Biopics of Classical Composers
biographical movies about the lives of composers of classical music ... research started in 2007 ... work in progress ... any suggestions welcome
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- DirectorAlfred HitchcockStarsEdmund GwennEsmond KnightJessie MatthewsThe story of Johann Strauss the elder and younger.Johann Strauss I (German: Johann Baptist Strauß, Johann Strauss (Vater); also Johann Baptist Strauss, Johann Strauss, Sr., the Elder, the Father; March 14, 1804 – September 25, 1849) was an Austrian Romantic composer. Johann Strauss II (October 25, 1825 – June 3, 1899), also known as Johann Strauss, Jr., the Younger, the Son (German: Sohn), Johann Baptist Strauss, was an Austrian composer of light music, particularly dance music and operettas.
- DirectorAbel GanceStarsHarry BaurAnnie DucauxJany HoltLyrical biography of the classical composer, depicted as a romantical hero, an accursed artist.Ludwig van Beethoven (17 December 1770[1] – 26 March 1827) was a German composer.
- DirectorJulien DuvivierVictor FlemingJosef von SternbergStarsLuise RainerFernand GraveyMiliza KorjusIn 1845 Vienna, Johann Strauss II (Fernand Gravey) - 'Jonahi' to his friends - would rather write and perform waltzes than anything else, this at a time when a waltz is not considered proper society music. After he is fired from his clerical bank job because of his preoccupation with composing, he decides to follow his passion and form an orchestra. After some famed opera singers, including Carla Donner (Miliza Korjus), hear his music, they expose Johani's music to the masses, to royalty and to music publisher Julius Hofbauer (Hugh Herbert). As such, Johani becomes the toast of Vienna. With his new found musical fame, Johani's life, which includes his work in the European Revolutions, changes. He becomes torn for his love for his loving and faithful wife Poldi Vogelhuber (Luise Rainer) and his more emotionally passionate but somewhat destructive love for Carla Donner, who herself is involved with Count Anton Hohenfried (Lionel Atwill).Johann Strauss II (October 25, 1825 – June 3, 1899), also known as Johann Strauss, Jr., the Younger, the Son (German: Sohn), Johann Baptist Strauss, was an Austrian composer of light music, particularly dance music and operettas.
- DirectorReinhold SchünzelStarsAlan CurtisIlona MasseyBilly GilbertThe romantic story of Franz Schubert 's fight for recognition of his music. Fleeing Austria, he arouses passion strongly akin to mother love in a beautiful bucolic girl, who loves him to much to sacrifice genius on the altar of marriage.Franz Peter Schubert (31 January 1797 – 19 November 1828) was an Austrian composer.
- DirectorChristian-JaqueStarsRenée Saint-CyrLise DelamareJean-Louis BarraultBiographical romance about the great composer Hector Berlioz, someone whom the French, during their WWII occupation by the Nazis, could look back proudly on.Hector Berlioz (11 December 1803 – 8 March 1869) was a French Romantic composer, best known for his compositions Symphonie fantastique and Grande messe des morts (Requiem).
- DirectorNorman WalkerStarsWilfrid LawsonElizabeth AllanMalcolm KeenA lavish period drama produced in 1942 by Lord Rank's G.H.W. Productions Ltd.George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German, later British Baroque composer who spent the bulk of his career in London, becoming well known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, and organ concertos.
- DirectorCharles VidorStarsPaul MuniMerle OberonCornel WildeBiography of Frederic Chopin.Frédéric François Chopin (22 February or 1 March 1810 – 17 October 1849), born Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin, was a Polish composer and a virtuoso pianist of the Romantic era, who wrote primarily for the solo piano.
- DirectorBernard KnowlesStarsStewart GrangerPhyllis CalvertJean KentBiography of the famous--and notorious--Italian violinist Nicolo Paganini.Niccolò (or Nicolò) Paganini (27 October 1782 – 27 May 1840) was an Italian violinist, violist, guitarist, and composer. He was the most celebrated violin virtuoso of his time, and left his mark as one of the pillars of modern violin technique.
