Licht - Stockhausen’s Legacy | #EIFF22

Cologne’s controversial avant-garde composer profiled, candidly. A wildly ambitious spectacle involving choirs, dancers, synthesizer-augmented orchestras and a string quartet playing from helicopters, the 29-hour opera cycle Licht was the late Karlheinz Stockhausen’s magnum opus. This colourful documentary follows the turbulent production of the Dutch National Opera’s 2019 interpretation, which spanned nine days and required 500 performers. The film also delves into the electronic music pioneer’s polyamorous lifestyle, with frank recollections from his former partners and neglected children.