Hattogate

Joyce Hatto is a fake!

This is movie stuff!: The badly sick Joyce, who was never more than an ordinary concert player undergoes surgery every three months because of her terminal cancer... she becomes completely crazy at the same time, and considers herself to be the best piano player of the century, insanity à la Norma Desmond (to be played by Faye Dunaway!) in a tiny cosy Royston appartment, England.

Her devoted husband, William Barrington-Coupe (this is a role for Timothy Spall), creates this fantasy world for her, at the beginning just to cheer her up. He ends up believing her wife was indeed this great pianist, and makes his mission to show the music comunity the greatness of Joyce; in a final desperate attempt he creates his own music label to sell Joyce´s recordings, actually stolen interpretations from other artists.

Joyce dies at the height of her "fame" in 2006. Her records are unanimously considered to be reference interpretations in all possible styles, from Scarlatti to Godowsky: she is the passionate Joan of Arc of piano playing who was almost dying at the record sessions, but still giving the best of her art.

Soon after her death the real story emerges, but William doesn´t care anymore, since his reason to live (her one and only Joyce, the woman, the diva) is no longe with him: I would end this movie with his suicide, but let us wait what happens.

Meanwhile read all the details here:

Gramophone

Classics Today

Pristine Audio

CHARM

Fascinating!