- DirectorClarence BrownStarsKatharine HepburnPaul HenreidRobert WalkerComposer Robert Schumann struggles to compose his symphonies while his loving wife Clara offers her support. Also helping the Schumanns is their lifelong friend, composer Johannes Brahms.Clara Schumann (née Clara Josephine Wieck; 13 September 1819 – 20 May 1896)
Robert Schumann (8 June 1810 – 29 July 1856)
Johannes Brahms (7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) - DirectorAleksander FordStarsCzeslaw WollejkoZbigniew LobodzinskiJózef NieweglowskiA story of the formative years in Chopin's life between 1825 and 1831, a time of social unrest throughout Europe, of rising nationalism, and of cries for reform. Chopin, an outstanding student in music, and inflamed with the revolutionary spirit in his native Poland, gives a number of concerts which are praised by the aristocracy. His fame growing, he sets out on tour and, while in Vienna, hears of the November uprising in Warsaw. He makes an attempt to return and join the fight but his carriage breaks down, and his is brought back ill. Warned by his doctor, he settles down to a quieter life in Paris, and continues his work.Frédéric François Chopin (22 February or 1 March 1810 – 17 October 1849), born Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin, was a Polish composer and a virtuoso pianist of the Romantic era, who wrote primarily for the solo piano.
- DirectorCarmine GalloneStarsGabriele FerzettiMärta TorénNadia GrayThis biographical story of Puccini (Gabriele Ferzetti) spans his creative life from early student days to the height of success, including his early flop Madame Butterfly and his incomplete Turandot. Along the way he encounters three women who change his life, including a sexy, beautiful singer (Nadia Gray) whom he drops for a small town girl (Märta Torén), and a servant girl who commits suicide over him.Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini (22 December 1858 – 29 November 1924) was an Italian composer whose operas are among the important operas played as standards.
- DirectorWilliam DieterleStarsYvonne De CarloCarlos ThompsonRita GamThe life and career of German composer Richard Wagner.Wilhelm Richard Wagner (22 May 1813 – 13 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is primarily known for his operas (or, as some of his later works were later known, "music dramas").
- DirectorErnst MarischkaStarsKarlheinz BöhmRudolf SchockMagda SchneiderThe young composer Franz Schubert tries to gain a foothold in Vienna.Franz Peter Schubert (31 January 1797 – 19 November 1828) was an Austrian composer.
- DirectorCharles VidorGeorge CukorStarsDirk BogardeCapucineGeneviève PageThe romantic story of Hungarian pianist Franz Liszt (Sir Dirk Bogarde), whose scandalous love affair forced him to abandon his adoring audiences.Franz Liszt (Hungarian Liszt Ferencz, in modern usage Liszt Ferenc (October 22, 1811 – July 31, 1886) was a prolific 19th-century Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor, music teacher, arranger, philanthropist and Franciscan tertiary.
- DirectorVladimir GorikkerStarsPyotr GlebovSergei LemeshevAleksandr PirogovFilm version of the Rimsky Korsakov opera from the Pushkin story.Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791)
- DirectorKen RussellStarsMax AdrianMaureen PryorChristopher GableTraces last 5 years of the life of Frederick Delius through the eyes of the young composer Eric FenbyFrederick Theodore Albert Delius, CH (29 January 1862 – 10 June 1934) was an English composer.
- DirectorDanièle HuilletJean-Marie StraubStarsGustav LeonhardtChristiane LangPaolo CarliniThe life and music of Johann Sebastian Bach as presented by his wife, Anna.Johann Sebastian Bach (31 March [O.S. 21 March] 1685 – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the Baroque period.
- DirectorKen RussellStarsRichard ChamberlainGlenda JacksonMax AdrianPiano teacher Peter Ilych Tchaikovsky struggles against his homosexuality by marrying, but unfortunately he chooses a nymphomaniac whom he cannot satisfy.Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (25 April/7 May 1840 – 25 October/6 November 1893), often anglicized as Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, was a Russian composer of the late-Romantic period, some of whose works are among the most popular music in the classical repertoire
- DirectorIgor TalankinStarsInnokentiy SmoktunovskiyAntonina ShuranovaKirill LavrovThe life and work of Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tschaikovsky is shown through his relationship with aristocratic art connoisseur Nadezhda Filaretovna von Meck.Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (25 April/7 May 1840 – 25 October/6 November 1893), often anglicized as Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, was a Russian composer of the late-Romantic period, some of whose works are among the most popular music in the classical repertoire
- DirectorAndrew L. StoneStarsFlorence HendersonToralv MaurstadChristina SchollinBased on the life of Norway's greatest composer Edvard Grieg, and filmed in Norway where he lived. The soundtrack is all Edvard Grieg's music with added lyrics.Edvard Hagerup Grieg (15 June 1843 – 4 September 1907) was a Norwegian composer and pianist.
- StarsStuart WilsonAnne StallybrassBarbara FerrisA seven-part mini-series produced in England about Vienna's Strauss family in the 19th-century. Members of the London Symphony Orchestra provided the music.Johann Strauss I Sr., the Elder, the Father; (March 14, 1804 – September 25, 1849)
Johann Strauss II (October 25, 1825 – June 3, 1899), also known as Johann Strauss, Jr., the Younger, the Son (German: Sohn)
Eduard Strauss (15 March 1835 – 28 December 1916)
Josef Strauss (20 August 1827 – 22 July 1870) - DirectorKen RussellStarsRobert PowellGeorgina HaleLee MontagueComposer Gustav Mahler's (Robert Powell) life, told in a series of flashbacks as he and his wife (Georgina Hale) discuss their failing marriage during a train journey.Gustav Mahler (7 July 1860 – 18 May 1911) was an Austrian late-Romantic composer, and one of the leading conductors of his generation.
- DirectorKen RussellStarsRoger DaltreySara KestelmanPaul NicholasComposer and pianist Franz Liszt (Roger Daltrey) attempts to overcome his hedonistic life-style while repeatedly being drawn back into it by the many women in his life and fellow composer Richard Wagner (Paul Nicholas).Franz Liszt (October 22, 1811 – July 31, 1886) was a prolific 19th-century Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor, music teacher, arranger, philanthropist and Franciscan tertiary.
- StarsRonald PickupCarla FracciGiampiero AlbertiniGiuseppe Verdi was born in 1813 and lived until 1901, his life spanning nearly a century of political turmoil and considerable personal turmoil. This 1982 biographical television miniseries, as seen on PBS's Great Performances, dramatizes the life of this classic Italian composer known for operas including La Traviata, Rigoletto, and Aida and his Requiem.Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer of operas.
- StarsRichard BurtonVanessa RedgraveMiguel Herz-KestranekA huge panorama of Richard Wagner's life and work, from before the 1848 revolution, through his exile in Switzerland, his rescue by the besotted King Ludwig II of Bavaria, to the final triumph at Bayreuth. Richard Wagner's radical musical and political ideas, his German nationalism, and even his anti-Semitism are set in the context of his life and times.Wilhelm Richard Wagner (22 May 1813 – 13 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is primarily known for his operas (or, as some of his later works were later known, "music dramas").
