Pittsburgh's Own Regional Notables of Jazz
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PITTSBURGH JAZZ
From Blakey to Brown, Como to Costa, Eckstine to Eldridge, Galbraith to Garner, Harris to Hines, Horne to Hyman, Jamal to Jefferson, Kelly to Klook; Mancini to Marmarosa, May to Mitchell, Negri to Nestico, Parlan to Ponder, Reed to Ruther, Strayhorn to Sullivan, Turk to Turrentine, Wade to Williams… the forthcoming publication Treasury of Pittsburgh Jazz Connections by Dr. Nelson Harrison and Dr. Ralph Proctor, Jr. will document the legacy of one of the world’s greatest jazz capitals.
Do you want to know who Dizzy Gillespie idolized? Did you ever wonder who inspired Kenny Clarke and Art Blakey? Who was the pianist that mentored Monk, Bud Powell, Tad Dameron, Elmo Hope, Sarah Vaughan and Mel Torme? Who was Art Tatum’s idol and Nat Cole’s mentor? What musical quartet pioneered the concept adopted later by the Modern Jazz Quartet? Were you ever curious to know who taught saxophone to Stanley Turrentine or who taught piano to Ahmad Jamal? What community music school trained Robert McFerrin, Sr. for his history-making debut with the Metropolitan Opera? What virtually unknown pianist was a significant influence on young John Coltrane, Shirley Scott, McCoy Tyner, Bobby Timmons and Ray Bryant when he moved to Philadelphia from Pittsburgh in the 1940s? Would you be surprised to know that Erroll Garner attended classes at the Julliard School of Music in New York and was at the top of his class in writing and arranging proficiency?
Some answers can be gleaned from the postings on the Pittsburgh Jazz Network.
For almost 100 years the Pittsburgh region has been a metacenter of jazz originality that is second to no other in the history of jazz. One of the best kept secrets in jazz folklore, the Pittsburgh Jazz Legacy has heretofore remained mythical. We have dubbed it “the greatest story never told” since it has not been represented in writing before now in such a way as to be accessible to anyone seeking to know more about it. When it was happening, little did we know how priceless the memories would become when the times were gone.
Today jazz is still king in Pittsburgh, with events, performances and activities happening all the time. The Pittsburgh Jazz Network is dedicated to celebrating and showcasing the places, artists and fans that carry on the legacy of Pittsburgh's jazz heritage.
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MARY LOU WILLIAMS
INTERVIEW
HARLEM IN MONMARTRE - PBS SPECIAL
Event Details
Time: August 26, 2009 from 8pm to 9:30pm
Location: PBS WQED CHANNEL 13 television
Street: 4802 Fifth Avenue
City/Town: Pittsburgh, PA
Website or Map: http://www.wqed.org
Phone: 412-622-1381 or 1-800-876-1316
Event Type: television, documentary
Organized By: Dr. Nelson Harrison
Latest Activity: Aug 26, 2009
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Event Description
This Wed., August 26, 2009 8:00 pm (90 minutes
It is being aired in all 50 states this week. Please check your local listings.
Dr. Nelson Harrison makes a comment on camera in the early segment of this documentary (in the 15 - 18 minute time slot. Appearing later in the film are Pittsburgh Jazz Legends Joe Harris (drums) and Ray Brown (bass) playing with Dizzy Gillespie's Big Band.
S. Epatha Merkerson narrates the story of the jazz age in Paris, which flourished between the First and Second World Wars because some black U.S. veterans remained in Europe rather than returning to segregated America.
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/gperf/episodes/harlem-in-montmartre/preview-of-harlem-in-montmartre/827/
...Vanguard Documentaries Executive Producer Charles Hobson reveals, “The French were the first people in the world to respect jazz as serious art form, and it all began in Paris with the arrival of the Harlem Hellfighters, a military band.”
Directed by Dante J. James, with performance sequences directed by Olivier Simmonet, and written by James and Simmonet with Allan Miller, the production was co-produced by Smilow with Hobson and Helene Le Coeur; S. Epatha Merkerson narrates...
