Filmmaker Eric Schulz’s Karajan: The Second Life takes sharp look at the fabled maestro, pushing past the legend to get to the heart of this great man’s motivations. It was in the recording studio that his passion, dedication, and artistic vision were harnessed in service of an all-consuming quest for perfection in the form of an extended series of CD recordings of his core German Romantic repertoire. Schulz’s fascinating interviews with Karajan’s colleagues and contemporaries (including Anne-Sophie Mutter, Peter Alward, David Bell, Brigitte Fassbaender, and Eberhard Finke) shed particular light on the conductor’s personality. The filmmaker also includes never never-before-seen archival footage of the maestro in rehearsals and recording sessions and previously-unreleased privately-recorded phone conversations between Karajan and his recording producer Günter Hermanns. Almost thirty years after his passing, Karajan’s musical testament continues to fascinating and challenge musicians and music-lovers the world over.