- DirectorPeter SchamoniStarsNastassja KinskiHerbert GrönemeyerRolf HoppeChronicles the illustrious 19th-century love affair between composer Robert Schumann and pianist Clara Wieck.Clara Schumann (née Clara Josephine Wieck; 13 September 1819 – 20 May 1896)
Robert Schumann (8 June 1810 – 29 July 1856)
Johannes Brahms (7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) - DirectorMilos FormanStarsF. Murray AbrahamTom HulceElizabeth BerridgeThe life, success and troubles of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, as told by Antonio Salieri, the contemporaneous composer who was deeply jealous of Mozart's talent and claimed to have murdered him.Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791)
- DirectorTony PalmerStarsRobert StephensVirginia McKennaJudith HowarthWhen Italian composer Giacomo Puccini is accused of sleeping with his maid, the scandal threatens to destroy his life and career. This biopic intercuts with director Tony Palmer's efforts to stage Puccini's last opera.Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini (22 December 1858 – 29 November 1924) was an Italian composer whose operas are among the important operas played as standards.
- DirectorAnna AmbroseStarsSimon CallowAlan DevlinJean RigbyThis film presents scenes from the life of German composer George Frideric Handel in the style of a baroque opera. After the success of his London debut, Handel settles in England. He abandons aristocratic and royal patronage and throws himself on the mercy of the marketplace, having to deal with money worries and fickle audiences as well as fluctuating health. After the public rejects a string of his operas and a stroke nearly fells him, Handel embarks on a high-risk gamble for his 1742 oratorio "Messiah": he premieres the new work far from fashionable London and with a leading singer whose career is tainted by scandal.George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (23 February 1685 (O.S.) [(N.S.) 5 March] – 14 April 1759)
- DirectorMiloslav LutherStarsArmin Mueller-StahlMax TidofWolfgang PreissIn the dead of night, a few hours after Mozart's death, the usual suspects (Konstanze, Salieri, van Swieten, etc.) are summoned to Mozart's room by Count Pergen, head of the secret police, who considered Mozart a potential revolutionary. Over the corpse, he interrogates them, trying to discover the true cause and significance of Mozart's demise.Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791)
- DirectorTony PalmerStarsTrevor HowardDave GriffithsChristopher BramwellAt death's door, George Frederic Handel reflects, rages, and narrates his life. From his womanizing youthful days, to his rise in fame as a composer, God Rot Tunbridge Wells! pulls no punches in this wild romp of a biopic.George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (23 February 1685 (O.S.) [(N.S.) 5 March] – 14 April 1759)
- StarsUdo SamelDaniel OlbrychskiWojciech PszoniakDepicts the final years of the life of 19th century Austrian composer Franz Schubert.Franz Peter Schubert (31 January 1797 – 19 November 1828) was an Austrian composer.
- DirectorPeter PatzakStarsOtto SanderTatja SeibtFabienne BabeRichard's Wagner and his wife Cosima.Wilhelm Richard Wagner (22 May 1813 – 13 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is primarily known for his operas (or, as some of his later works were later known, "music dramas").
- DirectorTony PalmerStarsBen KingsleySherry BainesMagdalen AsquithThe story of the great Soviet composer Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975) and his life and career during the rule of Stalin.Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich (25 September[1] 1906 – 9 August 1975) was a Soviet composer and pianist, and a prominent figure of 20th-century music.
- DirectorKlaus KinskiStarsKlaus KinskiDebora CaprioglioNikolai KinskiA biography of Italian violinist Niccolò Paganini.Niccolò (or Nicolò) Paganini (27 October 1782 – 27 May 1840) was an Italian violinist, violist, guitarist, and composer.
- DirectorJames LapineStarsJudy DavisHugh GrantMandy PatinkinIn 1830s France, pianist/composer Frédéric Chopin is pursued romantically by the determined, individualistic woman who uses the name George Sand.Frédéric François Chopin (22 February or 1 March 1810 – 17 October 1849),
- DirectorAndrzej ZulawskiStarsMarie-France PisierJanusz OlejniczakSophie Marceauthe film covers the last few days of fragile Chopin's professional life.Frédéric François Chopin (22 February or 1 March 1810 – 17 October 1849),
- DirectorAlain CorneauStarsGérard DepardieuJean-Pierre MarielleAnne BrochetThe story of Monsieur de Sainte Colombe, fierce and somber man, grand master of the viola da gamba and professor of Marin Marais, prestigious musician in the court of Louis XIV.Marin Marais (31 May 1656, Paris – 15 August 1728, Paris) was a French composer and viol player. He studied composition with Jean-Baptiste Lully, often conducting his operas, and with master of the bass viol Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe for six months. He was hired as a musician in 1676 to the royal court of Versailles.
