Louta Nouneberg / Michel Hirvey - Silent Films of Pianists (1926 - 1957)
12 videos • 1,161 views • by caramelorb Louta Nouneberg (18?? – 19??) was a French pianist, teacher and author. Michel (Mischa) Hirvy (b Hirschowitz) (1900-1966) was a Polish-Canadian pianist, teacher and filmmaker. Between 1926 and 1928, Hirvy filmed several pianists performing Chopin Études. Footage of Wilhelm Backhaus, Robert Casadesus, Alfred Cortot, Vladimir Horowitz, Nicolai Orloff and Arthur Rubinstein has survived and is included as part of this playlist. These were silent films in real time and then in slow motion. They were probably filmed in Paris. Nouneberg’s 84-page book "Les secrets de la technique du piano révélés par le film" (Paris: Editions Max Eschig, 1933) addresses the études' technical demands, and is illustrated with photos of these pianists culled from Hirvy’s films. Between 1951 and 1957, Hirvy filmed additional pianists in Montreal and New York, and possibly another city(s). Footage of Franz Brow, Rudolf Firkušný, Rose Goldblatt, Glenn Gould, Michel Hirvy, Pierre Sancan, Rudolf Serkin and Rosalyn Tureck has survived, in addition to footage presumably of his colleagues and students. Hirvy’s original films, which entered public domain in Canada on 1 January 2017, are now housed at Library and Archives Canada. Pianist Alexander Borovsky (performing Chopin's Étude, Opus 25 No. 2) was also filmed between 1928 and 1933 as part of Nouneberg's and Hirvy's project, but that footage playing is not part of Hirvy's collection. Neither is footage of Wilhelm Backhaus playing Chopin's Étude, Opus 25 No. 8 which was also filmed. (We know this from published editions of these Études with photos taken from the film footage).