{"id":62374,"date":"2019-09-16T16:09:05","date_gmt":"2019-09-16T20:09:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/?p=62374"},"modified":"2019-09-16T16:17:41","modified_gmt":"2019-09-16T20:17:41","slug":"feature-the-audition-the-dark-side-of-classical-music-tiff-premiere","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2019\/09\/16\/feature-the-audition-the-dark-side-of-classical-music-tiff-premiere\/","title":{"rendered":"FEATURE | ‘The Audition’ Explores The Dark Side Of Classical Music In TIFF World Premiere"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ina Weisse’s film ‘The Audition’ takes audiences into a world where the discipline of classical music training takes a dark turn.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\"The
The Audition (Photo : Courtesy of Toronto International Film Festival)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I<\/span>t\u2019s true that the world of classical music is demanding, and sometimes even unforgiving. It\u2019s the perfect milieu for stories about complex, layered characters and intense desires filtered through exacting discipline \u2013 the world of German director Ina Weisse\u2019s new film, \u2018The Audition\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u2018The Audition (Das Vorspiel)\u2019 got its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival<\/a><\/span> in September 2019, with Ina Weisse and star Nina Hoss in town to walk the red carpet. \u2018The Audition\u2019 is Weisse\u2019s second feature, after 2008\u2019s \u2018Der Architekt \u2018 which premiered at the Berlinale. Weisse is also known as an award winning actress in her native Germany.<\/p>\n

Anna Bronsky is a violin teacher at a prestigious music school in Berlin, a woman who has compartmentalized her life to the point where she seems to be leading several separate lives. \u201cShe is the woman who fights with herself,\u201d Weisse notes. \u201cLayer upon layer, it grows.\u201d She is the seemingly loving mother to son Jonas (Serafin Mishiev), a violin student who is less than dedicated, to her chagrin, and wife to husband Philippe Bronsky, a French violin and string instrument maker. These are lives that revolve around classical music.<\/p>\n

\"Nina
Nina Hoss as Anna Bronsky in The Audition (Photo : Courtesy of the Toronto International Film Festival)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As we meet her, Anna defends the selection of a young pupil to study in preparation for the entrance exam to the school, against the opinions of her fellow teachers. Anna believes she can see the great potential in Alexander (Ilja Monti) and turns her rather severe notions of music practice and discipline on him. Her involvement with Alexander\u2019s studies becomes more and more intense, driving a wedge between Anna and her own family. An attractive cellist and his offers to return to playing and performing in his quintet offer her yet another direction that takes her away from husband and son. \u201cIt\u2019s a big point [for a musician] when you can\u2019t play,\u201d Weisse says of her motivation.<\/p>\n

According to Weisse, most of the cast does have classical music training, and the initial idea for the film came from a desire to convey that world. Weisse plays the violin herself, and co-writing partner Daphne Charizani plays the cello. Both, in fact, have played in orchestras. Hoss plays the piano; the regimented realm of music study and practice is familiar to all of them. Weisse found Ilja Monti while scouting high school music programs. The familiarity lends authenticity to the story \u2014 it rings true.<\/p>\n

The string quartet Anna practices with in the film is a real one \u2014 Berlin\u2019s Kuss Quartett<\/a><\/span>. \u201cThey are famous in Germany,\u201d Weisse says.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe rehearsal was really improvised,\u201d adds Hoss. She says that it made the dialogue for that scene entirely realistic.<\/p>\n

Anyone who has studied classical music will relate to Anna\u2019s devotion to perfection and unyielding standards, whether it\u2019s from a student\u2019s or teacher\u2019s point of view. As Weisse points out, that level of devotion to your art really is required in order to become a great classical musician. In \u2018The Audition\u2019, though, Anna\u2019s tunnel vision becomes part of a mid-life crisis that veers into obsession.<\/p>\n

\"Nina
Nina Hoss in ‘The Audition’ (Photo : Courtesy of the Toronto International Film Festival)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The camera often lingers on Anna\u2019s face, and Hoss ably conveys a range of emotions from corrosive dissatisfaction to fleeting happiness. Anna is<\/em> the story. \u201cThe structure of the film came from the character,\u201d Weisse says.<\/p>\n

Nina Hoss perfectly embodies Anna in all her inner, and largely unspoken, tension. It rarely bubbles to the surface, but can be felt in her movements and expression. She\u2019s riveting as the centre of the film. \u201cThe necessary things are between the lines,\u201d Hoss says. \u201cWhen I read the script, I knew that what will happen lies between the lines.\u201d<\/p>\n

In one aspect, as Weisse notes, the between-the-lines approach made it somewhat harder to get financing for the film, a Germany-France co-production. Potential backers often couldn\u2019t grasp the multi-layered plot, with its nod to issues of immigration and class that also play out against the backdrop of a posh music school in Berlin.<\/p>\n

Filming began with the scenes at the school, which meant that Hoss had to conceive of this character and all her inner demons and conflicts without the context of the rest of the story. \u201cIn the beginning, I thought, how do I tell this story in two weeks in the school? I was always torn with her.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Hoss, there is one scene that gets right to the heart of Anna’s character. Visually, it plays out simply as Anna puts on a recording of Yehudi Menuhin<\/a><\/span> playing. It\u2019s in her wordless reaction that we can see just how much the music consumes her. \u201cThis is her anchor point.\u201d<\/p>\n

The ending is subtle, yet shocking, and may leave audiences wondering exactly which direction it takes. \u201cI like the surprise at the ending,\u201d Hoss says.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t want to really explain the end,\u201d Weisse says. \u201cFor everybody, it\u2019s different.”<\/p>\n

#LUDWIGVAN<\/em><\/h3>\n

Want more updates on classical music and opera news and reviews? Follow us\u00a0<\/em>on Facebook<\/a><\/strong><\/span>, Instagram<\/a><\/strong><\/span> or Twitter<\/a><\/span><\/strong> for all the latest.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Nina Weisse’s film ‘The Audition’ takes audiences into a world where the discipline of classical music training takes a dark turn.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":64,"featured_media":62378,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[25164,4952,23,59],"tags":[31193,6459,3311],"yst_prominent_words":[31197,31194,6715,31190,13136,31196,19234,31189,19233,19229,6616,31178,31185,12857,31195,31180,30392,30391,30390,31181],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/09\/The-Audition-Feature.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9bakr-ge2","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62374"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/64"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=62374"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62374\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":62388,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62374\/revisions\/62388"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/62378"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=62374"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=62374"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=62374"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=62374"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}