- DirectorDavid DevineStarsNeil MunroIllya WoloshynFiona ReidA young boy learns to appreciate the music of his upstairs boarder, Ludwig Van Beethoven.Ludwig van Beethoven (17 December 1770[1] – 26 March 1827)
- DirectorDavid DevineStarsMaurice GodinBrittany MadgettCatherine BarrollA 12 year old Parisian girl takes piano lessons from composer Georges Bizet and becomes captivated by his story of the gypsy Carmen.Georges Bizet (25 October 1838 – 3 June 1875), registered at birth as Alexandre César Léopold Bizet, was a French composer of the romantic era. Best known for his operas in a career cut short by his early death, Bizet achieved few successes before his final work, Carmen, which has become one of the most popular and frequently performed works in the entire opera repertoire.
- DirectorBernard RoseStarsGary OldmanJeroen KrabbéIsabella RosselliniThe life and death of the legendary Ludwig van Beethoven. Besides all the work he is known for, the composer once wrote a famous love letter to a nameless beloved, and the movie tries to find out who this beloved was--not easy, as Beethoven has had many women in his life.Ludwig van Beethoven (17 December 1770[1] – 26 March 1827)
- DirectorTony PalmerStarsSimon CallowMichael BallRebecca FrontIn 1960s, a British playwright attempts to reconstruct the life of real life 17th century English composer Henry Purcell even though little is known about him. Purcell's life is reenacted and his music performed.Henry Purcell (c. 10 September 1659[Note 1] – 21 November 1695) was an English composer. Although incorporating Italian and French stylistic elements into his compositions, Purcell's legacy was a uniquely English form of Baroque music.
- DirectorJan Schmidt-GarreStarsJoachim BauerMarkus ErtelthalnerJoachim KaiserAnton Bruckner (4 September 1824 – 11 October 1896) was an Austrian composer known for his symphonies, masses, and motets.
- DirectorDavid DevineStarsJoseph Di MambroMelissa PirreraFrances BayNine-year old Reliana witnesses Rossini's efforts to salvage his seemingly cursed new opera, the Barber of Seville.Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer who wrote 39 operas as well as sacred music, chamber music, songs, and some instrumental and piano pieces.
- DirectorRichard MozerStarsGeordie JohnsonDrew JureckaPeter KeleghanA dashing Franz Liszt appears to have it all - talent, success, wealth and adoring fans. Yet when he takes on a young street musician as a violin student, his own fork is transformed.Franz Liszt (October 22, 1811 – July 31, 1886) was a prolific 19th-century Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor, music teacher, arranger, philanthropist and Franciscan tertiary.
- DirectorPeter WebberStarsSimon Russell BealeJason FlemyngEmilia FoxThe darker side of the composer is explored when he stays in the hospital for syphilis.Franz Peter Schubert ( 31 January 1797 – 19 November 1828) was an Austrian composer
- DirectorBruce BeresfordStarsSarah WynterVincent PerezJonathan PryceThis movie is a biopic of Alma Mahler, the wife of composer Gustav Mahler (as well as Walter Gropius and Franz Werfel), and the mistress of Oskar Kokoschka.Gustav Mahler (7 July 1860 – 18 May 1911) was an Austrian late-Romantic composer, and one of the leading conductors of his generation.
