenkins, Urs Jucker, Bruno Ganz…; Sweet–natured chronicle of a young prodigy whose parents demand success as a pianist. The problem of trying to foster a child’s talent but…
Five Days in September: The Rebirth of an Orchestra (2005): Dir. Barbara Willis Sweete; A supreme classical music doco, this intimate look behind the scenes of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra delves candidly into the artistic process of…
As it is in Heaven (Så som i himmelen) (2004): Dir. Kay Pollak
Feat. Michael Nyqvist; A feelgood arthouse hit about a renowned classical music conductor who rediscovers his roots in the far north of Sweden. Acquiring a rundown…
Dame Kiri and Friends - The Gala Concert (2004): A concert performed at the Aotea Centre, Auckland to celebrate the launch of the Kiri Te Kanawa Foundation. Dame Kiri sings with other luminaries…
Pavarotti: The Last Tenor (2004): Feat. Luciano Pavarotti; A quality BBC–commissioned documentary portrait that follows the great Italian tenor through a momentous period of his life as he says goodbye…
Rhythm Is It! (2004): Dir. Thomas Grube; The Berlin Philharmonic’s ambitious and dramatic undertaking – to school 250 children in a staging of Stravinsky's "Rite of Spring" – is…
Touch the Sound (2004): Dir. Thomas Riedelsheimer; Classical percussionist Evelyn Glennie is the subject of this inspiring, award–winning documentary. Profoundly deaf since childhood,…
Toward the Unknown Region - Malcolm Arnold (2004): Dir. Tony Palmer; An in–depth exploration and celebration of the life and music of Britain's foremost 20th century composer – Malcolm Arnold – who…
Callas Forever (2003): Dir. Franco Zeffirelli
Feat. Fanny Ardant, Jeremy Irons, Joan Plowright; Dir. Franco Zeffirelli pays glorious homage to his longtime friend and colleague, the late opera legend Maria Callas, and the result is…
Fonteyn and Nureyev (2002): Feat. Rudolph Nureyev, Margot Fonteyn; Considered the great dancing–partnership of our time, Rudolph Nureyev and Margot Fonteyn are here seen at their prime, in such ballets as Swan…
Pianist, The (2002): Dir. Roman Polanski
Feat. Adrien Brody, Frank Finlay; Boldly visualised, fact–based drama concerning the Jewish pianist Wladyslaw Szpilman, who evaded Poland’s Nazi authorities during WW2, living…
Together (He Ni Zaiyiqi) (2002): Dir. Chen Kaige
Feat. Tang Yun, Liu Peiqi, Chen Kaige; Touching story of a father and his 13–year–old son, a shy violin prodigy, who scrape up their meagre savings and set off from their…
Yehudi Menuhin - Classic Archive (2002): Number 6 in EMI's 'Classic Archive' series, here featuring footage of the great violinist Yehudi Menuhin. Menuhin plays four pieces in…
Great Composers - Volume 1 (Bach, Mozart) (2001): Dir. James Runcie, Francesca Kemp; Excellent BBC series gives a substantial insight into its selected classical composers, combining biographical narrative with musical–analysis…
Great Composers - Volume 2 (Beethoven, Wagner) (2001): Dir. Jill Marshall, Kriss Rusmanis; Excellent BBC series gives a substantial insight into its selected classical composers, combining biographical narrative with musical–analysis…
Great Composers - Volume 3 (Tchaikovsky, Puccini, Mahler) (2001): Dir. Simon Broughton, Chris Hunt, Kriss Rusmanis; Excellent BBC series gives a substantial insight into its selected classical composers, combining biographical narrative with musical–analysis…
Piano Teacher, The (2001): Dir. Michael Haneke
Feat. Isabelle Huppert, Annie Girardot, Benoit Magimel; Isabelle Huppert gives the bravest and possibly best performance of her career as a brittle, imbalanced music teacher in a drama that might prove too…
Song for Martin, A (2001): Dir. Bille August
Feat. Sven Wollter, Reine Brynolfsson; Touching drama of a composer and concertmaster who fall in love through classical music, only to battle the effects of Alzheimer's. Foreseeable…
Taking Sides (2001): Dir. Istvan Szabo
Feat. Harvey Keitel, Stellan Skarsgard, Moritz Bleibtreu; The ambiguities of Germany during the Nazi era are interrogated with skill in this taut examination of the case of famed classical conductor Dr…
Howard Goodall's Big Bangs (TV Series) (2000): Feat. Howard Goodall; Presented by affable Brit maestro, Howard Goodall (whose own notable works include the theme tunes to Blackadder and Mr. Bean), this enlightening,…
Enrico Caruso: Voice of the Century (1998): Biographical documentary exploring the life of the Italian operatic tenor, filmed in Naples and featuring Placido Domingo, Beverly Sills, and Luciano…
