Liszt's Rhapsody

Liszt's Rhapsody is a 1996 HBO Original Film produced and directed by Richard Mozer, with co-production by David Devine.

Premise

Franz Liszt, already an acclaimed musician, meets the young Josy, who becomes his student and challenges his master's views.

Cast

Geordie Johnson as Franz Liszt
Drew Jurecka as Josy
Peter Keleghan as Count Teleky
Ida Carnevali as Fanny
Fab Filippo as Janka
Dylan Gray as Rom

Production

The film was shot in the small mountain town of Labin, in Istria, Croatia.
The film was released on DVD and has been broadcast in various countries outside the United States. The film and its corresponding Teacher's Guide has been used in elementary and middle schools by music teachers.
Liszt's Rhapsody was one of seven films made for HBO for the 7- to 14-year-old set, introducing them to classical music and composers.

Soundtrack

The CD and soundtrack, produced by Richard Mozer for Sony MUSIC of New York, was composed by Franz Liszt, and was recorded at the Slovak Philharmonic, with an 88-person symphony orchestra conducted by Ondrej Lenárd.
Tracks include:

Reception

Charles P. Mitchell found it was "misrepresent the man and the composer" and that Geordie Johnson could have made an acceptable portrayal if the script hadn't been so poor. However, John C. Tibbetts judged it was the best of the series and a "charming fable in multiculturalism base on a true but little-known incident in Liszt's life".