Rare Hollywood video: Korngold plays Wagner
mainThe formative film-score composer was consultant in 1954 on a Wagner biopic, titled Magic Fire.
He got to cover the playing whenever Wagner sat down at the piano.
Unmissable stuff.
Click here to watch.
Korngold also makes a cameo appearance as the conductor Hans Richter.
Fascinating…. a virtuoso pianist. Alas, in reality Wagner could not play the piano in such way and had brilliant young pianists to play through his music when he wanted to hear some.
Enjoyed this movie some time ago, an American-German co-production from 1954, great director (William Dieterle), very good script (Bertita Harding et al), all roles, also the ‘small’ ones, played by top actors, and makes you wonder ‘where have all these talents gone’ – Alan Badel (convincing Wagner) and Carlos Thompson (perfect Liszt), Valentine Cortese and Peter Cushing great as Mathilde and Otto Wesendonck, Erik Schumann (Hans von Bulow), Charles Regnier as Giacomo Meyerbeer, and many other great actors.
And indeed, great music
By the way – Dear John: Wagner hardly plays the piano in this movie……..
Highly recommended!
I doubt that fella Wagner could compose a song as good as My lovely Horse!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzYzVMcgWhg
Wagner had a skin allergy contact dermatitis off the ivory he could not play a note at all, he had to have a bath in oatmeal daily! I also heard he may have had the Clap like Rossini! Father Jack told me.
What would old Wagner do in Frankfurt have you seen the news its being evacuated one of Bomber Harris’s 1.4 ton blockbusters UXBs, $70bn gold going too!
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-09-02/vault-containing-70-billion-german-gold-be-evacuated-frankfurt-defuses-massive-bomb
Fascinating ! I was not aware of that.
He was a superb pianist.
Here he is playing and humming/singing:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NXDuBKvQ8-U
or improvising:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZXBsDXfDCc
Not an expert on the workings of YouTube, but curious why comments are disabled for this video.
It’s the hacking of the Hanslick clan.
“Disabled” because the poster wishes not to spend time weeding out comments from flat-earthers, birthers, moon-landing hoaxers and many other inexpert experts who lurk on YouTube.
This video is actually from my Youtube channel. Comments are disabled Maria, because I got sick of deleting obscene and abusive spam. I share my rare recordings for the enjoyment of others, not to waste my time on such morons. Nevertheless, I do hope you enjoyed Korngold’s performance and will enjoy the other Korngoldian treasures I have uploaded there. Thank you.
Sitting next to you in Heliane in Freiburg recently didn’t exactly thrill me either.
Thank you for the reply. I don’t understand why it would attract obscene and abusive spam but it takes all sorts, particularly on the internet.
I was totally unaware of this film and have ordered the DVD, new, from “filmjuwelen-shop” on eBay.
First time I’ve ever heard the Flying Dutchman Overture on the piano. Korngold’s technique is indeed formidable.
Composers don’t play the piano like other pianists. There is something undefinable and special about their playing.
Beethoven could play alright, even stone deaf! Pure genius.
Why is his cello concert never played? Is it as good as his violin concerto?
It ought to be better known even though it’s short(ish). It hasn’t got that breadth of the Violin Concerto but they both derive from his film scores, that had to count in its favour.
here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLD8RHZbteM
and here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=psHq-iTAic4
Father Dougal Maguire has just informed me of this great film about Schubert set from 1823-1828, the first part is where he is the hospital being treated for the Pox, opened by Joseph II, run by the Franciscans, they knew how to treat the Pox alright, a good rub down with lard and mercury chloride.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrhpeEl8T7A
No subtitles at all but it’s easy enough to follow, my hygiene in old Vienna was just like Father Jack’s room in Parochial House on Craggy Island!
Then there’s Sviatoslav Richter portraying Liszt riffing on Glinka.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qeyGjh0PgU
But,at least at the end,there are definitely two pianists playing.It is a piano duo version.Maybe it´s him overdubbed.
This track accompanies a scene in the film where Liszt and Wagner play the piano together, reading through the score in Pleyel’s Salon. Korngold recorded both tracks (as you noted) and the two were combined on the soundtrack.