Stravinsky

1966 0h 49m EN

🙌

7.8

BANGER

★7.8TMDB · 4

Documentary

Synopsis

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This documentary is an informal portrait of the great modern composer Igor Stravinsky. Proudly American, though still very much an Old World figure with a long and alert memory for people and events in music, literature and art, Stravinsky is depicted here conducting the CBC Symphony Orchestra in a recording of his Symphony of Psalms.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Igor Stravinsky
Himself
Julian Bream
Himself
Donald Brittain
Narrator

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Roman Kroitor
Writers: Donald Brittain
Languages: English, French, Russian
Countries: Canada

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Tight 49-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

60 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 3 languages: English, French, Russian.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Roman Kroitor, shot by Wolf Koenig. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Wolf Koenig shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Igor Stravinsky and Julian Bream and Donald Brittain carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0224176 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Roman Kroitor directs. Wolf Koenig behind the camera. Wolf Koenig cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Canada. Dialogue in English, French, Russian.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Tight 49-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.
260 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Dialogue crosses 3 languages: English, French, Russian.
4Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
5Directed by Roman Kroitor, shot by Wolf Koenig. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Editor Wolf Koenig shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Igor Stravinsky and Julian Bream and Donald Brittain carry the top of the cast.
8IMDB entry: tt0224176 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 4 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Wolf Koenig
Editing: Wolf Koenig
Runtime: 49 min · 0h 49m
Status: Released
Original language: EN
IMDB: Stravinsky (1966)

Also by

Roman Kroitor

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2024-02-20
★ 7/10
There's a lovely few minutes at the start of this documentary that features Julian Bream playing on the lute. Not an instrument I've heard often but it was clear this artist's skill captivated Igor Stravinsky as he sat in a theatre stall and watched. This gives us an early indication as to just how profound this man's interest in music and it's instruments was. For the next fifty minutes we follow him as he prepares the Canadian CBC Symphony Orchestra to make a live recording of his three hour-plus "Symphony of Psalms". Leading the orchestra himself, he doesn't rehearse as such - he intends to play the whole thing through commenting and recapping as required, to ensure that everyone is on the same page by the conclusion. This run-through is interspersed with some contributor's comment and underpinned by a narration and an interview that illustrates that this now proud American citizen is also a man who has a distinguished European past too. His contacts book would have been a thing to marvel at - everyone from Tchaikovsky and Diaghilev to Prokoviev were his luncheon partners. He even got arrested with Picasso for relieving himself against a wall in Madrid! His conversation is engaging and lively - though he is no pushover, and clearly knows (and gets) what he wants. As fly on the wall films go, this is less intrusive than many - we are shown the door on one or two occasions and I found that added a bit of realism to this interesting portrait of a man who spanned two empires - one with a crown and one without, and he seems to have kept his feet on the ground too.

Production companies