The Quest for Tonewood: A Musical Odyssey

Genre：Documentary

Director：Hans Lukas Hansen

Cast：Gaspar Borchardt、 Janine Jansen

Viola's Rating：7.6

Everyone has one or more dreams which they feel they must fulfill in their lifetime. For instrument makers and musicians, it might be a legendary instrument made or played. The Quest for Tonewood, a co-production between Norway and the Netherlands, documented a luthier’s dream and how he pursued it.

As a documentary, the plot of The Quest for Tonewood is mainly about a luthier, Gaspar Borchardt, who is obsessed with the idea of crafting a violin, the sound of which is so exceptional that it will thrill the musician who plays it and cuddle the souls of those who hear it. In order to fulfill his dream, Gaspar needs a special type of wood, cut from a hallowed tree that is only found in a Balkan forest, and this is how he starts a musical quest that is as thrilling as a high-stakes treasure hunt.

Although Gaspar’s quest continued for four years, it was impossible for the director to keep everything that happened in the film. Less than 90 minutes, The Quest for Tonewood features four times Gaspar got close. Gaspar’s craftsmanship supported him in persisting in finding the tree, even if he had to use negotiation skills that a luthier doesn’t need.

As an observational documentary, there’s no explanation or dialogue and interactions between the director and the person being shot in The Quest for Tonewood. This is the reason why some people wonder if everything in the flick was set up in advance, but as long as you look up Gaspar’s information, you’ll realize that reality is sometimes more intriguing than a feature film.

Aside from Gaspar’s craftsmanship, The Quest for Tonewood also captures the beauty of nature. Cremona, where the story takes place, is a city in Northern Italy, which is especially noted for its musical history and traditions. The Balkan forest, on the other hand, boasts beauty and life of trees. Through making violins, luthiers are able to preserve the beauty of nature in the form of music.

Actually, a luthier’s job is not only restricted to the workshop, according to Gaspar, he goes to the forest with some colleagues to choose wood, but luthiers “hear a great difference from one tree to another,” and “only one of 1000 trees is perfect,” which makes it even more precious. The tonewood Gaspar was looking for is a kind of flame maple, which has much less humidity than other kinds of wood and grows harder and harder through the years.

All in all, The Quest for Tonewood is a fantastic journey to enjoy, in which you get to witness Gaspar’s adventure. The only pity is probably that the movie doesn’t display the whole process of making a violin. It would be better to feel Gaspar’s craftsmanship through his work. Nevertheless, it’s still a beautiful picture that combines music and nature that everyone can experience.

Picture Credit: atmovies