I had the pleasure ofattending Mark Cantor's “Jazz on Film" presentation on January 22nd here at theJewish Community Center of San Francisco and it was a blast from the past.Cantor is a jazz film archivist who has collected over 4,000 reels (yes, actualfilm) of vintage jazz performances. He shares programs of these rare films atpresentations all over the world, including The National Academy of RecordingArts and Sciences, The International Association of Jazz Record Collectors,Monterey Jazz Festival, Academie du Dance (Paris, France), Festival de Popoli(Florence, Italy), and even the Playboy Mansion.
The San Franciscopresentation included twenty-four jazz films from the 1920s up to the 1970s,all presented on the big screen with terrific sound. Sort of puts YouTube toshame. And these are films you'll see nowhere else. Highlights includedviolinist Joe Venuti sawing out a swinging version of “Sweet Georgia Brown," aprancing Lucky Millinder conducting his band in “The Hucklebuck," and ArtBlakey and the Jazz Messengers doing “Moanin'" and featuring the song'scomposer, Bobby Timmons, on piano. Lowlights (but fun nevertheless) includedstripper Ann Corio singing “Pistol Packin' Mama" backed by the Red NorvoOrchestra and an odd animated Prudential Life Insurance commercial from the1950s featuring music written by Duke Ellington specifically for the commercialand played by his orchestra. The program also featured a couple of “Soundies,"which were the first “music videos"—filmed in the 1940s, they were played onspecial film juke boxes.
Cantor has served as aconsultant on a large number of music documentaries and feature films. Hisfootage was included in A Great Day In Harlem and Ken Burns's monumental Jazz. (Burns said that Cantor was an “invaluable asset"to his film.) If you get a chance to catch one of his film presentations, Ihighly recommend it. You'll discover some hidden treasures of great jazz thatyou won't be able to see or hear anywhere else.
(For those in San Francisco, Cantor will be givingtwo more presentations at the JCC. Visit their website for more information.)
The San Franciscopresentation included twenty-four jazz films from the 1920s up to the 1970s,all presented on the big screen with terrific sound. Sort of puts YouTube toshame. And these are films you'll see nowhere else. Highlights includedviolinist Joe Venuti sawing out a swinging version of “Sweet Georgia Brown," aprancing Lucky Millinder conducting his band in “The Hucklebuck," and ArtBlakey and the Jazz Messengers doing “Moanin'" and featuring the song'scomposer, Bobby Timmons, on piano. Lowlights (but fun nevertheless) includedstripper Ann Corio singing “Pistol Packin' Mama" backed by the Red NorvoOrchestra and an odd animated Prudential Life Insurance commercial from the1950s featuring music written by Duke Ellington specifically for the commercialand played by his orchestra. The program also featured a couple of “Soundies,"which were the first “music videos"—filmed in the 1940s, they were played onspecial film juke boxes.
Cantor has served as aconsultant on a large number of music documentaries and feature films. Hisfootage was included in A Great Day In Harlem and Ken Burns's monumental Jazz. (Burns said that Cantor was an “invaluable asset"to his film.) If you get a chance to catch one of his film presentations, Ihighly recommend it. You'll discover some hidden treasures of great jazz thatyou won't be able to see or hear anywhere else.
(For those in San Francisco, Cantor will be givingtwo more presentations at the JCC. Visit their website for more information.)