Comment Wall
Comment
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Comment by Lady on August 26, 2009 at 9:52am
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I would love to be there. I'm right now in Amsterdam - Netherlands. We'll keep in touch, Love Peace & Music, Lady
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Comment by shirley riley-davis on August 26, 2009 at 8:07am
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i would love to be there. i would love to attend all of the fabulous events dr, harrison puts together but i live in michigan. i have this book. won't the documentary be shown on pbs for all the world to see.
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Comment by Dr. Nelson Harrison on August 26, 2009 at 6:48am
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Beloved American jazz singer and bandleader Cab Calloway once said, “You hear about the Duke Ellingtons, the Jimmy Luncefords, the Fletcher Hendersons, but people sometimes forget that jazz was not only built in the minds of the great ones, but on the backs of the ordinary ones.”
While far from ordinary, Harlem in Montmartre tells the story of the long-forgotten “extraordinary ones,” who left America to create the jazz age in Paris between the First and Second World Wars. After peace was signed at Versailles, many black Americans remained in Europe rather than return to the brutal segregation and racism of America.
Over the next two decades, they formed an expatriate community of musicians, entertainers and entrepreneurs, primarily congregating in Paris’ hilly Montmartre neighborhood. Some achieved enduring fame, while others faded into history.
Harlem in Montmartre airs as part of PBS’ Great Performances series on THIRTEEN Wednesday, August 26th at 8 p.m. EST (check local listings). The documentary is a co-production of THIRTEEN for WNET.ORG, Vanguard Documentaries, Inc., Ideale Audience SAS, ARTE France and Independent Television Service (ITVS).
Inspired by the book Harlem in Montmartre: a Paris Jazz Story (University of California Press) by historian William A. Shack and utilizing rare archival material from both France and America, this remarkable performance- driven documentary features the stories and music of such key figures as James Reese Europe, Josephine Baker, Sidney Bechet, Bricktop, Eugene Bullard, Django Reinhardt and more.
“The film explores a fascinating, yet often neglected, era in African-American cultural history” says producer Margaret Smilow. “It is a colorful, musical, poignant look at the contributions of a select group of black Americans, without whom the collective voice of jazz music around the world would sound entirely different.”
Upcoming episodes
Airs on
WETA TV 26
Wed., August 26, 2009
8:00 pm
(90 minutes)
Harlem in Montmartre
S. Epatha Merkerson narrates the story of the jazz age in Paris, which flourished between the First and Second World Wars because some black U.S. veterans remained in Europe rather than returning to segregated America.
Rating: TV-PG
Airs on
WETA HD
Wed., August 26, 2009
8:00 pm
(90 minutes)
Harlem in Montmartre
S. Epatha Merkerson narrates the story of the jazz age in Paris, which flourished between the First and Second World Wars because some black U.S. veterans remained in Europe rather than returning to segregated America.
Rating: TV-PG
Airs on
WETA HD
Thu., August 27, 2009
12:30 am
(90 minutes)
Harlem in Montmartre
S. Epatha Merkerson narrates the story of the jazz age in Paris, which flourished between the First and Second World Wars because some black U.S. veterans remained in Europe rather than returning to segregated America.
Rating: TV-PG
Airs on
WETA TV 26
Thu., August 27, 2009
1:30 pm
(90 minutes)
Harlem in Montmartre
S. Epatha Merkerson narrates the story of the jazz age in Paris, which flourished between the First and Second World Wars because some black U.S. veterans remained in Europe rather than returning to segregated America.
Rating: TV-PG
Airs on
WETA HD
Thu., August 27, 2009
1:30 pm
(90 minutes)
Harlem in Montmartre
S. Epatha Merkerson narrates the story of the jazz age in Paris, which flourished between the First and Second World Wars because some black U.S. veterans remained in Europe rather than returning to segregated America.
Rating: TV-PG
Airs on
WETA TV 26
Fri., August 28, 2009
1:30 am
(90 minutes)
Harlem in Montmartre
S. Epatha Merkerson narrates the story of the jazz age in Paris, which flourished between the First and Second World Wars because some black U.S. veterans remained in Europe rather than returning to segregated America.
Rating: TV-PG
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