The Impact and Influence of Black Music (Ages 15-17)
Art, and specifically music, affect us in ways that are difficult to articulate but somehow manage to clarify concepts and ideas in a manner we can relate to and understand. This selection of films uses music from Black artists to take us through the Black community’s lived experience. Pour visionner cette sélection en français, cliquez ici. Films in This Playlist Include Unarmed Verses Oscar Liberty Street Blues Show Girls Toronto Jazz United States of Africa
Art, and specifically music, affect us in ways that are difficult to articulate but somehow manage to clarify concepts and ideas in a manner we can relate to and understand. This selection of films uses music from Black artists to take us through the Black community’s lived experience.
Pour visionner cette sélection en français, cliquez ici.
Films in This Playlist Include
Unarmed Verses
Oscar
Liberty Street Blues
Show Girls
Toronto Jazz
United States of Africa
Sélection
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Liberty Street BluesAndré Gladu 1988 1 h 17 minThis feature documentary uses music to reveal the many faces of jazz, New Orleans style. Colourful and alive with music, the film captures the street life and traditions of this vibrant city and explores the roots of the music that springs from the soul of the African-American community.
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Show GirlsMeilan Lam 1998 52 min
Show Girls celebrates Montreal's swinging Black jazz scene from the 1920s to the 1960s, when the city was wide open. Three women who danced in the legendary Black clubs of the day - Rockhead's Paradise, The Terminal, Café St. Michel - share their unforgettable memories of life at the centre of one of the world's hottest jazz spots. From the Roaring Twenties, through the Second World War and on into the golden era of clubs in the fifties and sixities, Show Girls chronicles the lives of Bernice, Tina and Olga - mixing their memories with rarely seen footage of the era. Their stories are told against a backdrop of the fascinating social and political history that made Montreal a jazz and nightclub hotspot for decades. It is a story of song and dance, music and pride.
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Toronto JazzDon Owen 1963 26 min
This short documentary profiles the mid-century Toronto jazz scene through the eyes of acclaimed filmmaker Don Owen (Nobody Waved Good-bye). The film features prominent acts from what was then regarded as the third-largest jazz centre in North America, including the Lenny Breau trio, the Don Thompson Quintet and the Alf Jones Quartet. Jazz lovers will relish this inside look at the creativity, hard work, improvisation, and stylization of these talented musicians.