- DirectorJerzy AntczakStarsPiotr AdamczykDanuta StenkaAdam WoronowiczA tangled web of unruly passion lies at the center of this drama, chronicling the stormy affair between the great piano virtuoso Frédéric Chopin and the flamboyant feminist writer George Sand.Frédéric François Chopin (22 February or 1 March 1810 – 17 October 1849)
- DirectorJean-Louis GuillermouStarsChristian VadimElena LeninaFrédérique BelJ.S. BACH: THE MUSIC, THE LIFE, THE LEGEND is a dramatic look at the life of Johann Sebastian Bach, a man who dedicated his life to the service of music.Johann Sebastian Bach (31 March [O.S. 21 March] 1685 – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the Baroque period.
- DirectorSimon Cellan JonesStarsPeter HansonJack DavenportLeo BillOn June 9, 1804, Ludwig van Beethoven and his pupil Ries assemble a group of musicians to give the first performance of his Third Symphony, 'Bonaparte', to his patron Prince Lobkowitz and his guests, including hypercritical Count Dietrichstein, in Vienna. The piece provokes political arguments among players and audience as to whether Bonaparte is a tyrant, or, as Beethoven believes, a liberator. The composer is also rejected by his former love, the recently widowed Josephine von Deym, though the visiting elder statesman of composers Haydn pays him a strange compliment. Leaving the gathering, Beethoven confesses to Ries that he is losing his hearing and later he reads that Bonaparte has declared himself the French emperor. As a result he will lose all respect for Napoleon and will change the symphony's title to 'Eroica'.Ludwig van Beethoven (17 December 1770[1] – 26 March 1827) was a German composer.
- DirectorDominique de RivazStarsVadim GlownaJürgen VogelKaroline HerfurthComposer Johann Sebastian Bach is introduced to King Frederick II of Prussia in 1747. The aging composer and the young monarch clash and a battle of egos ensues.Johann Sebastian Bach (31 March [O.S. 21 March] 1685 – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the Baroque period.
- DirectorTimo KoivusaloStarsMartti SuosaloHeikki NousiainenMiina TurunenThe life story of Jean Sibelius, a Finnish composer.Jean Sibelius (born Johan Julius Christian Sibelius (8 December 1865 – 20 September 1957), was a Finnish composer and violinist of the late Romantic and early-modern periods. He is widely recognized as his country's greatest composer and, through his music, is often credited with having helped Finland to develop a national identity during its struggle for independence from Russia.
- DirectorAgnieszka HollandStarsEd HarrisDiane KrugerMatthew GoodeA fictionalized account of the last year of Beethoven's life.Ludwig van Beethoven (17 December 1770[1] – 26 March 1827) was a German composer.
- DirectorJean-Louis GuillermouStarsStefano DionisiMichel SerraultMichel GalabruThe life of Antonio Vivaldi, the great Italian composer and musician of the 17th century.Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (4 March 1678 – 28 July 1741) was an Italian Baroque composer, virtuoso violinist, teacher and cleric.
- DirectorMatthew WhitemanStarsCharles HazlewoodEd StoppardWilliam ManneringPyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (25 April/7 May 1840 – 25 October/6 November 1893), often anglicized as Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, was a Russian composer of the late-Romantic period, some of whose works are among the most popular music in the classical repertoire
- DirectorHelma Sanders-BrahmsStarsMartina GedeckPascal GreggoryMalik ZidiA look at the lives of 19th-century composers Clara and Robert Schumann.Clara Schumann (née Clara Josephine Wieck; 13 September 1819 – 20 May 1896)
Robert Schumann (8 June 1810 – 29 July 1856)
Johannes Brahms (7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) - DirectorCarlos SauraStarsTobias MorettiEulàlia RamonSergi RocaA drama based on the life of 18th century Italian lyricist Lorenzo da Ponte, who collaborated with Mozart on his "Don Giovanni" opera.Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791)
- DirectorJan KounenStarsAnna MouglalisMads MikkelsenElena MorozovaParis 1913. Coco Chanel is infatuated with the rich and handsome Boy Capel, but she is also compelled by her work. Igor Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring is about to be performed. The revolutionary dissonances of Igor's work parallel Coco's radical ideas. She wants to democratize women's fashion; he wants to redefine musical taste. Coco attends the scandalous first performance of The Rite in a chic white dress. The music and ballet are criticized as too modern, too foreign. Coco is moved but Igor is inconsolable. Paris 1920, Coco is newly wealthy and successful but grief-stricken after Boy's death in a car crash. Igor, following the Russian Revolution is now a penniless refugee living in exile in Paris. Coco is introduced to Igor by Diaghilev, impresario of the Ballets Russes. The attraction between them is instant and electric. Coco invites Igor along with his wife - now sick with consumption - together with his four children and a menagerie of birds to stay at her new villa, Bel Respiro, in Garches.Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (17 June [O.S. 5 June] 1882 – 6 April 1971) was a Russian (and later, a naturalized French and American) composer, pianist and conductor.
