Xaver Varnus - the greatest organ recital ever DVD 2002 / Directed by Olivier Levignacq / Albinoni - Adagio, Beethoven - Egmont Ouverture, Ravel - Bolero / A Seven-thousand-strong Audience at the Budapest Synagogue

UPC 5999880542012

REGION 2 PAL DVD 

Audio: Stereo 2.0

Total runtime:  minutes

Condition of DVD is USED - LIKE NEW !!!

English Summary:

Xaver Varnus is to Hungary roughly what Horowitz was to Russia: a famous exile, recognized in streets, crowded by requests for autographs in restaurants, or even in the swimming pools. Bus drivers brake when they see him walking on the streets of Budapest and pick him up between stops. But Varnus is neither a sports hero nor a rock star: he is a Canadian citizen who is also Hungary's most acclaimed living classical musician, and an institution in his native land. According to public opinion polls and news it is nearly impossible to get tickets to his concerts. The Varnus Fan Club comprises ten of thousands of admirers, who, during his tours, follow the virtuoso from one city to the next.

In 1981 Varnus left Hungary to study with the formidable Pierre Cochereau, the late organist of Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris. He was making his North American debut on the 5" of May, 1989 to a three-thousand-strong audience the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception Basilica in Washington, D.C. He played on virtually important organ in the world, including those in Bach’s Thomaskirche in Leipzig, and Saint-Eustache in Paris, Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow, as well as the largest existing organ In the world in Philadelphia’s Wanamaker Grand Court. In October 2005, he played his concert to a sold-out house in the 4.000-seat Canterbury Cathedral in England. In 2006, to celebrate the 25" anniversary of his concert debut, he played a sold-out concert on the legendary Cavaillé-Coll organ in the Church of Saint-Sulpice in Paris. Saint-Sulpice is also one of the locations featured Dan Brown's novel The Da Vinci Code. In 2006, he played the inaugural concert of the Palace of Arts in Budapest, one of'the largest concert halls of Europe. Perhaps the most daring concert Xaver Varnus ever played was at the Budapest Great Synagogue, in 2002. Four hours before the concert even standing places could hardly be found in the church, and 7,200 people were sitting and standing to listen to the legendary improvisor’s fiendish virtuosity. One of the greatest European musical sensations of 2009 was the joint concert by the superb French jazz pianist Jacques Loussier and Xaver Varnus who played to an absolutely packed house at the Palace of Arts. Mr. Varnus expanded upon a practice he had begun years earlier of speaking to the audience from the stage, discussing the music and bringing a new dimension to his concerts. Xaver Varnus is credited with bringing the music of Bach to young people with an innovative and exciting style, although he often drew adverse criticism from some of his colleagues in the organ world and from those music critics who found his approach too flamboyant. His televised concert and lecture series started in 1992 at the Hungarian State Television, followed
by the extraordinary Young People’s Organ Concerts in 2002, that extended over six seasons.

Hungarian Summary:

Már órákkal korábban jöttek az emberek. Aztán kinyilt a templomajtó, a szerencséseknek jutott ülőhely, a többiek álltak. S még mindig jöttek. Amikor már állóhely is alig volt, jött még egy férfi. Udvariasan utat kért magának. Az egyik hölgy arcán döbbenet, amikor meglátta, hogy kinek az útját állta el, a férfi pedig kedvesen visszamosolygott. Majd a hölgy továbbengedte. Nem volt feltűnő bevonulás, reflektorfény, nem voltak szárallűrök. Csak bejött, leült az orgonához és játszott Varnus Xaver.

Nem a tévéből megismert fenegyerek, a világhírű orgonista, a showman, hanem egy szerény, szinte félénk fiatalember állt előttünk. A műveket pedig úgy tolmácsolta, hogy azt éreztük: valóban közöttünk vannak a zene nagyjai, s a végén talán ők maguk is megtapsolják az orgonaművészt. A sztárt. . §
Aki a művész arcát figyelte a koncert alatt, legalább három különböző Varnust láthatott. Az érett felnőttet, a szabadelvű ifjút, de még a naív kisgyermeket is. Átélte és átélette velünk a hangokat. Talán nem túlzok, de számomra ő a Földön élő ritka zsenik egyike. Ajándék volt számunkra egy zse- k
nivel tölteni ezt a csodálatos estét.

Contributors / Közreműködnek:

The Kuna Family

Percussion

János Falussy

"Tavaszi szél.." Sung by Andrea Bauer

Assistant Organist

Dániel Somogyi-Tóth

Additional Percussion

Lajos Kuna

Music Editor - Debra Jackobs

Aquincum Archive Recording Engineer - Zoltán Osváth

First Camera Operator - Zsolt László

Post Production Coordinator - Gergely Lukács

Post Production Supervisor - János Geng

Post PRoduction Editor - Endre Bognár

Associate Film Editor - Ákos Bara

Produced by Dezső Matyi

Directed by Olivier Levignacq