Till the Last Note
Feature | Netherlands | 60 Minutes | Dutch, English, French & German

TILL THE LAST NOTE is a deeply moving film exploring the later stages of life and career for four internationally renowned opera singers: Charlotte Margiono, Sandrine Piau, Doris Soffel, and the late Roberta Alexander. Margiono has appeared in opera houses all over the world and is famous for her interpretation of the “Four Last Songs” by Richard Strauss. Piau is a French soprano and is particularly renowned in Baroque music although also excels in Romantic and modernist art songs. She has the versatility to perform works from Vivaldi, Handel, Mozart to Schumann and Debussy, Soffel is a German mezzo-soprano with an international career, singing in works by Gioachino Rossini, Gaetano Donizetti, and Vincenzo Bellini. In 1994, she performed at the Nobel Prize Award ceremony. Alexander was an American operatic soprano celebrated for her performances of Mozart characters like Elettra, Fiordiligi, and Countess Almaviva and was a leading soprano at the Metropolitan Opera from 1983 to 1991. The film delves into what happens when these seasoned sopranos and mezzos must navigate the aging of their voices and bodies while confronting the notoriously high-pressure, perfectionist standards of the opera world. It highlights how they shift from the pursuit of flawless perfection toward embracing their natural, lived experiences as an artistic strength. Director: Marlou van den Berge Theater A

World Premiere
Naumburg at 100: A Legacy of Greatness
Short | United States | 27 Minutes | English

For 100 years, the Walter W. Naumburg Foundation has been a quiet force behind the world’s great classical musicians. Founded in New York City, the Foundation’s storied competition has launched extraordinary young artists onto the global stage. This film captures the thrill of discovery, the intensity of competition, and the enduring legacy of a foundation that continues to shape the sound of classical music worldwide. Flutist Carol Wincenc, who serves on the faculty of our local Stony Brook University, and a Naumburg competition winner, is featured in the film along with the Emerson String Quartet which also has strong ties to Stony Brook University’s Music Dept. Other notables in the film include acclaimed Grammy-winning soprano Julia Bullock; Academy Award and Pulitzer Prize Winning composer John Corigliano; one of the finest living violinists, Leonidas Kavakos; celebrated concert pianist Sir Stephen Hough and many more. Director: Catherine Tambini.

After the screening: A live conversation with Director Catherine Tambini