Speaking in Strings
Encyclopedia
Speaking in Strings is a 1999
documentary film
directed by Paola di Florio. The film is based on the life of Italian-born violinist Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg
, and it received a nomination for Best Feature Documentary Film at the 72nd Academy Awards
.
, and provides an insight into the style of the artist - who is noted by critics for putting her own emotions too much into her musical performances. The film started from Salerno-Sonnenberg's birth in Rome, and followed her story as she moved to United States at age 8 and was brought up by her mother in New Jersey
. She grew up with her brother who is also a musician. The film concentrates on the violinist's difficult childhood as she had to experience scorn and laughter by her friends when she played a recording of Brahms in front of the class. This is among the incidents that caused the artist to develop her overly emotional performing style and personality as she became a professional violinist and rose to stardom. In the documentary, Salerno-Sonnenberg talks about periods of depression in her life and her suicide attempt; she also discusses her views on how music is connected to human emotions.
Speaking in strings premiered at Sundance Film Festival
in Park City
, Utah
in 1999. This same year, the documentary appeared in several film festivals, including Florida Film Festival
, Mill Valley Film Festival
, Newport International Film Festival, and Seattle International Film Festival
. The film was released theatrically on October 29, 1999. A DVD version was released on June 26, 2001.
, and 3.5 out of 4 stars at TV Guide
. In general, critics agreed on the point that the film lacked information on the private life of Salerno-Sonnenberg, particularly her romance relationship which was mentioned during the documentary. Edward Guthmann of San Francisco Chronicle
gave generally positive reviews, stating that the film "takes us inside Salerno-Sonnenberg's experience, challenging us to respect a woman so naturally intense that she can't help wearing out friends and colleagues, and alienating members of her audience."
Meanwhile, San Francisco Examiner 's critic Allan Ullrich criticised that, due to the musical excerpts used in the documentary, "the movie can't help looking like a prolonged promotional video." Critic Robert Hilferty
of Village Voice called the documentary "a clumsy labor of love with unforgivable lapses", and noted that it "fails to show why Salerno-Sonnenberg's controversial interpretations are so original and valid." However, he added that it "sometimes rises to a compelling portrait of a neurotic personality". According to Hilferty, the documentary leaves an impression that music is the factor that "ruined" the life of the violinist.
. The film won a Jury Award for Documentary Competition at the Newport International Film Festival and the same year, won a cable Ace Award.
1999 in film
The year 1999 in film involved several noteworthy events and has been called "The Year That Changed Movies". Several significant feature films, including Stanley Kubrick's final film Eyes Wide Shut, Pedro Almodóvar's first Oscar-winning film All About My Mother, science fiction The Matrix, Deep...
documentary film
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
directed by Paola di Florio. The film is based on the life of Italian-born violinist Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg
Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg
Nadja Rose Catherine Salerno-Sonnenberg is an Italian-born classical violinist, author, and teacher. She is a United States citizen.-Career:...
, and it received a nomination for Best Feature Documentary Film at the 72nd Academy Awards
72nd Academy Awards
The 72nd Academy Awards ceremony took place at Los Angeles' Shrine Auditorium, and was Billy Crystal's seventh time hosting the Awards. The ceremony attracted 46.53 million viewers, an audience 3.7% bigger than the previous ceremony.The Academy Awards ceremony was dominated by two films...
.
Content
The film is based on the life and career of Italian-born classical violinist Nadja Salerno-SonnenbergNadja Salerno-Sonnenberg
Nadja Rose Catherine Salerno-Sonnenberg is an Italian-born classical violinist, author, and teacher. She is a United States citizen.-Career:...
, and provides an insight into the style of the artist - who is noted by critics for putting her own emotions too much into her musical performances. The film started from Salerno-Sonnenberg's birth in Rome, and followed her story as she moved to United States at age 8 and was brought up by her mother in New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
. She grew up with her brother who is also a musician. The film concentrates on the violinist's difficult childhood as she had to experience scorn and laughter by her friends when she played a recording of Brahms in front of the class. This is among the incidents that caused the artist to develop her overly emotional performing style and personality as she became a professional violinist and rose to stardom. In the documentary, Salerno-Sonnenberg talks about periods of depression in her life and her suicide attempt; she also discusses her views on how music is connected to human emotions.
