A Concerto is a Conversation (Short)
**You can watch “A Concerto is a Conversation” here.
“A Concerto is a Conversation” is a love letter to a grandfather from a grandson. Using the structure of a concerto (an orchestral work where a soloist and the orchestra have a back-and-forth dialogue musically), co-director Kris Bowers is taking the opportunity to create a piece of cinematic music to pay tribute to his grandfather’s life, his adversity as he worked to build a life through the Jim Crow era, while also reflecting on his own journey as a boy from his parents having him take up the piano to his career as a composer, which has led him to the Oscar stage when “Green Book” won Best Picture, and a performance of his composition, “For a Younger Self,” at Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles.
The first time I watched this film, it was during the 2021 Sundance Film Festival. Now, writing about it, and reflecting on it after a second time seeing it, I think about my own grandfather. My grandfather meant a great deal to me, and was like a third parent for me, someone who supported me and encouraged me in my own pursuit of music. He passed away in 2000 of cancer, so he never had the opportunity to hear the piece I wrote for him inspired by my grief over losing him; I’m grateful for Bowers, whose own grandfather has cancer, for being able to share his tribute with him.
Close ups on the faces of Kris and Horace Bowers Sr. reflect the conversation they are having, as the elder Bowers tells his story, and we see how it relates to the life Kris has been able to have. Co-director Ben Proudfoot helps capture beautiful, personal moments in front of the camera as these two men have a connection that isn’t the same as that which we have with our parents. Seeing them share this conversation reminds me of so many moments with my grandfather; to be sure, the topics are very different, but the feelings elicited are the same- appreciate the time with those we love before we lose it forever. Even the most beautiful music has to end sometime.
