‘Montage: Great Composers and the Piano’ Documentary – L.A. Premiere & Q&A / Film Now Available Online (UPDATED)

UPDATE: Panel discussion featuring John Williams, Don Davis, Randy Newman, Bruce Broughton and Gloria Cheng now available on Vimeo.

Watch ‘Montage: Great Composers and the Piano’ at Vimeo On Demand.

Pianist Gloria Cheng’s album Montage: Great Film Composers and the Piano was the subject of a film premiere, a mini-concert and a panel discussion on October 15 at UCLA’s Schoenberg Hall.

Cheng’s album, released in February 2015, contains newly commissioned solo-piano pieces by renowned composers John Williams, Randy Newman, Bruce Broughton, Don Davis, Michael Giacchino and Alexandre Desplat, all of whom are better known for their award-winning skills as composers for visual media.

Cheng filmed the entire rehearsal and recording process, and producer Ben Proudfoot’s 27-minute distillation of highlights debuted Saturday night before an appreciative audience of about 500. The film is now making the festival rounds (and is available for rent on Vimeo).

Following the screening, Cheng performed excerpts from all six works, approximately 45 minutes of music, and received a standing ovation. After intermission, she was joined on stage by four of the composers: Williams, Newman, Broughton and Davis.

Referring to the new pieces, Williams said, “All this music reflects our feelings, characteristics, experiences, personalities and so on. It’s inescapable, really, like one’s handwriting or thumbprint.” – Full article at The Film Music Society

Watch ‘Montage: Great Composers and the Piano’ at Vimeo On Demand.

See also:
John Williams’ ‘Conversations’ Premiered (Program Notes, Reviews & Photos)
Williams on Stage at ‘Conversations’ Premiere (Video)