Emanuel Ax
Emanuel Ax Documentary Set to Premiere in July
Tanglewood Partners with Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center and DOC NYC for Co-World Premiere Screening of All the Music in the World, a Documentary Film About Piano Virtuoso Emanuel Ax
Sunday, July 19, 7 p.m. at the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center
Talkback with Ax and film director Joseph Levy to follow screening
Tickets available at Mahaiwe.org
Tanglewood, the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, and DOC NYC proudly present the co-world premiere of All the Music in the World, a documentary film celebrating one of the world’s greatest pianists, Emanuel Ax. Director Joseph Levy follows Ax, a celebrated virtuoso still contending with stage fright, as he embarks on his 50th year of performing while wrestling with the idea of stepping away from the spotlight. The screening of the feature-length (83 minutes) film takes place on Sunday, July 19 at 7 p.m. at the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center in downtown Great Barrington, followed by a talkback with Ax and Levy.
The co-world premiere of All the Music in the World will additionally be presented by Tanglewood, the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, and DOC NYC at the DOC NYC film festival in New York City at a to-be-determined date in November 2026.
Made over a three-year period from 2023 to 2026, All the Music in the World is a portrait of an artist who has spent five decades at the pinnacle of classical music, offering an intimate look at the life of a virtuoso. Helping to tell that story are Ax’s longtime friends and collaborators, including Yo-Yo Ma, John Williams, Itzhak Perlman, Leonidas Kavakos, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Alisa Weilerstein, Rafael Payare, and Boston Symphony Orchestra Music Director Andris Nelsons.
One major thread of the film follows Ax’s preparation for the world premiere of John Williams’ Piano Concerto with Nelsons and the BSO in the summer of 2025. The film captures his first encounter with the score, his preparation for the performance, and the concerto’s July 26 premiere at Tanglewood, which served as the final shoot of production.
When not touring, Ax divides his time between New York City and West Stockbridge and has been a longtime friend of the Berkshires and Tanglewood, having made his debut at the venue in 1978 and performed there on over 100 occasions since. This summer, he appears as a guest for the weekly TLI Talks and Walks series moderated by BSO Vice President of Artistic Planning Anthony Fogg (Thurs., July 2, 1 p.m.), performs Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 25, K.503 with the BSO and Andris Nelsons (Fri., July 11, 8 p.m.), and offers two seminars on Mozart concerti for Tanglewood Music Center Piano Fellows (Wed., July 15, 1:30 p.m. and Thurs., July 16, 4 p.m.). Ax’s relationship with the Mahaiwe also spans many years. A longtime friend of the late Lola Jaffe, founding President and Chair of the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, he performed at a gala benefit in January 2010 marking the naming of the theater’s stage in her honor. A decade later, he recorded a video performance and special tribute for Ms. Jaffe, who was honored at a virtual gala during the pandemic.