SHINE will go down in the history books as one of this decade's greatest films, a captivating account of the life of Australian pianist, David Helfgott, who triumphed against mental illness to return to the stage and resume status as a concert pianist.
The film has relaunched the career of the real Helfgott whose last tour in 1997 bitterly divided the musical establishment.
The public appetite however, is huge. Friday night's recital was a sell-out and they stood in the aisles and hung from the balconies to watch him. The publicity racket is booming, selling hundreds of programmes at an astonishing #6 each along with countless CDs and posters. The scene could be likened to a
rock concert.
This second tour is worldwide, but Helfgott cannot be described as a world-class pianist.
While Glen Gould was known to hum along to his Bach, Helfgott shouts, mutters, stamps his feet and even blows raspberries in accompaniment to Liszt, Grieg, Ravel, Beethoven, and of course, Rachmaninov.
There is nothing refined about his playing, littered with inaccuracies and demonstrating glaringly obvious lapses in concentration, yet he does convey his own passion for the music.
Interestingly, there were a huge number of young people in the audience, doubtless drawn in by the film, for whom this may have been their first piano recital.
If they'd like to hear a genuine account of Beethoven's Appasionata Sonata they'd be well advised to await forthcoming Scottish dates by Thibaudet, Pires, and Brendel.
Now, there are three world-class pianists.
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