Hilary and Jackie (1998): Dir. Anand Tucker
Feat. Emily Watson, Rachel Griffiths; Musical biopic buoyed by a quite fascinating subject – prodigious English Cellist Jacqueline Du Pre – adapted from the controversial…
Red Violin, The (1998): Dir. Francois Girard
Feat. Samuel L. Jackson, Jason Flemyng, Greta Scacchi; The contemporary auction of a prized antique violin becomes another suspenseful, passionate chapter in its lifespan as we learn of its 300 year…
Richter, The Enigma (1998): Dir. Bruno Monsaingeon; Lengthy biography of the supremely expressive Russian pianist Sviatoslav Richter, who only emerged from behind the Iron Curtain in the late 1950s.…
Turandot Project, The (1998): Dir. Allan Miller
Feat. Zhang Yimou, Zubin Mehta; The glorious insanity of Italian opera defeats all obstacles in this amusing behind–the–scenes account of a gigantic international…
Art of Conducting - Volume 2, The (1997): Dir. Peter R Smith; Excellent study of six more conductors of the 20th century – Sergiu Celibidache, Wilhelm Furtwangler, Erich Kleiber, Evgeny Mravinsky, Charles…
Yo-Yo Ma - Inspired by Bach Vol. 1 (1997): Dir. Kevin McMahon, Francois Girard; Cellist Yo–Yo Ma’s celebrated musical exploration of Bach’s enigmatic solo cello suites, prompted six films, attempting to complement the…
Yo-Yo Ma - Inspired by Bach Vol. 2 (Falling Down Stairs / Sarabande) (1997): Dir. Barbara Willis Sweete, Atom Egoyan
Feat. Arsinee Khanjian, Don McKellar; Cellist Yo–Yo Ma’s celebrated musical exploration of Bach’s enigmatic solo cello suites, prompted six films, attempting to complement the…
Yo-Yo Ma - Inspired by Bach Vol. 3 (1997): Dir. Niv Fichman, Patricia Rozema; Cellist Yo–Yo Ma’s celebrated musical exploration of Bach’s enigmatic solo cello suites, prompted six films, attempting to complement the…
Leaving Home (TV Series) (Orchestral Music in the 20th Century) (1996): The famed conductor Sir Simon Rattle here presents an accessible guide to the challenging classical music traditions of the 20th…
Shine (1996): Dir. Scott Hicks
Feat. Geoffrey Rush, Noah Taylor; Geoffrey Rush's upset win of the Best Actor Oscar was the jewel in the crown of this little Oz movie's incredibly charmed life. A moving recital…
Transformation of the World Into Music (1996): Dir. Werner Herzog; Werner Herzog, indulging in a love of opera, turns his documentary eye on the Richard Wagner Festival, capturing the pulse of the annual event, and…
Farinelli (1995): Dir. Gerard Corbiau
Feat. Stefano Dionisi, Enrico Lo Verso, Elsa Zylberstein; Il Castrato – less a freak of nature than of anatomical subtraction. This flamboyant biopic freely interprets the illustrious musical and…
Gesualdo - Death for Five Voices (1995): Dir. Werner Herzog; A sharp, sometimes unflattering profile of 16th century composer Don Carol Gesualdo, with dir. Herzog dividing his time between the artist's sexual…
32 Short Films About Glenn Gould (1994): Dir. Francois Girard; Built out of 32 disparate fragments, this quasi–doco on the Canadian pianist is fittingly tailored to its difficult and elusive subject,…
Immortal Beloved (1994): Dir. Bernard Rose
Feat. Gary Oldman; Gary Oldman adds another complex role to one of the most impressive contemporary acting CVs. He brings dimension to a difficult, unlikable role as…
Verdi - La Traviata (1994): A 1994 staging of the Verdi opera with Georg Solti conducting the Orchestra and Chorus of the Royal Opera House, and Angela Gheorghiu, Frank Lopardo…
Art of Conducting - Volume 1, The (1993): Dir. Sue Knussen; Sixteen of the 20th century’s greatest conductors are studied in this top–notch, award–winning series, including: Bernstein,…
Porgy and Bess (1993): Dir. Trevor Nunn
Feat. Willard White, Cynthia Haymon; Acclaimed stage–director Nunn, brings the Gershwin brother’s greatest opera/musical to life. Recorded at Shepperton Studios in 1992.
Three Colours: Blue (1993): Dir. Krzysztof Kieslowski
Feat. Juliette Binoche, Benoit Regent, Emmanuelle Riva…; Immaculate, introspective meditation on grief, redemption and liberty, Kieslowski's masterpiece borders on the pretentious. This redefines ART…
A Heart in Winter (Un Coeur en Hiver) (1991): Dir. Claude Sautet
Feat. Emmanuelle Beart, Andre Dussollier; Impeccable romantic tragedy examines a love triangle between a virtuoso violinist, her violin–making boyfriend and his emotionally crippled…
In the Shadow of the Stars (1991): This winner of the Academy Award for Best Documentary film 1991 depicts the lives of various members of the chorus in the San Francisco Opera.
