Stefan Knüpfer and Lang Lang carefully consider the intricate sounds of a grand piano in PIANOMANIA
PIANOMANIA (Lilian Franck & Robert Cibis, 2010)
Film Society of Lincoln Center
Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center
144 West 65th St. between Broadway & Amsterdam Ave.
Opens Friday, November 4
www.firstrunfeatures.com
www.filmlinc.com
A surprisingly exciting race against time, Lilian Franck and Robert Cibis’s Pianomania offers an inside look at a fascinating aspect of the world of classical keyboardists. The award-winning documentary follows the triumphs and travails of Stefan Knüpfer, the chief technician for Steinway & Sons in Vienna whose primary responsibility is to make sure that the company’s grand pianos are in pristine condition for the great pianists who come to play at the Vienna Concert House. Early in the film, he is running around the dark underbelly of the venue, searching for just the right bench for Lang Lang, displaying his passion and his demand for perfection. The narrative focuses on Knüpfer’s desperate attempts to ensure that piano number 109 (and then 245) is exactly how Pierre-Laurent Aimard wants it as the piano master prepares for a series of Bach recordings. “The tone isn’t breathing,” explains Aimard, who continues to point out minute problems that only he and one of the technicians seem to be able to hear, but Knüpfer is determined to do everything in his power to satisfy Aimard, using whatever means necessary to get the job done. Knüpfer, who goes deep inside 245, the camera intricately following him as he examines nearly every one of the 88 hammers and 230 strings, rarely gets mad at the sometimes diva-like dictates of such pianists as Aimard, Alfred Brendel, and Rudolf Buchbinder, instead seeing each subtle nuance as a challenge, even if it means playfully chastising someone for removing a ball of dust from a piano, since every little detail influences the unique sound of the instrument. He does lighten up significantly when working with Igudesman and Joo, who use grand pianos (and not-so-grand violins) for their comedy act, including playing a very funny joke on them. Although Knüpfer says that he considers his clients “special” instead of “neurotic,” he does admit that he himself is neurotic as he lovingly explores the many secrets and hidden magic that exist within the distinct personalities of each piano he comes into contact with. You don’t have to love classical piano to love Pianomania. The film opens November 4 at Lincoln Center’s Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center, with codirector Cibis on hand for a Q&A following the 7:15 screening.