- DirectorFelix O. AdlonPercy AdlonStarsJohannes SilberschneiderBarbara RomanerKarl MarkovicsAlma Mahler's affair with the young architect Walter Gropius sets in motion a marital drama that forces her husband Gustav Mahler to seek advice from Sigmund Freud.Gustav Mahler (7 July 1860 – 18 May 1911) was an Austrian late-Romantic composer, and one of the leading conductors of his generation.
- Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (4 March 1678 – 28 July 1741) was an Italian Baroque composer, virtuoso violinist, teacher and cleric.
- DirectorLuc DionneStarsPatrick DroletMarc LabrècheMacha GrenonOn the keyboard, the young hands fly rapidly and the melody rises. For the child, nothing is easier; he hears the sounds in his head. These hands belong to 6 years old André Mathieu. He won his audiences and fired up concerts halls in London, New York, Paris and around the world. Adulated, hailed, praised, the child prodigy seemed to have everything to succeed. From the top of his vertiginous successes, to depths of torment, the life of the "Little Canadian Mozart" blends into his music. A romantic and passionate composer wishing for happiness, his story is nevertheless played on tragic notes.André Mathieu (18 February 1929 – 2 June 1968) was a Canadian pianist and composer.
- DirectorTopher CampbellStarsLeon Maurice JonesColin McFarlaneCole MejasOne of a series on black and Asian music and culture: a dramatized account of the life of George Bridgetower (1780-1860), a Polish-born violin virtuoso of mixed race who live much of his life in England.George Augustus Polgreen Bridgetower (11 October 1778–29 February 1860) was an Afro-Polish-born virtuoso violinist who also composed.
- DirectorLiana MarabiniStarsSteven CreeClemency Burton-HillJames JaggerThe life of Antonio Vivaldi, called "the red priest", his relationship with the world and the Church, his spiritual battles, his love for a woman.Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (4 March 1678 – 28 July 1741) was an Italian Baroque composer, virtuoso violinist, teacher and cleric.
- DirectorPavel LunginStarsLiya AkhedzhakovaOleg AndreevIgor ChernevichThe life story of composer-pianist Sergei Rachmaninoff.Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff ( 1 April 1873 – 28 March 1943),was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor.
"Lungin’s Lilacs examines the life of the renowned Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninoff. Jumping back and forth between Rachmaninoff’s later years as an émigré in the United States and his youth in pre-Revolutionary Russia, Lungin utilizes narrative techniques linked to the Hollywood biopic—most notably, detailed period-piece scenes of turn-of-the-century Russia and 1920s America that dramatize recognizable events from the composer’s life—to probe Rachmaninoff’s creative malaise in the U.S. as well as his earlier rise as a Romantic composer and pianist in Moscow and St. Petersburg. Throughout Lilacs, we encounter crucial events from Rachmaninoff’s biography, including the unsuccessful debut of his first symphony, his dabbling with psychotherapy under the guidance of renowned Russian physician Nikolai Dahl, his controversial and somewhat tumultuous marriage to his cousin Natalia, and his extensive touring of the U.S. in the 1920s, as arranged by Fred Steinway of the famous piano-producing family. But not so fast! Despite the familiar events from Rachmaninoff’s life and a soundtrack replete with Rachmaninoff’s music, Lungin concludesLilacs with a startling disclaimer: “The main hero and the events of the film constitute an artistic invention and have been used only for the creation of the film. They do not represent any particular person and do not reflect events from this person’s life.”
