Young, Gifted and Classical: The Making of a Maestro

Simon Rattle: The Making of a Maestro

February 2015 •English

This documentary portrait, the first television biography of Rattle for 15 years, follows him through an extraordinary year of concerts, oratorios and opera with five different orchestras. We see his rigorous preparation and experience his irresistible dynamism in rehearsal and performance. We will watch him at work with the Berliner Philharmoniker, often described as the world’s leading orchestra. We will also see him with the Orchestra Of The Age Of Enlightenment and with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. We see him preparing a score for performance, share his experiences with the players and gain privileged insights into the day-to-day life of a conductor

Everybody's Cage

June 2015 •English

In “Everybody’s Cage”, German film artist Sandra Trostel turns John Cage and his approach to art into a tangible fascination, without giving in to explain just a single bit of it.

Hudba Svetozár Stračina

January 1982 •Slovak

Pickin & Screamin

July 2015 •English

When people think of Appalachian music they often think of the banjo and classify it as bluegrass, but the music in the region is more diverse than that. This film focuses on the different styles, from old-time to punk music, that is played and often overlooked here in the mountains.

Bach pour tous

June 2023 •French

A musical journey in the footsteps of conductor Michel Brun, an atypical character, an atheist, who nevertheless plays sacred music, and who devotes his life to Johann Sebastian Bach. With the musicians of the Ensemble Baroque de Toulouse.

The Strauss Fantasy

June 1954 •English

Johnny Green leads the MGM Symphony Orchestra in a medley of waltzes and other familiar pieces by three members of the Strauss family. Filmed in CinemaScope.

Swan Lake

February 2010 •English

Ballerina Polina Semionova performs the mythic parts of Odette and Odile (white swan and black swan) with her great partner Stanislav Jermakov. The Zurich Opera House Orchestra is conducted by Russian musical director Vladimir Fedoseyev acclaimed in this repertoire.

John Williams in Tokyo

May 2024 •Japanese

30 years after his last visit to Japan, John Williams has returned for a special concert – making his debut with the world-famous Saito Kinen Orchestra in renditions of his beloved film scores and reuniting with his longtime friend, world-renowned conductor Seiji Ozawa (1935-2024). Captured live on record at Suntory Hall last year, John Williams In Tokyo is now being be released by Deutsche Grammophon and follows his acclaimed concert albums, The Berlin Concert and John Williams in Vienna, which topped charts around the globe.

The Bolero

October 1973 •English

The first part of this Academy Award-winning short consists of a behind-the-scenes look at the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra as it prepares to perform Ravel's "Bolero." Individual musicians offer their thoughts as workers set up chairs and music stands; there are also comments by conductor Zubin Mehta and scenes of Mehta and the orchestra rehearsing. The rest of the film features a complete performance of "Bolero" with striking images of the orchestra as the music relentlessly approaches its climax.

Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphonie Nr. 9 - Leipzig, Paris, Mailand, Wien

May 2024 •French

The Winners

January 1999 •English

A searching, melancholy Dutch documentary about the lives of four classical musicians who won the prestigious Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels, a victory that did not prove a guaranteed ticket to the top of the classical music world.

What Difference Does It Make?

February 2014 •English

A documentary that explores the challenges that a life in music can bring.

The Trans List

December 2016 •English

A documentary that explores the range of experiences lived by transgender Americans.

Herbert von Karajan, Symphonie n°5 Beethoven

January 1967 •German

What Would Beethoven Do?

February 2016 •English

Classical music doesn’t exactly have a reputation for being hip. For too long it’s been seen as a stuffy genre for the high cultured elite. WHAT WOULD BEETHOVEN DO? follows a number of renegades, from composers flirting with modern mediums, to young musicians dedicated to changing the narrative, to a man who’s bringing turntablists and orchestras together. Notable artists such as, Bobby McFerrin, Benjamin Zander and Eric Whitacre add their voices to the debate about why classical music is still relevant today.

Hudební jaro

May 1952 •Czech

Beethoven's Nine: Ode to Humanity

April 2024 •English

Can a work of art remain relevant 200 years after its creation? Ludwig van Beethoven’s last completed symphony proves it’s possible.

Benjamin Britten and His Festival

November 1967 •English

A behind-the-scenes look at the Aldeburgh Festival and the opening by The Queen of the new concert hall at Snape.

The Italian Character: The Story of a Great Italian Orchestra

October 2013 •German

The Italian Character: a film within music and about music. The Italian character is the story of one of the most renowned orchestras in the world, enriched by archive material of the last thirty years about the great conductors who have been performing on the most famous rostrum in Rome.

Breaking Rachmaninoff

April 2023 •English

A humorous documentary about the search for a great composer who managed to overcome his depression by spelling his own name wrong.