Tristan Keuris - Componist met de gouden handjes

Tristan Keuris, who passed away in 1996, proves himself to be an unconventional composer of modern classical music in this documentary. Unconventional in particular because his pieces, like Sinfonia, sound more accessible than his colleagues' music. Interviews with people like composer Leo Samama, colleague Godert van Colmjon (with whom Keuris recorded an album that is clearly inspired by the Beatles) and conductor Edo de Waart demonstrate that Keuris' musical approach has not always been appreciated. He was commended because he 'brought back the melody to contemporary classical music.' Apart from interviews with connoisseurs, friends and people involved, the film contains many excerpts from conversations with the master himself - with his characteristic nasal voice, remarkable thatch of hair and laconic attitude: 'I don't write accessible music on purpose, it's a natural process.' The documentary is full of music, for example performances by the famous Raschèr Saxophone Quartet, for which Keuris composed some works.