Joachim Raff and Late Spring

[André Ribeiro]

Hello everyone, greetings from Denmark.

Have you ever heard of a Japanese film called 'Late Spring' from 1949? I think you should, because not only is it my all-time favorite movie, it also has music by Joachim Raff in it.

The film is directed by the great Japanese director Yasujiro Ozu, and it's a simple story about an old man who wants his young daughter to marry. It is tender and heart-warming and quite a masterpiece. You can find it on YouTube.



It's funny because, at the beginning of the movie the old father, who is a professor, is talking with his young assistant about the composer Franz Liszt. As we know Joachim Raff had once worked as an assistant to Liszt. Then later in the movie we see the young assistant at a concert where he is listening to the music by - Raff. Is this a coincidence? Well, probably, but it's so much fun to imagine it isn't. Especially in a movie as meticulously made as this one. Bye

[Mark Thomas]

Thanks, André. Looks like I'll have to crank up YouTube. How fascinating!