Yesterday afternoon I went to see the movie "Hilary and Jackie", showing at a cinema in Kendal Square, Cambridge, Massachusetts. It is about the life of the famous British cellist Jacqueline Du Pre.

Emily Watson did a marvellous job playing the part of Jacqueline Du Pre. Before filming the movie she studied the cello for a few weeks, and watched film of Jacqueline playing so that she could mimic the energetic bodily movements. She deserves an Oscar for this.

The movie describes Jacqueline's childhood, her relationship with her sister, winning musical competitions. Some of her concert tours to Russia and Germany must have been stressful experiences, going to a strange country alone at such a young age. Maybe this had an adverse effect on her.

The movie showed how the relationship with her sister became very strained after Hilary got married, and she wanted to share Hilary's husband.

Jacqueline met the pianist and conductor Daniel Barenboim at a party and married him. There was an amusing scene when she was playing a trio with Daniel and Pinkas Zukerman. They were playing some classical music, and then suddenly started playing some rock music by the "Kinks".

The music in the film was wonderful, especially the Schumann Fantasy Pieces for cello and piano, the Faure sonata and of course the Elgar Cello Concerto. Most of the filming was done in and around Liverpool. Jacqueline's debut scene at the Wigmore Hall in London was definitely not in the Wigmore Hall (I have been there many times).

There were some extremely sad moments in the film. It showed how she gradually became more and more ill from multiple sclerosis, and how this first affected her playing up to the point when she became bedridden and incapacitated. It was tragic moment when she heard a recording of herself playing the Elgar and was devastated.

I thought that this was a very moving and powerful film. There were many people in the theatre whe were weeping. I am sure that some things may have been exaggerated, but most of the story must have been true. As in the movie "Shine", there is some controversy about the film. Some of the web pages describe Daniel Barenboim's and Julian Lloyd Webber's reaction to it.

It was thought provoking. Some child prodigies do not have normal lives. They don't have normal childhoods where they go to school and meet other children. Some have tutors that come to teach them at home. They are exhibited before the public far too early before they have had a chance to develop. Some of them have parents who use their child for their own glory. There may be many other stories that have parallels to Helfgott and Du Pre that we never hear about.

It brought back some memories of Jacqueline Du Pre and Daniel Barenboim for me. I remember Jacqueline Du Pre very well when I lived in England. She was giving concerts when I was at high school, and studying music. I heard her many times in live performances and on the television (especially at the Royal Albert Hall Promenade Concerts) and radio. Her performance of the Elgar Cello Concerto was superb, and probably made her famous. I also remember seeing her in the audience at a piano recital in North London when Daniel Barenboim was playing. She was in a wheelchair then.

I remember Daniel Barenboim well also. He had a series of mastcrclasses every week on BBC TV, teaching Beethoven sonatas. He was a very dynamic teacher. I met his father, Porfessor Enrique Barenboim, at a piano masterclass at Stanmer House, Sussex University, where I was a student. This was during the Brighton Festival. A few days later, Daniel was conducting the Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra at the "Dome", and Artur Rubinstein was playing the Brahms 2nd concerto. I sat right behind the Barenboims.

Click on this link to find out about what Daniel Barenboim and cellist Julian Lloyd Webber thought about the film.

This movie is well worth seeing for any classical music lover!!

If you would like to read the book about Jacqueline Du Pre, it can be bought on line through Amazon.Com by clicking this link.

has CDs of the sound track of this film and recordings of Jacqueline Du Pre playing the Elgar Cello Concerto.

This movie (Visit the Shine Web Page) tells the true story of the life of Australian concert pianist David Helfgott. Helfgott has a very strict father who does not want his talented son to travel abroad to study the piano. Nevertheless, he travels to London and studies at the Royal College of Music. He becomes famous, but has a nervous breakdown and ends up in hospital. He eventually recovers, starts to play again and marries.

There is some excellent piano music in this film by Chopin, Schumann, Rachmaninoff, Liszt, and Beethoven. The central theme of the movie is the Rachmaninoff 3rd piano concerto which he studies at the Royal College of Music.

There is some good close up film of the hands of a pianist playing the Rachmaninoff concerto. There is also film of the Royal College of Music and the Royal Albert Hall (where the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts take place each summer). Some of the piano music is actually played by Helfgott himself.

It stars Sir John Gielgud, Lynn Redgrave, Geoffrey Rush Noah Talyor and Armin Stueller-Stahl. Actors play the parts of Isaac Stern and pianist Roger Woodward.

I thought that it was a very good movie, well worth seeing.

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