Program notes
Based on the book by Russell Martin, Larry Weinstein's 2005 documentary focuses on the strange journey taken by a lock of Beethoven's hair.
Soon after Beethoven's death, a boy cut a lock of the composer's iconic hair as a keepsake. Nearly two centuries later, that same hair was purchased by two American Beethoven enthusiasts at a Sotheby's auction. What that lock of hair reveals—through forensic testing and the story of generations of owners—is the subject of this award-winning documentary film. The tale of the composer's life and legacy unfolds against an aural backdrop of some of his greatest masterpieces.