Impromptu (1990): Dir. James Lapine
Feat. Judy Davis, Hugh Grant, Mandy Patinkin…; Splendid frolic with Chopin, Liszt, Delacroix, George Sand and friends gathered at a French country villa. Hilarious and moving, Judy Davis leads a…
Nigel Kennedy - Vivaldi: The Four Seasons (1990): Nigel Kennedy and the English Chamber Orchestra play their signature versino of Vivaldi's 'The Four Seasons'.
Testimony (1989): Dir. Tony Palmer
Feat. Ben Kingsley; The life, artistry and anguish of Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich receives a vivid, stylistic treatment here, with Ben Kingsley in the central…
Music Teacher, The (1988): Dir. Gerard Corbiau
Feat. Jose Van Dam, Anne Roussel, Patrick Bauchau; Sterling voiced Jose Van Dam plays an opera star who retires to train an aspiring nymphette and her wayward peer. Like the superlative operatic…
Melba (TV Mini-series) (1987): Dir. Rodney Fisher
Feat. Linda Cropper, Tom Burlinson, Hugo Weaving; Biopic of famed Australian opera singer Dame Nellie Melba, whose professional veneer hid a tumultuous private life, her struggles to provide as a…
Wagner (1983): Dir. Tony Palmer
Feat. Richard Burton, Laurence Olivier, John Gielgud…; Epic tele–production with Richard Burton as the manic German composer. Includes the Tony Palmer documentaries "In From the Cold? A Portrait of…
Diva (1982): Dir. Jean-Jacques Beineix
Feat. Frederic Andrei, Wilhelmenia Wiggins Fernandez, Richard Bohringer…; Stylish romantic thriller in which an opera–intoxicated youth bootlegs a concert of an unrecorded opera star which leads to trouble with shady…
Once, at a Border - Tony Palmer's film about Stravinsky (1982): Dir. Tony Palmer; Another exceptional documentary from Tony Palmer, this time about Igor Stravinsky, the "most important and influential composer of the 20th century".…
Goldberg Variations - Glenn Gould (1981): Dir. Bruno Monsaingeon; Carefully prepared filming of Glenn Gould's second version of Bach's 'Goldberg Variations', pieced together over 5 years.
From Mao to Mozart (1980): Dir. Murray Lerner; Deserving winner of the Best Documentary Oscar follows violinist Isaac Stern on his concert and tutorial tour of China in 1979. A film as moving as…
Benjamin Britten: A Time There Was (1979): Dir. Tony Palmer; Revered British composer Benjamin Britten’s life and times is given the royal Tony Palmer treatment in this comprehensive, loving portrait of…
Mahler (1974): Dir. Ken Russell
Feat. Robert Powell, Lee Montague, Georgina Hale…; Ken Russell's biopic on the life of the Jewish composer. As one critic observed – 'Whether the title of the opus is Mahler, Strauss or Elgar,…
Death in Venice (1971): Dir. Luchino Visconti
Feat. Dirk Bogarde; Dirk Bogarde plays a gay composer whose unspoken obssesion with a young boy detains him in Venice during a cholera epidemic. This soft–focus,…
Music Lovers, The (1971): Dir. Ken Russell
Feat. Richard Chamberlain, Glenda Jackson; A wonderfully audacious film fantasia based on the life of Russian composer Tchaikovsky, the homosexual who married a nymphomaniac! Richard…
Romeo and Juliet (1966): Dir. Paul Czinner
Feat. Margot Fonteyn, Rudolph Nureyev; The famed Royal Ballet production of Romeo and Juliet. This historical performance stars Margot Fonteyn and Rudolf Nureyev as the quintessential…
Magnificent Rebel, The (1961): Dir. Georg Tressler
Feat. Karlheinz Bohm, Ivan Desny; Unambitious but competent biopic of Ludwig van Beethoven, with Bohm (himself a classical pianist) convincingly ruffled in the lead. Worth a look for…
Unfaithfully Yours (1948): Dir. Preston Sturges
Feat. Rex Harrison, Linda Darnell, Barbara Lawrence…; Rex Harrison plays an irascible, paranoid orchestra conductor who comes to suspect his devoted wife's infidelity. Anchored around a memorable…
Song to Remember, A (1945): Dir. Charles Vidor
Feat. Paul Muni, Merle Oberon, Cornel Wilde; Biopic on the life of Polish pianist and composer Frederic Chopin, taking a few liberties here and there to follow the child prodigy through his…
A Life to Remember - Frederic Chopin: 2 disc ode to the great classical pianist Chopin by internationally celebrated pianist and Chopin enthusiast–Alan Kogosowski, performing over…

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Subgenre Sampler