A film by Boris Miljkovic has its exclusive TV premiere on RTS 2, December 31
The documentary film Da capo: Zubin Mehta and the Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra, directed by Boris Miljković and produced by the Belgrade Philharmonic, will have its exclusive TV premiere on Wednesday, December 31 at 7:15 p.m. on RTS 2. On the eve of the Belgrade Philharmonic’s major tour of India – celebrating Maestro Zubin Mehta’s 90th birthday, where the film will receive its international premiere – audiences at home will have a unique opportunity to watch it on New Year’s Eve.
On a cold winter’s day in the late 1950s, a young man arrived in Belgrade by train from Liverpool. He carried with him a special assignment, great expectations, stage fright, and youthful energy. Like many future Belgraders, he walked uphill from the railway station toward the city center, along Balkanska Street. He spent his first night at the Hotel Moskva, and his first day with the musicians of the Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra.
His name is Zubin Mehta.
One of the greatest living conductors of our time.
A Belgrader at heart.
That, in short, is the story behind this mid-length documentary film, created from an idea and with the generous support of the Belgrade Philharmonic and its very own Jelena Milašinović. While following the life and character of this extraordinary artist, the film also sketches the portrait of our unique, ever-youthful, and talented orchestra. Their histories, in many ways, intertwine, telling a shared story. The Belgrade Philharmonic and the Maestro, explains film director Boris Miljković.
Filmed in October 2024, during the two concerts of the Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra led by Mehta at Kolarac Hall, Da capo: Zubin Mehta and the Belgrade Philharmonic offers an intimate look inside the rehearsal process while exploring the deep friendship between the Maestro and the Belgrade orchestra – told entirely in Mehta’s own voice, as the film’s sole narrator. Through personal reflections and memories, he takes viewers on an emotional journey across seven decades of friendship with the orchestra, from the moment the Belgrade Philharmonic gave him his first professional opportunity in 1958 to the present day. He speaks about the art and secrets of conducting and the special bond he shares with the musicians. The title Da capo, a musical term meaning from the beginning, captures a story about origins and about a love that rekindles every time Mehta and the Belgrade Philharmonic reunite.
The film is based on an idea by Jelena Milašinović, the Belgrade Philharmonic’s longtime Communications Manager, who also served as producer. The Belgrade Philharmonic gratefully acknowledges the companies that generously supported the film’s production: Erste Bank, Informatika, Valjaonica bakra Sevojno, the Serbian Chamber of Commerce, and Erste Leasing.
