Except for classical music aficionados (and not even all of them either), Coleridge-Taylor is barely remembered now, even though, last year, 2012, marked the centennial of his premature death at the age of 37 of pneumonia.
But his works at one time were performed everywhere, and his most famous work, the three part cantata for orchestra, chorus and solo tenor, Scenes from the Song of Hiawatha, which was based on the poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, was once more popular and performed more than Handel's oratorio The Messiah.
Howeverm filmmaker and director of the Portland, Maine based The Longfellow Chorus, Charles Kaufmann, has made a film to introduce the life and work of Coleridge-Taylor to more people, especially his time here in America.
The film makes its premiere next month in Portland before it goes on the film festival circuit, and hopefully television. But Kaufmann has just released what he calls the "unfofficial" trailer for the film which you can see below.
1 Comment
starry118 | February 5, 2013 1:24 AM
Interesting bit of history ... I'm interested in seeing this documentary when it's released.