JerseyArticlesJazzhe introduction <strong>of</strong> contemporary jazz“Tto film scoring in the mid-twentiethcentury brought fresh forms <strong>of</strong> sop<strong>his</strong>ticationand innovation to world cinema.” These wordsare used to introduce Jazz Score, a film seriesand exhibition that will be taking place at theMuseum <strong>of</strong> Modern Art (MOMA) from April17 through September 15.With <strong>his</strong> score for A Streetcar Named Desire in1951, composer Alex North blazed a new trailfor film composers by introducing elements<strong>of</strong> jazz into the soundtrack for t<strong>his</strong> film in asingular way. Prior to t<strong>his</strong> score, there weremany films that contained elements <strong>of</strong> jazz intheir score or program <strong>of</strong> songs, but not in theall-pervasive way that North undertook to dowith Streetcar. The one exception to t<strong>his</strong>generality was in the world <strong>of</strong> cartoons, wherejazz was <strong>some</strong>times used extensively in themusical scores. During the heyday <strong>of</strong> theSwing Era, it was common to find popularbands <strong>of</strong> the day appearing in films, <strong>of</strong>tenbeing used as a drawing card for the film.There were also movies like New Orleans andYoung Man with a Horn that had jazz as acentral part <strong>of</strong> the film’s story. With Streetcar,however, North used jazz to set the mood fora screenplay totally devoid <strong>of</strong> any specificreferences to jazz.T<strong>his</strong> opened up a world <strong>of</strong> opportunities forjazz influenced composers like North, ElmerBernstein, Leith Stevens, and Henry Mancini,as well as jazz musicians and composers suchas Benny Carter, Duke Ellington, QuincyJones, <strong>John</strong> Lewis, <strong>John</strong>ny Mandel and LaloSchifrin to provide scores for films. In addition,many premier jazz musicians wereafforded ample opportunities to obtain wellpayingstudio work that gave them the kind<strong>of</strong> financial security that was not availableby simply playing jazz gigs and makingrecordings.Jazz was particularly attractive to <strong>some</strong> <strong>of</strong> theemerging independent directors in the UnitedStates who were breaking new cinematicground, and found the various styles <strong>of</strong>modern jazz well suited to augment the adventurouspaths that they chose to follow. T<strong>his</strong>also applied to the European and JapaneseNew Wave filmmakers who used jazz toprovide the musical settings for many <strong>of</strong> theirfilms. Musicians like Chet Baker, Miles Davis,and <strong>John</strong>ny Dankworth found themselvescomposing music for European films.Joshua Siegel, an Assistant Curator <strong>of</strong> theMOMA Department <strong>of</strong> Film was intriguedby “the organic relationship between jazzSusan Hayward in I Want to Live! 1958. USA.Directed by Robert Wise.MoMA Jazz ScoreExhibit andFilm SeriesBy Joe LangNJJS Music Committee Chairmusicians and independent and New Wavefilmmakers.” The adventurous nature <strong>of</strong> theparticipants in both <strong>of</strong> these areas <strong>of</strong> artisticcreativity made the interrelationship betweenthese fields almost an inevitable occurrence.Siegel conceived <strong>of</strong> combining a film seriesthat illustrated t<strong>his</strong> relationship with anexhibition that would include movie posters,record album covers, film clips, and animationart related to the films comprising the series.With the assistance <strong>of</strong> a colleague in theDepartment <strong>of</strong> Film, Assistant CuratorRonald Magliozzi, Siegel’s vision is about tobecome a reality that can be shared with thegeneral public.The film series will commence on April 17with a screening <strong>of</strong> Mickey One, a 1965 filmdirected by Arthur Penn, with a score arrangedand conducted by Eddie Sauter, featuring thetenor sax <strong>of</strong> Stan Getz. Other films to followduring April will include Paris Blues andAnatomy <strong>of</strong> a Murder, both <strong>of</strong> which havescores by Duke Ellington, Odds AgainstTomorrow, with a score by <strong>John</strong> Lewis, I Wantto Live, with music by <strong>John</strong>ny Mandel, AStreetcar Named Desire, The Man with theGolden Arm, an Elmer Bernstein score, andThe Servant, scored by <strong>John</strong>ny Dankworth.A classic cartoon, “The Three Little Bops,”with music by Shorty Rogers will accompanyshowings <strong>of</strong> The Man with the Golden Arm.Two Japanese films, Onna ga kaidan wo agarutoki (A Woman Ascends the Stairs) and Kuruttakajitsu (Crazed Fruit), along with Louis Malle’sAscenseur pour l’échafaud (Elevator to theGallows), with music by Miles Davis will alsobe among the films to be screened in April.The exhibition will be open for the duration <strong>of</strong>Jazz Score.As a part <strong>of</strong> Jazz Score, there will also be twojazz concerts. On Monday May 19, Polishtrumpeter and composer Tomasz Stanko and<strong>his</strong> quartet plus tenor saxophonist Billy Harperwill present a program <strong>of</strong> music composed byKrzyst<strong>of</strong> Komeda, a leading figure <strong>of</strong> EasternEurope’s 1950s underground jazz scene, whocomposed scores for 40 films. As a prelude tot<strong>his</strong> concert, there will be screenings <strong>of</strong> RomanPolanski’s Knife in the Water, and JerzySkolimowski’s Le Départ. The magnificent jazzpianist and composer Martial Solal will give aconcert <strong>of</strong> <strong>his</strong> music on Saturday June 14. TheAlgerian-born Solal emigrated to Paris in 1950and quickly established himself as a premierjazz pianist, eventually writing scores for filmsby directors like Jean-Pierre Melville, MarcelCarné, Jean Cocteau, Orson Welles and Jean-Luc Godard. Two <strong>of</strong> <strong>his</strong> most admired scoreswere for Godard’s Breathless and Jean Becker’sEchappement libre, both <strong>of</strong> which will beincluded in the film series.In September, there will be a panel discussionat MOMA related to Jazz Score. Details arestill being finalized for t<strong>his</strong> event.T<strong>his</strong> promises to be a landmark happening forenthusiasts <strong>of</strong> both jazz and film. Siegel hascarefully chosen the films to illustrate thebreadth <strong>of</strong> ways that jazz has been used toenhance the moods and action <strong>of</strong> film. Thevariety <strong>of</strong> films that will be part <strong>of</strong> the overallseries is impressive, spans the second half <strong>of</strong>20th-century filmmaking, and encompasseslive action as well as animated cinema. As isevident from the titles mentioned above, therewill be films that are familiar, and others thatwill be new to many viewers. Most importantly,it will reinforce the awareness that manyjazz lovers have <strong>of</strong> the place <strong>of</strong> jazz in film,and also open up the eyes <strong>of</strong> the uninitiatedto t<strong>his</strong> complementary relationship betweenjazz and film.For further information about the filmsalready scheduled, updates about futurescreenings, and ticket information, pleasevisit the MOMA website at www.moma.orgor call (212) 708-9480. The Museum <strong>of</strong>Modern Art is at 11 West 53rd Street,New York, NY 10019.JJ18__________________________________ May 2008
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