“All the Music in the World”
(USA)
Letterboxd (4/5), Imdb.com (8/10), TMDB.com (8/10), Imdb.com critics review
#BrentMarchant #AlltheMusicintheWorld #EmmanuelAx #documentary #pianist #JulliardSchoolofMusic #MeritSchoolofMusic #TanglewoodMusicCenter #CarnegieHall #YoYoMa #ItzhakPerlman #JohnWilliams #AndrisNelsons #LeonidasKavakos #Beethoven #Brahms #Mozart #Chopin #Schumann #Liszt #virtuoso #moviescore #NewYork #Chicago #Massachusetts #podcasthost #cellist #violinist #recordingartist #JosephLevy
Virtuosos in the arts are generally admired for their talents but are often perceived as single-minded, insulated, unapproachable icons outside their immediate spheres. Many believe them to be preoccupied, lost in their own little worlds and immersed in their crafts but fundamentally removed from the practical considerations of everyday life. Nonetheless, who prepares their meals? Do they have substantive relationships with family and friends? Are they susceptible to the same apprehensions and misgivings that the rest of us experience in our daily existence? Indeed, outsiders frequently fail to consider that these gifted individuals are also people at heart, with feelings, needs, reactions and concerns just like the rest of us. However, this new documentary from writer-director Joseph Levy sheds an intimate and insightful light on these questions in its profile of world-renowned pianist Emmanuel Ax. In addition to providing a comprehensive professional profile of its subject, this offering takes a close-up off-stage look at Ax’s life as an everyday individual, husband, friend, father and grandfather who just happens to make beautiful music for a living. The film showcases his thoughts on and performances of his favorite works by such giants as Beethoven, Brahms, Mozart, Chopin, Schumann and Liszt, as well as his collaborations with contemporary composers like Andris Nelsons and John Williams, perhaps best known for his movie scores but which represent only a portion of his compositional efforts. It also provides an up-close look at Ax’s passionate work as a recording artist and as an instructor/mentor at institutions like New York’s Julliard School of Music, Chicago’s Merit School of Music and the Tanglewood Music Center in Lenox, Massachusetts, not to mention his role as an accessible and apparently fun-loving podcast host. And it takes a lovingly endearing look at his close and enduring personal friendships with cellist Yo-Yo Ma and violinists Leonidas Kavakos and Itzhak Perlman. Through it all, though, this release never loses sight of the core calling that has characterized the life of a young man who literally grew up across the street from Carnegie Hall and has carried forward on that impassioned mission for decades ever since, with no apparent sign of slowing down or retiring. As someone who truly appreciates “All the Music in the World,” this excellent cinematic offering makes clear that this is not just a movie title but an embodiment of the sentiments held by the artist at the core of its narrative – and who has helped make our world a better and more enriched place for it.