Product Review

Maurizio Pollini has rarely talked about himself and his art, and never before has he done so on film. Here, in this extended interview with award-winning musician-filmmaker Bruno Monsaingeon, the legendary pianist recalls his career milestones beginning with the 1960 Warsaw Chopin Competition triumph. Containing archival footage, performance excerpts and intimate glimpses of the artist at work, this revealing profile explores Pollini s musical convictions, his adventurous repertoire and strong artistic associations (Abbado, Nono, Boulez etc.), and his deep political commitment.

There are many excellent reasons for making a film portrait of Maurizio Pollini: the greatness of the pianist, his affable nature and intelligence, the rich complexity of the topics addressed, not to mention the desire he himself expressed to submit to the exercise for the very first time with over 70 , he felt that it is time to allow himself to be filmed.

This filmed portrait of Maurizio Pollini focuses on the important milestones in his career: in addition to providing some biographical background, the film covers his musical experience, the people he has been in touch with (Luigi Nono, Claudio Abbado, Pierre Boulez, etc), his repertoire (from Bach to Verdi, Chopin, Schoenberg, Nono, Boulez, Stockhausen), and his political commitment.

Mainly based on an extended interview, the film includes archive footage and work sessions filmed with the artist and also with Artur Rubinstein and Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli.

The French musician-filmmaker Bruno Monsaingeon (Profile on IMDb) is well known for his documentaries about the pianists Glenn Gould (Glenn Gould Hereafter) und Swjatoslaw Richter (Richter The Enigma) who were infamous for their reclusiveness.

Peformed by Pollini:
Ludwig van Beethoven
Piano Concerto no. 3 in C minor, Op. 27
Piano Concerto no. 5 Op. 73, L Empereur
Sonata Op. 81a, Les adieux
Sonata Op. 90 in E minor

Robert Schumann
Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 54

Frédéric Chopin
Piano Concerto no. 2 in F minor, Op. 21
Impromptu no. 3 Op. 51 in G flat major
Prélude Op. 28 no. 16 in B flat minor
Prélude Op. 28 no. 8 in F sharp minor
Scherzo no. 3 Op. 39

Claude Debussy
Préludes, Deuxième Livre VI. Général Lavine - eccentric
Préludes, Deuxième Livre VII. Ce qu'a vu le vent d'ouest

Sergueï Prokofiev
Piano Concerto no. 3 in C major, Op. 26

Béla Bartók
Concerto pour piano no. 1, Sz. 83
Concerto pour piano no. 2, Sz. 95

Luigi Nono
Sofferte onde serene

Karlheinz Stockhausen
Klavierstück X

Pierre Boulez
Second Piano Sonata

Performed by Artur Rubinstein
Frédéric Chopin
Valse brillante, Op. 34 no. 1 in A flat major

Performed by Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli
Domenico Scarlatti
Sonata in C minor, K. 11