- Speaking in Strings
Infobox Film
name = Speaking in Strings
caption = Film poster
director =Paola di Florio
producer =Paola di Florio ,Lilibet Foster
writer =
starring =Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg
music =Karen Childs
distributor = Seventh Art Releasing
released = DVD:June 26 ,2001 Video:June 26 ,2001 Theatrical:October 29 ,1999
runtime = 73 mins.
country =United States
language = English
budget =
gross = $6,859
website =
amg_id =
imdb_id ="Speaking in Strings" is a 1999
documentary film directed byPaola di Florio . The film is based on the life of Italian-born violinistNadja Salerno-Sonnenberg , and it received a nomination for Best Feature Documentary Film at the72nd Academy Awards .Content
The film is based on the life and career of Italian-born classical violinist
Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg , and provides an insight into the style of the artist - who is noted by critics for putting her own emotions too much into her musical performances. The film started from Salerno-Sonnenberg's birth in Rome, and followed her story as she moved to United States at age 8 and was brought up by her mother inNew Jersey . She grew up with her brother who is also a musician. The film concentrates on the violinist's difficult childhood as she had to experience scorn and laughter by her friends when she played a recording of Brahms in front of the class. This is among the incidents that caused the artist to develop her overly emotional performing style and personality as she became a professional violinist and rose to stardom. In the documentary, Salerno-Sonnenberg talks about periods of depression in her life and her suicide attempt; she also discusses her views on how music is connected to human emotions.Production and release
The documentary was directed by Paola di Florio, a childhood friend of Salerno-Sonnenberg. [http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/1999/12/03/DD64578.DTL&type=movies Intense Portrait of High-Strung Violinist] from "
San Francisco Chronicle "] Salerno-Sonnenberg appeared as herself in the film. "Speaking in Strings" was co-produced by two companies, Asphalt Films and CounterPoint Films. [http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/176051/Speaking-in-Strings/details Speaking in Strings - Cast, Crew, Director and Awards - The New York Times ] ]"Speaking in strings" premiered at
Sundance Film Festival inPark City ,Utah in 1999. [ [http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/176051/Speaking-in-Strings/overview Film profile] fromNew York Times ] This same year, the documentary appeared in several film festivals, includingFlorida Film Festival ,Mill Valley Film Festival , Newport International Film Festival, andSeattle International Film Festival . [ [http://www.variety.com/profiles/Film/main/137776/Speaking+in+Strings.html?dataSet=1 speaking in strings review] from "Variety magazine "] The film was released theatrically on October 29, 1999. A DVD version was released on June 26, 2001. [http://www.metacritic.com/video/titles/speakinginstrings?q=Speaking%20in%20Strings Speaking in Strings (1999): Reviews ] ]Reception
Box office
The film earned $1,519 in its opening weekend in one theater, [http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=speakinginstrings.htm Speaking in strings box office] from "
Box Office Mojo "] and went on to gross $6,859 domestically within two weeks from release.Critical reaction
The documentary received mixed response from critics. It got a score of 56 out of 100 based on 10 reviews at
Metacritic , and 3.5 out of 4 stars atTV Guide . [ [http://www.tvguide.com/movies/speaking-strings/review/134311 Speaking In Strings Review | TVGuide.com ] ] In general, critics agreed on the point that the film lacked information on the private life of Salerno-Sonnenberg, particularly her romance relationship which was mentioned during the documentary. [ [http://www.nytimes.com/library/film/091799strings-film-review.html Film review] fromNew York Times ] Edward Guthmann of "San Francisco Chronicle " gave generally positive reviews, stating that the film "takes us inside Salerno-Sonnenberg's experience, challenging us to respect a woman so naturally intense that she can't help wearing out friends and colleagues, and alienating members of her audience."Meanwhile, "
San Francisco Examiner " 's critic Allan Ullrich criticised that, due to the musical excerpts used in the documentary, "the movie can't help looking like a prolonged promotional video." [http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/examiner/archive/1999/12/03/WEEKEND8925.dtl&type=movies "Speaking' doesn't say much] fromSan Francisco Examiner ] Critic Robert Hilferty of "Village Voice " called the documentary "a clumsy labor of love with unforgivable lapses", and noted that it "fails to show why Salerno-Sonnenberg's controversial interpretations are so original and valid." However, he added that it "sometimes rises to a compelling portrait of a neurotic personality". According to Hilferty, the documentary leaves an impression that music is the factor that "ruined" the life of the violinist. [ [http://www.villagevoice.com/film/9936,217383,8320,20.html String Me Up! String Me Down!] from "Village Voice "]Nominations and awards
Despite the mixed reviews by critics, "Speaking in strings" received a nomination for Best Feature Documentary at the
72nd Academy Awards . [ [http://www.filmindependent.org/dontgetscrewed/Epstein.php SEVENTH ART RELEASING profile] From filmindependent.org] The film won a Jury Award for Documentary Competition at the Newport International Film Festival [ [http://www.newportfilmfestival.com/2008/history/awards.asp Award Winners Through the Years] from NewportFilmFestival.com]References
External links
* [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0181835/ Speaking in strings] at
Internet Movie Database
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