Samuel Barber: Absolute Beauty

Samuel Barber: Absolute Beauty (2017)

March 23rd, 20172h 10min

Music, History, Documentary
100%

Overview

Known for his mournful "Adagio for Strings," Samuel Barber was never quite fashionable. This acclaimed film is a probing exploration of his music and melancholia. Performance, oral history, musicology, and biography combine to explore the life and music of one of America’s greatest composers. Features Thomas Hampson, Leonard Slatkin, Marin Alsop and many more of the world's leading experts on Barber's music, with tributes from composers Leonard Bernstein, Aaron Copland, Virgil Thomson and William Schuman. The film was broadcast on PBS, and screened at nine film festivals internationally, with three best-of awards. It was named a Recording of the Year 2017 by MusicWeb International.


Make sure to check your pop-up blocker!!

Trailer

Similar Movies

The Beat That My Heart Skipped

The Beat That My Heart Skipped


Released on: 2005-03-16
Music, Drama, Crime

A ruthless real estate agent discovers a passion for piano and auditions with help from a young virt...

Leonard Bernstein: Reflections

Leonard Bernstein: Reflections


Released on: 1978-10-13
Documentary, Music

Leonard Bernstein discusses his Boston childhood, his musical growth at Harvard and the Curtis Insti...

Villa-Lobos: A Life of Passion

Villa-Lobos: A Life of Passion


Released on: 2000-04-21
Drama, History

The film tells the story of an intuitive, adventurous man who loved his country and being Brazilian....

Four Minutes

Four Minutes


Released on: 2006-06-23
Drama, Music

Jenny is young. Her life is over. She killed someone. And she would do it again. When an 80-year-old...

André Rieu - Romance

André Rieu - Romance


Released on: 2007-01-01
Music

01. The Godfather Waltz (N. Rota) 02. Romance Anonyme (Anonyme) 03. Lagune Waltz (J. Strauss) 04....

Chopin, A Sonata in Paris

Chopin, A Sonata in Paris


Released on: 2025-10-10
Drama, History, Music

He is the talk of the town, the most romantic figure of decadent Parisian nights. When his lungs sta...

What Difference Does It Make?

What Difference Does It Make?


Released on: 2014-02-17
Documentary, Music

A documentary that explores the challenges that a life in music can bring.

Die Deutschmeister

Die Deutschmeister


Released on: 1955-08-11
Romance, Comedy, Music

Young Stanzi who is visiting Vienna helps a young corporal and musician to become famous for his mar...

The Unanswered Question I : Musical Phonology

The Unanswered Question I : Musical Phonology


Released on: 1976-01-11
Documentary, Music

This series comprised six lectures on music, which cumulatively took the title of a work by Charles ...

Toscanini: The Television Concerts, Vol. 9: Beethoven: Symphony No. 5/Respighi: The Pines of Rome

Toscanini: The Television Concerts, Vol. 9: Beethoven: Symphony No. 5/Respighi: The Pines of Rome


Released on: 1952-03-22
Music

The historic Toscanini television concerts with the NBC Symphony Orchestra. Broadcast #9 was of a co...

Aida - Arena di Verona

Aida - Arena di Verona


Released on: 2013-11-05
Drama, Music

The grand scale and magnificent acoustics of the Roman arena in Verona are ideally suited to the pag...

Song of My Heart

Song of My Heart


Released on: 1948-01-31
Drama, Music, Romance

The portrait of Russian composer Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky focuses on his failed love affair.

Herbert von Karajan: Maestro for the Screen

Herbert von Karajan: Maestro for the Screen


Released on: 2008-04-07
Documentary

Documentary on conductor Herbert van Karajan, focusing on his early adoption of audio and video reco...

Offenbach: Barbe-Bleue

Offenbach: Barbe-Bleue


Released on: 2019-01-01
Music, Comedy

Toscanini: The Television Concerts, Vol. 8: Franck, Sibelius, Debussy and Rossini

Toscanini: The Television Concerts, Vol. 8: Franck, Sibelius, Debussy and Rossini


Released on: 1952-03-15
Music

The historic Toscanini television concerts with the NBC Symphony Orchestra. Broadcast #8 was of a co...

Allegro non troppo

Allegro non troppo


Released on: 1976-03-12
Fantasy, Animation, Drama, Comedy, Music

The film is a parody of Disney's Fantasia, though possibly more of a challenge to Fantasia than paro...

Score: A Film Music Documentary

Score: A Film Music Documentary


Released on: 2017-03-16
Music, Documentary

Music is an integral part of most films, adding emotion and nuance while often remaining invisible t...

August Rush

August Rush


Released on: 2007-11-21
Family, Drama, Music

Lyla and Louis, a singer and a musician, fall in love, but are soon compelled to separate. Lyla is f...

Divertimento

Divertimento


Released on: 2023-01-25
Drama, History, Music

Zahia Ziouani, 17, dreams of becoming a conductor, while her twin sister Fettouma hopes to be a prof...