Piano Concerto Film Orchestra for “You Can Do It!” (Lang Lang Biopic)

Project Name: Piano Concerto Film Orchestra for “You Can Do It!” (Lang Lang Biopic)

Project Type: Piano Concerto Film Orchestra | Film Music Production | International Musicians Coordination

Timeline: June-July 2024 (Two-stage production)

Location: Beijing

Director: Jiang Wen

Subject: Lang Lang’s biographical film

Orchestra size: 41/81 professional musicians

Introduction:
In 2024, Dengtai Artists undertook a highly challenging and meaningful project: providing piano concerto film orchestra services for legendary director Jiang Wen’s “You Can Do It!” (Lang Lang biopic). The film chronicles world-renowned pianist Lang Lang’s journey from a boy in Shenyang to an international superstar, featuring an ensemble cast including Jiang Wen, Ma Li, Ge You, Hu Ge, and Donnie Yen.
The production required orchestras for two critical scenes representing pivotal moments in Lang Lang’s career: the Tchaikovsky Competition in Japan and the 1999 Ravinia Festival performance that changed his life. These scenes demanded not only professional musical performance but also visual presentation of authentic international concert atmospheres.

International Musicians Recruitment

The project’s greatest challenge was recruiting high-level professional musicians from around the world in a short timeframe. Through our international musician network built over years, we successfully recruited two differently-sized orchestra batches from 16 countries. Stage one: 41 members; stage two: 81 members—all possessing professional performance standards and extensive orchestra experience.

Cross-Border and Inter-Provincial Coordination

While most musicians came from within China, we still coordinated several artists who traveled specially from abroad. Domestic musicians were distributed across 14 different cities, from first-tier cities like Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou to prefecture-level cities like Liupanshui and Zhangjiajie. Each musician required individual arrangements for transportation, accommodation, and scheduling. With only a month between the two filming sessions and some musicians participating in both stages, this demanded precise time management and personnel coordination capabilities.

Piano Soloist Collaboration

This project’s special feature was close collaboration with the piano soloist. While the pianist was hired separately by the production team (Lv Yinuo from Tianjin Juilliard School of Music), our orchestra needed to achieve perfect musical harmony with him during rehearsals and filming. Piano concertos demand extremely high coordination between orchestra and soloist—any imbalance in any section affects the overall effect.

Rapid Scale Switching

The transition from a 41-member to an 81-member orchestra wasn’t just about numbers—it involved comprehensive differences in sound structure, rehearsal methods, and on-set coordination. We needed separate plans for each formation, ensuring both filming sessions met the director’s artistic standards.

Precise Schedule Coordination

With over a month between filming sessions, many musicians participated in both stages. We needed to confirm each musician’s long-term schedule in advance, coordinate their travels between cities, and prepare contingency plans for possible filming delays. Ultimately, all musicians arrived on time with zero absences due to scheduling conflicts.

Live Performance Professionalism

All scenes employed actual live performance—not miming or lip-syncing. This placed extremely high demands on musicians’ professional standards—achieving recording-quality musical performance while appearing natural on camera. Every musician we recruited was a rigorously selected professional performer, ensuring both musical quality and visual effect of live performance.

Collaboration with Director Jiang Wen

Director Jiang Wen is renowned for his extreme attention to detail. During filming, our team communicated directly with the director, adjusting musicians’ positioning, movements, and expressions according to shot requirements. This close collaboration ensured each shot was perfect both musically and visually, matching the director’s artistic vision.

Efficient Quick Rehearsals

Rehearsals for both filming sessions occurred compactly just before formal shooting. We prepared scores in advance, quickly organized rehearsals after musicians’ arrival, and achieved required performance standards within limited time. This demanded every musician possess strong sight-reading abilities and orchestra collaboration experience.