Skip to content
Primary Navigation

Hollywood Life Hollywood Life

Latest Hollywood Celebrity & Entertainment News

  • Home
  • News
    • Celebrity News
    • World News
    • Exclusives
    • Politics
    • Celebrity Babies
    • Opinions
    • All News
  • Entertainment
    • Award Shows
    • At The Movies
    • TV
    • Music
    • Sports
    • Sex & Relationships
    • Holidays
    • Entertainment Features
    • Podcast
    • Oscar Contenders
    • All Entertainment
  • Celebrity Bios
    • Taylor Swift
    • Rihanna
    • Selena Gomez
    • Kim Kardashian
    • Kylie Jenner
    • Kendall Jenner
    • Justin Bieber
    • Miley Cyrus
    • Gigi Hadid
    • Khloe Kardashian
    • Jennifer Lopez
    • Angelina Jolie
    • Harry Styles
    • Kourtney Kardashian
    • All Celebrity Bios
  • Beauty
    • Fragrance
    • Hair Care
    • Health
    • Makeup
    • Nails
    • Beauty Features
    • Skincare
    • Makeover
    • Diet & Fitness
    • All Beauty
  • Fashion
    • Shopping
    • Shopping Reviews
    • Red Carpet
    • Weddings
    • Fashion Features
    • All Fashion
  • Shopping
    • Cosmetics
    • Diet & Fitness
    • Electronics
    • Fashion
    • Haircare
    • Makeup
    • Skincare
    • Shopping Reviews
    • All Shopping

‘Moonlight Sonata’ — Pics

1 of 8

Portrait of Irene Brodsky, the director of HBO documentary ‘Moonlight Sonata: Deafness in Three Movements’

Portrait of Irene Brodsky, the director of HBO documentary ‘Moonlight Sonata: Deafness in Three Movements’
Courtesy of HBO

‘Moonlight Sonata’ director Irene Brodsky decided to make a documentary about her son Jonas and his experience with deafness. The film examines how his deafness has affected his family, including his deaf grandparents. Both of Irene’s parents are deaf, however, deafness skipped a generation and Brodsky and her two siblings all have normal hearing. She and HBO felt that there was a story to be told about what raising a child with deafness is like. They began shooting the project when Jonas was just 1and 1/2 years old. However, they stopped until 9 years later when Jonas was 11 and had developed such a love for piano that he became interested in learning Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata.”

Irene began wondering about when Beethoven had written the piece, since she knew that he had gone deaf during the height of his career. Amazingly, she discovered that “Moonlight Sonata” was the very piece that Beethoven wrote during the year that he was losing his hearing in a major way. 

December 3, 2019, 10:38AM
2 of 8

Mosaic graphic from the ‘Moonlight Sonata’ film

Mosaic graphic from the ‘Moonlight Sonata’ film
Courtesy of HBO

Both Jonas and Beethoven had their hearing at birth. Beethoven began going deaf in 1798 at the age of 28 and by the time he was 31 he had lost 60% of his hearing. It was at this point in 1801, aged 31, that Beethoven completed his “Moonlight Sonata.” Unfortunately, Jonas began losing his hearing around the age of 2. 

December 3, 2019, 10:39AM
3 of 8

Movie Poster for ‘Moonlight Sonata’

Movie Poster for ‘Moonlight Sonata’
Courtesy of HBO

The film includes footage of the director’s son Jonas as he began to go deaf around age 2 as a result of a genetic condition. His parents decided to have him fitted with surgically implanted cochlear implants in order to restore his hearing.

The majority of the footage was shot when he was 11 and trying to master Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata.” The film also explores the beauty and positive aspects of the deaf experience. Jonas’s deaf grandparents teach him “the value of deafness and the value of relating to people as a deaf person and communicating with people as a deaf person”, because eye contact and visual communication are so important and often underused. 

December 3, 2019, 10:39AM
4 of 8

Jonas Brodsky playing Moonlight Sonata on the piano

Jonas Brodsky playing Moonlight Sonata on the piano
Courtesy of HBO

Jonas Brodsky, director Irene Brodsky’s son, is seen practicing Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata” on the piano over and over again in the film. Jonas, 11, enjoys music and wanted to learn the piece, which is one of Beethoven’s most famous compositions. It also happens to be a favorite of his paternal grandfather and it was his grandfather who introduced him to the piece. 

December 3, 2019, 10:38AM
5 of 8

Jonas Brodsky with his grandfather

Jonas Brodsky with his grandfather
Courtesy of HBO

Jonas wears two cochlear implants and is able to hear most sound. Though he still can have trouble deciphering conversations when mulitple people are talking at once. Jonas wasn’t aware that Beethoven wrote “Moonlight Sonata” while going deaf, he was simply drawn to the piece. His attraction to music is often more about the structure of the piece rather about than the composer or his history. 

December 3, 2019, 10:38AM

MoreAt The Movies

  • Florence Pugh Insists ‘Don’t Worry Darling’ Is ‘Bigger’ Than Her Sex Scenes With Harry Styles
  • ‘The Ballad Of Songbirds & Snakes’: First Photo Of Coryo & Lucy Gray Baird Revealed & More
  • ‘Black Adam’ Updates: The Rock Explains Why He Kept The Villain Out Of ‘Shazam’
6 of 8

Jonas as a young child wearing one of his first cochlear implants

Jonas as a young child wearing one of his first cochlear implants
Courtesy of HBO

Jonas began losing his hearing as a toddler. His mother, director Irene Brodsky, began filming their journey when Jonas was 2, but she tabled the project to focus on Jonas’s hearing treatment plans. She picked up filming when Jonas was 11, and was living the life of a typical energetic boy, going to school, playing soccer and taking piano lessons. 

December 3, 2019, 10:38AM
7 of 8

Jonas Brodsky with his grandfather on the beach

Jonas Brodsky with his grandfather on the beach
Courtesy of HBO

Jonas grandfather and grandmother, Irene’s parents, are both deaf. However, while his grandfather, Paul, was born deaf, his grandmother, Sally, gradually became deaf as a toddler, like Jonas, after being born with the ability to hear. The couple met each other when they were three and attended the same private school for hearing. They did not have modern assitance with their disability at that time, as their school did not believe in teaching sign language and both students had to focus on learning to read lips, and speaking without being able to hear. 

December 3, 2019, 10:39AM
8 of 8

Jonas Brodsky enjoying himself at an amusement park

Jonas Brodsky enjoying himself at an amusement park
Courtesy of HBO

Jonas has not allowed his deafness to define him. While he can take off part of his cochlear implants when he wants to concentrate and enjoy silence, he participates in all of the same activities as children who have hearing. He loves going to amusement parks and he loves music. Irene Brodsky points out in her exclusive interview with HollywoodLife that one of more modern misconceptions about deafness is that “music is not the terrain of a deaf person.” Jonas, however, is dedicated to playing the piano. 

December 3, 2019, 10:39AM
Articles Trending Now

Trending Now

Cardi B Gets Her First Face Tattoo & Fans Have Mixed Reactions: Watch

Octomom Shares Rare Photo Of All 8 Younger Kids, 13, As They Head To 8th Grade

Eminem's Daughter Hailie Rocks White Corset Bodysuit In New Photos

hailie jade
Sidebar Content

Follow Us:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • YouTube

HollywoodLife

  • About Us
  • Mission
  • Advertise With Us
  • Scoops & Corrections
  • Contact Us

Legal

  • Privacy Policy
  • California Privacy Rights
  • AdChoices
  • Terms of Use
  • Data Policy
  • Do Not Sell My Personal Information

News

  • Celebrity News
  • World News
  • Exclusives
  • Celebrity Babies

Connect

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
Hollywood Life
© Copyright 2022 Hollywoodlife.com, LLC.
Powered by WordPress.com VIP
ad