From Mao to Mozart: Isaac Stern in China

Isaac Stern was a violinist. He was invited to China in 1979. The invitation came from the Chinese government. The country was only then opening outwards. Stern stayed for three weeks. He gave concerts. He met officials and other musicians. Something else sits at the centre of the film. Stern taught children and young people. He went to the Central Conservatory of Music. He worked at the Shanghai Conservatory as well. What he talked about was expression rather than technique. The documentary records those lessons. Two musical traditions meet in them. The film won the Academy Award for best documentary. The eighty four minute film is an American production Murray Lerner finished in 1981.