EUROPE IMAGES INTERNATIONAL - M5

Synopsis

Every four years, one of the world's most prestigious piano competition takes place in Fort Worth,
near Dallas, an unusual city providing both a spectacular and intimate environment for music
making.
Pianists such as Radu Lupu and Christian Zacharias were awarded medals there. The inspiration
for the competition is Van Cliburn, the legendary pianist who won the first Tchaikovsky Competition
in Moscow in 1958. At the height of the cold war, the victory of an American was a huge political
event.
This film present large excerpts from the best concerts given by the competitors. In between
these performances, we find Van Cliburn at home giving valuable advice to two of the finalists and
telling the story of his incredible experience in Soviet Russia. The film starts and concludes with
scenes from the competition's award ceremony.