Amadeus .. . Yankee Doodle Dandy .. . Swanee River .. . Rhapsody in Blue.
Even before movies had sound, filmmakers dramatized the lives of
composers. Movie biographies—or biopics—have depicted composers as
diverse as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, George M. Cohan, Stephen Foster, and
George Gershwin. In this enticing book, the first devoted entirely to
such films, John C. Tibbetts surveys different styles and periods from
the Hollywood of the 1920s and 1930s to the international cinema of
today, exploring the role that film biographies play in our
understanding of history and culture.
Tibbetts delves into such
questions as: How historically accurate are composer biopics? How and
why have inaccuracies and distortions been perpetrated? What strategies
have been used to represent visually the creative process? The book
examines the films in several contexts and considers their role in
commodifying and popularizing music. Extensive archival research, dozens
of illustrations, and numerous interviews make this an appealing book
for film and music enthusiasts at all levels.
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