Production and release
The documentary was directed by Paola di Florio, a childhood friend of Salerno-Sonnenberg. Salerno-Sonnenberg appeared as herself in the film. Speaking in Strings was co-produced by two companies, Asphalt Films and CounterPoint Films.Speaking in strings premiered at Sundance Film Festival
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival is a film festival that takes place annually in Utah, in the United States. It is the largest independent cinema festival in the United States. Held in January in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, as well as at the Sundance Resort, the festival is a showcase for new...
in Park City
Park City, Utah
Park City is a town in Summit and Wasatch counties in the U.S. state of Utah. It is considered to be part of the Wasatch Back. The city is southeast of downtown Salt Lake City and from Salt Lake City's east edge of Sugar House along Interstate 80. The population was 7,558 at the 2010 census...
, Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
in 1999. This same year, the documentary appeared in several film festivals, including Florida Film Festival
Florida Film Festival
The Florida Film Festival, produced by Enzian Theater in Maitland, Florida, is an annual international film festival. Showcasing the best American independent and foreign films, the festival has become one of the most respected regional film events in the United States.-Overview:The Festival...
, Mill Valley Film Festival
Mill Valley Film Festival
The Mill Valley Film Festival is an annual, non-competitive film festival presented by the California Film Institute. Known as a filmmakers’ festival, the annual Mill Valley Film Festival offers a non-competitive environment for exhibiting independent and world cinema.Founded in 1978 by MVFF...
, Newport International Film Festival, and Seattle International Film Festival
Seattle International Film Festival
The Seattle International Film Festival , held annually in Seattle, Washington since 1976, is among the top film festivals in North America. Audiences have grown steadily; the 2006 festival had 160,000 attendees...
. The film was released theatrically on October 29, 1999. A DVD version was released on June 26, 2001.
Box office
The film earned $1,519 in its opening weekend in one theater, and went on to gross $6,859 domestically within two weeks from release.Critical reaction
The documentary received mixed response from critics. It got a score of 56 out of 100 based on 10 reviews at MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, and 3.5 out of 4 stars at TV Guide
TV Guide
TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
. In general, critics agreed on the point that the film lacked information on the private life of Salerno-Sonnenberg, particularly her romance relationship which was mentioned during the documentary. Edward Guthmann of San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
gave generally positive reviews, stating that the film "takes us inside Salerno-Sonnenberg's experience, challenging us to respect a woman so naturally intense that she can't help wearing out friends and colleagues, and alienating members of her audience."
Meanwhile, San Francisco Examiner 's critic Allan Ullrich criticised that, due to the musical excerpts used in the documentary, "the movie can't help looking like a prolonged promotional video." Critic Robert Hilferty
Robert Hilferty
Robert Hilferty was a New York based journalist, filmmaker and AIDS activist.-Career:Hilferty began his career in 1988 working as a production assistant for Robert Altman on The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial and Tanner '88.Although he was HIV-negative, Hilferty became an AIDS activist following...
of Village Voice called the documentary "a clumsy labor of love with unforgivable lapses", and noted that it "fails to show why Salerno-Sonnenberg's controversial interpretations are so original and valid." However, he added that it "sometimes rises to a compelling portrait of a neurotic personality". According to Hilferty, the documentary leaves an impression that music is the factor that "ruined" the life of the violinist.
Nominations and awards
Despite the mixed reviews by critics, Speaking in strings received a nomination for Best Feature Documentary at the 72nd Academy Awards72nd Academy Awards
The 72nd Academy Awards ceremony took place at Los Angeles' Shrine Auditorium, and was Billy Crystal's seventh time hosting the Awards. The ceremony attracted 46.53 million viewers, an audience 3.7% bigger than the previous ceremony.The Academy Awards ceremony was dominated by two films...
. The film won a Jury Award for Documentary Competition at the Newport International Film Festival and the same year, won a cable Ace Award.
External links
- Speaking in strings at Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...