Chopin at the Opera
Directed by Jan Schmidt-Garre2010 60m G
To celebrate the occasion of his 200th birthday on March 1 2010, this film shows little known facets of Frédéric Chopin: the passionate opera fan, the admirer of the great female singers of his time, the advocate of the aesthetics of bel canto - the art of beautiful singing accompanied on the piano. For Chopin the opera represents the highest form of art, even though he never thought about writing for the stage himself. His contemporaries Bellini, Donizetti and Rossini meant more to him than Beethoven, Liszt or Schumann. At the castle of Chopin's beloved George Sand in Nohant, two singers, a pianist and an actress meet with the most knowledgeable contemporary experts on Chopin and bel canto. For a whole week in late autumn, they delve into Chopin's opera experiences: his admiration for the great bel canto singer Giuditta Pasta, his friendship with Vincenzo Bellini and his relationship with Maria Malibran, who, as pianist and composer, worked on Chopin's Mazurka's for voice and piano.
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