Reviewed by Tim Harte © 2009 in KinoKultura - DirectorCarmine GalloneStarsFosco GiachettiGaby MorlayGermana PaolieriA biography of the opera composer, from his early struggles and wife's death to his later political involvement, a new relationship, final rejuvenation and acclaim.Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi ( 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer of operas.
- DirectorRaffaello MatarazzoStarsPierre CressoyAnna Maria FerreroGaby AndréThe life and loves of great composer Giuseppe Verdi are played against a background of the great operas of the 19th Century. A tender love story of his successful and turbulent life, with more than 20 excerpts from his acclaimed operas.Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi ( 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer of operas.
- DirectorTim SouthamStarsNicholas PennellVeronica TennantRené BazinetAs the waters of the river Seine overflow their banks and surround a Parisian café, composer Erik Satie nurtures bittersweet memories of his one-time lover Suzanne Valadon.ERIK SATIE Éric Alfred Leslie Satie (F17 May 1866 – 1 July 1925), who signed his name Erik Satie after 1884, was a French composer and pianist.
- DirectorRené FéretStarsMarie FéretMarc BarbéDelphine ChuillotA reimagined account of the early life of Maria Anna 'Nannerl' Mozart, five years older than Wolfgang, and a musical prodigy in her own right.
- StarsPaul RhysCharles HazlewoodDavid BamberA dramatized documentary on the life and music of Ludwig van Beethoven.
- DirectorPaul MorrisseyStarsWolfgang ReichmannDietmar PrinzJane BirkinIn an effort to provide a secure future for his nephew Karl, Beethoven is fighting his sister-in-law over the custody for the boy. The mother doesn't consider the ageing and irate composer a suitable guardian for her son, and Karl himself shows not much interest in his uncle either.
- DirectorLuis César AmadoriStarsPedro López LagarSabina OlmosMarisa RegulesThe film is based on the life of Spanish composer and pianist Isaac Albéniz. In this story Albéniz is represented since he was a child prodigy, so talented that even comes to say that his presentations were a fraud. The film also shows the child as the victim of a tyrannical father, who tries to fulfill his own desires through his son. To escape the pressure of his father, Albéniz fled his home, first to South America and then to the United States. The musician's personal life was marked by tumultuous romances. Albéniz returned to Spain, but received a scholarship at the Brussels Conservatory awarded by King Alfonso XII, but once again the focus of his attention was on women, rather than on music. The musician achieved international fame through concerts that he financed himself, obtaining many awards.
- DirectorBasil DeanStarsStephen HaggardVictoria HopperJohn LoderThe story of Mozart and his wife Constance, set against a background of court intrigue and professional jealousy, with music conducted by Sir Thomas Beecham.
- DirectorBernard RoseStarsDavid GarrettJared HarrisJoely Richardson19th Century violinist and composer Niccolò Paganini incurs the wrath of his diabolical manager while preparing for his debut performance in London, and falling for the daughter of an English impresario.
- DirectorAdam CushmanStarsXander BerkeleySarah ClarkeMackenzie AstinAfter the Second World War, budding film composer Jerry Herst moves to Hollywood to study with infamous master teacher Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco.
- DirectorGiorgio CapitaniStarsAlessio BoniSophie von KesselAndrea GiordanaGiacomo Puccini, the son of a Tuscan organist, achieves world-wide recognition as a composer of operas and dies from throat cancer in the middle of an artistic crisis, at the age of just sixty-six.