A representative from Plow Productions (a New York-based film production company) emailed to inform me of their most recent documentary, "Note by Note: The Making of Steinway L1037". It is about the actual making of a hand-crafted Steinway concert grand piano, which can take up to a year to manufacture. I've always been interested in this subject, but quite frankly I do not know much about the whole process of what it really takes to make a piano from start to finish. This film explores the many aspects of piano-making and what it means to create something so special and unique in today's climate of cheap mass-produced products. It includes viewpoints from various craftsmen, tuners, and artists such as Lang Lang and Harry Connick, Jr. Go here to read more about the film.
The movie will open in New York on November 7th (it will also play in other cities), and it looks like a DVD will be available soon. It has already won Best Documentary Feature at the 2007 Sarasota Film Festival, and has been officially selected at many other film festivals. Check out the trailer embedded below or watch it at Plow Production's website.
Did I mention how excited I am to be contacted by someone associated with a film production company? How very cool!
Friday, October 26, 2007
Note By Note: New Piano Documentary
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6 comments:
It will show in other cities, too!
Thanks, Patricia. I'll add that to the post.
Hi Josh,
I've been fortunate enough to see Note By Note, and it's fantastic! The director was wise enough to not accept any funding from Steinway so that it could be an independent and objective film, and the result is that it's not just one big ad for Steinway. They did a wonderful job of weaving the story of the piano itself in with intimate portraits of the workers building it, plus a short vignette of a family buying their first grand Steinway, plus really interesting interviews with famous pianists who really shed light on the inner lives of pianos.
In short - I loved every minute of it. Really high production values, lovely cinematography, and a compelling and fascinating story.
I'm not sure where it will be showing in theaters, but I understand that it will be available on DVD soon.
Cheers,
Trevor
Thanks for your viewpoint on the movie, Trevor. The trailer makes it seem quite promising; I hope that they show it here in Cincinnati. From your description, it appears to have lot to offer beyond just the nuts and bolts of building a piano.
This was a very good documentary. Of course, I've been tinkering around with repairing and restoring pianos for a few years, so I might be a bit biased. In addition to playing this fascinating instrument, I get a lot of enjoyment out of watching how it works.
Cheers!
Great readiing your blog post
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