Sir Georg Solti - The Making of a Maestro
This too-brief but informative and insightful documentary was finished  soon after Maestro Solti's death in 1997 at age 85, a title card informing us  that the very last interview was filmed five days before he died. In only 90  minutes, Solti's extraordinary life and career are vividly recounted, from his  upbringing in Austria to his clash with the Nazis while in his late 20s; from  his days leading the Royal Opera House at Covent Garden to his shaping of the  Chicago Symphony Orchestra into one of the world's greatest musical ensembles.  Solti himself engagingly discusses his techniques and musical influences  (including his analytical account of Richard Strauss as a conductor) while  colleagues like soprano Kiri Te Kanawa and director Sir Peter Hall and his widow  Lady Solti give their own personal takes on the man.The Making of a  Maestrois a richly satisfying glimpse at a seminal musical artist.-- Kevin Filipski