sorrowful and thought-provoking
Music and architecture combine in this video to convey the loneliness and sorrow of imprisonment--more powerfully, perhaps, than straightforward words or photographs could do. Ma's treatment of Bach's cello suite no. 2 is emotional; Piranesi's drawing are cerebral. The combination is moving and thought-provoking. The video, like the others in this interesting series, is best viewed as a part of the series. Viewers will inevitably like some of Ma's ideas, and the execution of those ideas, better than others--but this is one of my favorites from the series.

The Sound of Reverb
This film tackles the no-so-intriguing question of how Bach's Second Cello Suite would sound in the physical context of Piranesi's Carceri (prison), assuming that it had been built in the first place. The "deeper" questions, as hinted in the film, probe the philosophical nature of experience and perception. Regrettably, such questions are never clearly framed, let alone answered. The video brims with pseudo-intellectual musings which, in practice, boil down to the central issue of how much reverberation to use for the final take.

For what it's worth, some of the computer graphics are interesting. You get to see Yo-Yo playing in a digitally realized 18th-century building, all nicely done in black and white. Just don't expect too much more than that.

Inspired by Piranesi, not by Bach
This film is inspired by Piranesi, who left us with etchings of the Carceri (prison). The inspiration is: if we build a virtual Carceri based on the etchings, and record a piece of music (in this case, it is Ma playing Bach's Second Suite for Unaccompanied Cello) there, what would the sonic effect be?

The important thing here is the virtual realisation of 2-D drawings into a 3D structure and the recording of music there. Who plays who's what music is relatively unimportant. For example, there is no reason why Ma can't instead play the Third Suite or a Piazolla tango piece in the prison!

I can't see what the film has got to do with "inspired by Bach".

Actually, a viewer can ask even more critical questions: Why Piranesi? What's so special about the Carceri etchings? I don't think the film offers convincing answers.

Intellectually, aesthetically, and technically satisfying.
The second in a series of six collaborations of cellist Yo-Yo Ma, and a number of different creative talents, creating multi-media presentations and interpretations of the J.S Bach Suites for Unaccompanied Cello. Here, Ma takes his inspiration for a performance of the Suite Number 2, from the "Carceri" (prison) etchings of the 18th century Italian architect Giovanni Piranesi, and works with film makers, sound technicians, and a graphic artist to create scenes and sounds of the Piranesi images. Ma is, in fact, placed digitally within the Piranesi scenes, and the effect is pleasing, and not contrived. Ma works with particular attention to the sound production, and the conversations between Ma and the sound technician, recorded live and at some length, reveal depths of understanding of the impact of the music and of production, on the performer and the listener, both. Well worth viewing more than once. 58 minutes long, in colour.