Handel's Last Chance
Set in 1742, and featuring music from Handel's "The Messiah," "The Royal Fireworks Music" and "Water Music," this historical drama introduces us to James (Tod Fennell), a Dublin street kid, who is enrolled by his desperate mother (Seana McKenna) in an upper-crust school. James feels like an outsider, but things begin to improve when he is selected as a principal choirboy for Handel's oratorio, "The Messiah." In the course of events, James is befriended by the renowned composer, who suffers from a temporary lack of self-esteem. When the boy is falsely accused of wrongdoing, Handel (Leon Pownall) comes to his rescue. "The Messiah's" premiere brings Handel glory and restores him to his rightful place in the musical world.
Handel, orginally German, later became a British baroque composer who spent the bulk of his career in London, becoming well known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, and organ concertos.
The film won the "Oppenheim Gold Seal Award," and "Best Movie" from the Gemini Awards.
Running Time
49 mins
Year
1996
Kanopy ID
1320783
Filmmakers
Features
Languages
Subjects
Show More
Related videos
Bach's Fight for Freedom
Set in 1717, and featuring music from the well-loved "Brandenburg Concertos" and other selections, including "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring," this historical drama tells a story about the positive power of ambition. It focuses on a temperamental, demanding composer and a free-thinking servant boy, both of whom feel like prisoners…
Bizet's Dream
Set in 1875, and featuring music from "Carmen Suites," "L'Arlesienne" and "The Pearl Divers," this historical drama tells the compelling and bittersweet story of the friendship shared by a young Parisian girl named Michelle Marin, and the great composer Georges Bizet, her piano teacher.
Michelle (Brittany Madgett) is a talented…
Liszt's Rhapsody
This is a story of Franz Liszt, prolific 19th-century Hungarian composer, virtuoso pianist, conductor, music teacher, arranger, organist, philanthropist, author, nationalist and a Franciscan tertiary. He gained renown in Europe during the early nineteenth century for his prodigious virtuosic skill as a pianist. Set in 1846, and featuring music from…
Rossini's Ghost
This is a story of Gioachino Rossini (Joseph DiMambro), Italian composer noted for his operas, particularly his comic operas, of which "The Barber of Seville," and "Cinderella" are among the best known. Of his later, larger-scale dramatic operas, the most widely heard is "William Tell." This film features music from…
Strauss: The King of 3/4 Time
This is a film about Johann Strauss Jr., an Austrian composer of light music, particularly dance music and operettas. He composed over 500 waltzes, polkas, quadrilles, and other types of dance music, as well as several operettas and a ballet. In his lifetime, he was known as "The Waltz King",…
Musical Memory – A Concert - Performing Brazil’s Lost Classical Works
A stunning classical music performance by the Symphony Orchestra of Sao Paulo in Brazil.
When one thinks of classical music, Brazil may not be the first country that comes to mind. However, with millions of immigrants from Germany, Italy and other countries, Brazil has had a long-lasting and vibrant culture…
Heinrich Schütz - Father of the German Music
Heinrich Schutz was presumably the first internationally renowned German composer. In the 40 years he spent as court ,,Kapellmeister" in Dresden, he left a strong impression on musical life in Europe. His works in their clear beauty still seem up-to-date, almost modern. However, only his vocal works - a small…
A Composer's Notes - Philip Glass and the Making of an Opera
Philip Glass provides an intimate look at the inspiration, development, and production of his third opera, Akhnaten. Two productions of the opera premiere almost simultaneously, at the Stuttgart Opera and the Houston Grand Opera. Their dramatically different interpretations of Akhnaten make for a fascinating contrast in American and European theatrical…
A Midsummer Night's Dream
The film shows a recording of A Midsummer Night's Dream in the famous Balanchine choreography, which made the ballet such a popular staple with companies all over the world. Danced by three star-dancers in the main roles and a company that ranks among the best in the world, it guarantees…
Composed - Overcoming Performance Anxiety
Many of us are terrified of public speaking, let alone performing! COMPOSED explores the many ways we experience and face performance anxiety, through the experiences of professional musicians. Faced with the judgment of peers, the audience, and themselves, these musicians spend years trying to understand and overcome their anxiety. Through…
Musical Outsiders: An American Legacy
American composers have long struggled against the momentum of the Western European classical tradition and the prestige it has held in America's cultural life. "I did not want to have any stricture at all, I wanted to be completely free." So spoke Harry Partch, describing not only his own path,…
Borodin Quartet
A unique master class and concert of the worldwide famous Borodin Quartet playing Beethoven and Shostakovich for the first time ever.
This playlist includes a concert of the Borodin Quartet and the master class of Quartet leader, maestro Berlinsky.
