The Piano Movie

The Piano Movie
Movies often use music to set the mood or communicate a certain message to the audience that would not be communicated in any other way. The combination of music and visual art brings the desired entertainment and important lesson to the people. Certain movies are created to display the message in a song in a functional way that is relatable to the audience. A director of a movie can use the entire song and place different segments to various scenes of the movie. Musical movies, especially movies whose focus is on music and specific musical instruments such as the piano teach the society the importance of music. The piano, for instance, is one of the movies that has inspired non-musical people in a positive way as they watch the passion that Ada, the main character, has towards her piano. Love being one of the main themes in the movie has been displayed so well by the use of the piano thus encouraging non-pianists to love and support the art.
The piano is a movie based on a mute pianist and her daughter. The two move to New Zealand for an arranged marriage but ending up losing everything including the piano. Ada, played by Holly Hunter is so in love with her piano that she chooses to trade all she has just t acquire the musical instrument. The beginning of the movie gives the audience the idea that the musical instrument is so important to the pianists. To Ada, the piano is the tool that she uses to achieve the unspoken needs in her life. The movie features Holly Hunter, Sam Neil, Kerry walker and Harvey Keitel.

The movie was produced in 1993 under the directorship of Jane Campion. The main theme of the movie is love; love between people and the love that Ada the main character has for her piano.
The use of the piano is evident throughout the movie. The pianist uses various techniques to handle the instrument that making the movie quite interesting for the audience. Other characters in the movie fall in love with her art thus making the audience interested in the piano and the pianist. The piano is displayed as an important segment of the pianist’s life and the pianist is displayed as a committed person who would give anything to attain her love for playing the instrument. At a later stage in the movie, she is willing to entertain the gardener who falls in love with her in order to regain the missing keys in the piano. Moreover, when the pianist discovers that the instrument was sold, she is disgusted at the idea that an untrained person is handling her machine.
The scenes in which the pianist plays are romanticized through controlled lighting and sound systems to show how the piano can be used to solve emotional needs that are unmet. For instance, at the scene where Holly is playing the piano at the beach with the cool breeze and the beautiful view makes the audience admire playing the piano. Additionally, Holly uses various facial expressions and gestures that enable the audience to have a feel of the calm that comes from playing the instrument.
The movie uses the song “the piano” composed and done by Michael Nyman. However, Holly Hunter, being a good pianist, plays the chords throughout the movie. The song is quite interesting and has been reproduced over the years by other artists. Nyman originally plays the piano in a very sophisticated way, which is also copied by Holly in the film. However, a few pieces are added in the film production including the solo piano pieces. The pieces used in the movie are important because they help to complement the message of the movie and make it more relatable to the common audience. However, to non-pianist, the pieces are less recognizable. Both Nyman and Hunter are great pianists making the music quite interesting even to the people who have less understand of various chords and notes of the piano. The piano is a universally good music and a piece that most people can relate to with ease. The use of the music makes it easy for the audience to understand the society as depicted in the movie in a better way.
The use of Nyman’s music in the movie causes the audience to view the piano and pianist in a positive way. Ada’s love for her piano and the function that the piano plays in the pianist life make the non-musical viewers want to become pianists. She is able to overcome the troubles of a loveless marriage by playing the piano. The movie makes the piano music seem very professional and admirable. The movie portrays pianists as career people with manageable personalities thus raising the expectations of the audience. The audience expects pianists to love and value their jobs just as it is with Ada in the movie. Moreover, the elevation of piano music creates a desire among the audience to consume this kind of music more often. Therefore, the piano movie is one of the most successful piano movies that have helped to engage the audience from the beginning to the end by instilling the desire to play or consume piano music.

Bibliography
The Piano: A Jane Campion Film. Directed by Jane Campion. Toronto, Ont: Columbia Tristar Home Video, 1993. DVD.