“Making The Grade: The World of Piano Lessons” enters the
world of piano lessons as teachers prepare for the graded musical exams each
year. Each student has a different goal and experience with the exams, and
Grade Eight is the highest grade achieved.
In similar documentaries, on the first meeting of a person, the
editors will put the name of the person as a “lower third” on the screen.
However, they did not on this one. We do not find out Harry’s name until Jamie says
it.
Getting to know the kids and seeing their relationships with
their teachers and their skills progress is so sweet. Not only does the
documentary show the piano parts, but it also shows the conversations with the
students that do not relate to playing piano.
There are a wide variety of skills and backgrounds of
players in the film. It was interesting to see how the students got involved
and why, whether it is because it runs in the family or because they are just
interested in learning.
The people of the documentary had me laughing so hard at
points. It is great to see their personalities being showcased and the Irish
sense of humor shining through. While this could have been a dull film, the humor
and the stuff not related to the piano gave the students and teachers a
personality.
The only thing that was frustrating about the documentary
was that it did not show the results of the exams. It often left the students’
journeys on a cliffhanger without following through to see if they advance. It
would be nice to have just one or two students for each grade level and follow
them through to see the results of their exams.
Those who are fans of Keith Harkin and/or Celtic Thunder will
love Rosa’s story. On Harkin’s first album, he wrote a song called “Rosa,”
which is about his goddaughter. Her story of her piano journey is featured in
the documentary. It is really cool to see how talented she is and know that she
is surrounded by so much music.
Overall, the documentary was enjoyable. The personalities of
everyone involved added such character to what could have been a boring film.
The producers really captured each person’s personality and character in a way
that made it enjoyable. Each story was so different, and the reasons for
playing piano so diverse. This is a great movie to watch for anyone who loves
music.
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