The life story of Xenakis (1922-2001) is that of a genius who triumphed over adversity to become, not only a leading composer, but also an architect of renown. His music is rooted in a sub-soil of mathematics, architecture, science and the drama of his personal history. Filmed on the Greek island where he grew up and in his Paris studio, Xenakis is seen talking about his life and his music, which, not only speaks for itself in specially-recorded performances, but is linked to the other sources of his creativity by an inventive use of images.
Alfred Schnittke – Words Return to Music
“Schnittke (1934-98) is now established as one of Russia’s most important twentieth-century composers. This programme features the first major television interview he gave in Moscow for broadcast in the West, when he and his colleagues were able to talk freely in the wake of Gorbachev’s reforms. The film reflects the “unreal reality” he describes by using specially-shot black and white sequences and original performance extracts to create an impressionistic tapestry of biography, music and ideas.
Works featured include Violin Sonata No. 2, Symphony No. 1, Prayer of a Young Man, Three Scenes, Epilogue from Peer Gynt and the Faust Cantata.”