Kamasi Washington Live At The Apollo Theater

Tenor saxophonist, composer and producer Kamasi Washington and his band perform a special show at Harlem's legendary Apollo Theater for the theatre's 85th year anniversary. Washington explores Harlem's rich musical and cultural history and the city's influence on his generation of artists.

The Jazz Ambassadors

The Cold War and Civil Rights collide in this remarkable story of music, diplomacy and race. Beginning in 1955, when America asked its greatest jazz artists to travel the world as cultural ambassadors, Louis Armstrong, Dizzy Gillespie, Duke Ellington and their mixed-race band members, faced a painful dilemma: how could they represent a country that still practiced Jim Crow segregation?

Thelonious Monk: Straight, No Chaser

A documentary film about the life of pianist and jazz great Thelonious Monk. Features live performances by Monk and his band, and interviews with friends and family about the offbeat genius.

Saxophone Colossus

Tenor saxophone master Sonny Rollins has long been hailed as one of the most important artists in jazz history, and still, today, he is viewed as the greatest living jazz improviser. In 1986, filmmaker Robert Mugge produced Saxophone Colossus, a feature-length portrait of Rollins, named after one of his most celebrated albums.

Black Journal: 26; Alice Coltrane

In this intimate portrait—produced for a segment of National Education Television's "Black Journal" television program—legendary jazz musician Alice Coltrane plays the harp and discusses her thoughts on music, spirituality, family, and the legacy of her late husband, John Coltrane.

Putte Wickman à la clarinette

Documentary about the Swedish clarinettist Putte Wickman featuring interviews and performances.

Blue Note - A Story of Modern Jazz

"It must schwing!" was the motto of Alfred Lion and Francis Wolff, two German Jewish immigrants who in 1939 set up Blue Note Records, the jazz label that was home to such greats as Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Herbie Hancock, