Uploaded April 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
“My name is Joel Krosnick and I was, for forty-two years, the cellist for the Juilliard String Quartet. I loved being in the quartet. But it’s time to – I’m seventy-five – and it’s time to go in a different direction.”
So begins JOEL KROSNICK: WHAT TO PLAY NEXT, a documentary portrait of cellist Joel Krosnick as he leaves the famed Juilliard String Quartet to dedicate his life to teaching others.
Captured over the course of two years, the film visits with Krosnick as he plays with and mentors the next generation of players, both at the Juilliard and at the Royal Conservatory in Toronto. It hears from some of his closest friends and students, including pianist Gilbert Kalish, violinists Laurie Smukler and Nina Lee, and fellow Juilliard member Samuel Rhodes, with whom Krosnick played for his entire career with the quartet.
“During my life, there have been a number of people who have shared their caring with me and who helped me find why I care,” says Krosnick. “There are so many people who made a difference…I have to try to do that for other people.”
“My name is Joel Krosnick and I was, for forty-two years, the cellist for the Juilliard String Quartet. I loved being in the quartet. But it’s time to – I’m seventy-five – and it’s time to go in a different direction.”
So begins JOEL KROSNICK: WHAT TO PLAY NEXT, a documentary portrait of cellist Joel Krosnick as he leaves the famed Juilliard String Quartet to dedicate his life to teaching others.
Captured over the course of two years, the film visits with Krosnick as he plays with and mentors the next generation of players, both at the Juilliard and at the Royal Conservatory in Toronto. It hears from some of his closest friends and students, including pianist Gilbert Kalish, violinists Laurie Smukler and Nina Lee, and fellow Juilliard member Samuel Rhodes, with whom Krosnick played for his entire career with the quartet.
“During my life, there have been a number of people who have shared their caring with me and who helped me find why I care,” says Krosnick. “There are so many people who made a difference…I have to try to do that for other people.”
