Prélude (2019)

Young piano student David Berger is accepted at a music conservatory far from home. Hungry for life, he throws himself into the world of music as well as student life in general. But he soon has to realize that artistic success is tied to hard work, and that even his talent cannot spare him that, and that at the conservatory he is by no means the star performer he had always thought himself to be. Professor Matussek pushes and supports David, as a scholarship that would take him to New York is a possibility. He clashes several times with his more talented fellow student Walter, with whom he also shares a girlfriend, the voice student Marie. The mounting pressure of expectations and competition causes David to lose control of his life. As his artistic performance fluctuates, so does his professor’s opinion about the New York scholarship, which eventually becomes his sole, obsessive goal. In a master class taking place alongside the events, he makes himself a laughingstock with playing that is downright amateurish. After Marie completes her studies, their relationship loses its intensity, and David loses another source of support. His declining performance puzzles his professor; he is now also showing severe psychological and physical symptoms of stress. His accusation that Walter stole sheet music from his room leads to a violent fight. But for the time being, David achieves his goal and is officially nominated for the scholarship. At the exuberant celebration of this success, David crashes badly. Professor Matussek finally tells him that she can no longer stand by her recommendation for the scholarship. His childish quarrels with Walter are none of her business, she says, but his frequent absences from class and his declining performance are unacceptable. Since the semester will be over in three weeks anyway, she advises him to go home, take a break, and come back next semester. When he moves back in with his mother, David’s life seems to settle down at first. He hardly talks to her about his time at the conservatory and lets her believe that he will soon be leaving for New York. Out of awkwardness, he makes himself useful with household chores and meets several times with his childhood sweetheart Stella, who is now in another relationship and has a small child. One day, he tells his mother that he has to go to the conservatory for another day. In fact, he visits Stella and hangs himself there while she is out with her child.