MMM | Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli plays Ravel

Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli is still the embodiment of Maurice Ravel's Piano Concerto in G major.

To this day, the name Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli is still closely associated with Maurice Ravel's Piano Concerto in G major. Michelangeli's articulation of the trill chains, for example, creates the illusion that one can glide from one note to the next on the keyboard as if on a string instrument, which is unparalleled.

At the same time, Michelangeli is a great mystery: he was notorious for his numerous refusals. The smallest discrepancies on the instrument, a slight change in the room climate from rehearsal to concert, were enough to cause a performance to fall through.

His reputation as one of the greatest in his profession is undisputed. Pianist legend Krystian Zimerman remembers his artistic exchange with Michelangeli. As a magician of acoustics, he is a declared source of inspiration for Pierre-Laurent Aimard. Serge Celebidachi, the son of Sergiu Celibidache, provides insights into the special artistic friendship between the two perfectionists. While Marina Baranova searches for Michelangeli's grand piano in Bavaria, Cord Garben, Michelangeli's producer, recalls the not-always-easy collaboration. Jazz musician Stefano Bollani, an admirer of Michelangeli, shows how Ravel was inspired by jazz.

English series title Magic Moments of Music
Duration 43 min / 52 min
Director Dag Freyer, Philipp Quiring
Producer Holger Preuße
Co-Producer Christopher Janssen
Production Company ZDF/ARTE, sounding images