It is crucial that the "Rach 3," as it is called
in the film, was not replaced by a simpler, more
manageable piece.
There are significant links between the
Russian composer (Rachmaninoff) and the Australian pianist: both were
child prodigies, both were internationally known in their
teens, both went into extended periods of depression and
unproductivity, and both were subjected to exotic treatments and therapies before
being restored to active creative life.
David Helfgott
At one with both genius and madness
"Rachmaninoff means the world, really... It's got emotion, humor, everything. Very
wistful. It's uplifting. Life is a symphony."
-- David
Shine star Geoffrey Rush describes Helfgott recitals as highly informal
affairs. The extroverted pianist hugs and kisses people in the front rows,
and his wife, Gillian, gently shepherds him toward the keyboard.
In other words, he's disarming. "When you first meet him, you're
confounded and overwhelmed. He shifts the ground," Rush says. "But
then you're able to catch the wit and insights of his speech."
"This is a story that has fascinated me for years," says Scott Hicks, who first read
about Helfgott more than ten years ago. "I felt it was something really important and that I
had to go and see him," explains Hicks. "I wasn't quite sure what to expect but when
David sat down and started to play, he quite simply transported the room. I was
utterly captivated.
David's fantastic
repertoire embraces all the massively popular and familiar romantic classics --
Rachmaninoff, Tchaikovsky, Chopin, Liszt -- all accessible to a vast audience, not
merely classical concert goers."
From insanity to reality, the David Helfgott story and Rachmaninoff No. 3 --
Shine, the movie
