Library Notes

May 2011

Betty Moore


I have been enchanted recently watching several RPL DVDs that feature the joy of music and performing, especially by amateurs.

“Young@Heart” follows a chorus by that name during their final weeks of rehearsal before a big concert. It also shows the group’s performance at a prison and the emotional visit afterwards with inmates. What is unexpected is that the average age of the chorus members is 81! Their music is also unexpected. Rather than singing nostalgic hits from their youth, their repertoire ranges from James Brown to Coldplay. They have toured Europe and sung for royalty. Viewers get to know performers personally, since the documentary looks at many of them in their homes as well as in rehearsal and performance.

“Mad Hot Ballroom” follows fifth graders from New York City’s public schools as they learn ballroom dancing and prepare for competition. Going beyond the tango, jazz and other dances, viewers visit students in their homes and learn their thoughts about dance, their hopes, and their families.

“A Musical Quartet” contains four great documentaries. One of them, “Small Wonders,” is about a woman who teaches school children to play the violin. We watch her transform them from beginning musicians to performers at Carnegie Hall.

“The Audition: A Once in a Lifetime Chance on the World’s Most Famous Stage” takes you behind the scenes at the Metropolitan Opera’s National Council Auditions. It shows the intense pressures young opera singers face as they struggle to succeed in one of the most difficult professions in the performing arts. The documentary looks at several regional winners competing for a chance to sing at the Met and to launch their professional careers.