ABOUT ME

I am sometimes asked why a video recording costs so much?
"I have a friend who can film everything even with a mobile phone, or amateur camera".

If there was no difference in quality, I would not waste my time.
First, I bring a lot of know-how and experience, to get out different situations the best out
and secondly the friend doesn's bring for you 600 Kg professional sound, light and video equipment on location, just as I do.

Not all the sound and film production absolvents, who had a final exam, are artists
and one should not make the mistake, comparing a craftsman with an artist,
since the two results take you to two very different goals.

I myself am cellist and have played over two thousand concerts on International platforms,
whether as a soloist, as a section leader in the orchestra, or for 22 years on concert tour with my chamber music ensemble.

I have experienced the artist-world of both sides, from front of the camera and behind the camera
and in both cases I have always done my best.
More I can not, less I do not want.

Eleven times 1st prize in cello National competitions,
1st Price of Jeunesse International Chamber Music Competition,
and more than 2,000 concerts played on 3 continents.
 

An invitation of the Alban Berg Quartet led me and my AMBER TRIO
at the Vienna University of Music and Performing Arts
with a grant from the "Alban Berg Foundation Vienna".

With a repertoire of about 140 piano trios, more than 20 of them dedicated to us,
I toured with my piano trio in the Vienna Konzerthaus, the Berlin Konzerthaus, Brucknerhaus Linz, regularly in the main studio of ORF (Austrian Broadcast Center), the Rudolfinum in Prague, de Doelen Concertgebouw in Rotterdam, regularly in the Henry Crown Symphony Hall Jerusalem, the Gaston Hall at Georgetown University Washington, in the New Austrian cultural Center New York and the Skirball cultural Center Los Angeles.

In addition, my piano trio took part at International Music Festivals as the Bayreuth Festival, the Israel Festival, the Janacek Festival, the Washington Schubert & Schubert Festival and the Festival de Mexico.

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My film and photography passion has appeared ever since my early years.
With 10 already, thanks to my father, I was able to operate my own Super8 film camera.
In order to exercise my passion I had three photo cameras (B/W, slides and 6x5),
with which I, as much as possible, photographed on my concert tours.
The image composition, and human faces were the most important for me.
During my studies in the Music Academy I have shot more than 2500 photos of "Alley Faces".

The born of my daughter Ella, in 2005 was also the birth of ELLA STUDIO VIENNA
and the moment my life's focus has changed.
The vocation and my movie passion were for professional,
where the artist, the music, the interpretation are always at the forefront for me.

Since I cut my videos always by myself, I develop already on the location set an idea

where and how do I'm positioning the cameras and the lights,
a detail which is coincident with my later intentions and needs at the editing desk.

 

Since I am an interpret by myself, I visualize the music in my thoughts.
The audience, however, is using when listening to the music mostly only their sense of hearing,
some of them even close their eyes in order to get away from the environment

and to enable their own customized visualizations.
With my cameras and mostly with my post-production and editing style of the footage

I try to close this circle -

The Panopticon with its color spectrum is then open.

Music is life & death, dialogue & silence, color & black and white,
pain, dream, love & hate, sadness, passion, joy, sun & moon.
COLORS!

Of course, those may be only subjective perceptions,
because music visualization can not be objective -

Each of us perceives music in his own way, strongly influenced by our own perceptions,

experiences, and personal memories and associations.

I invite you to my "Lichtspieltheater"!

Dive with me in my sound and pictures World and I hope,
You will enjoy at least as much as I always do!

Michael Croitoru-Weissman,
Cellist, sound and video producer.

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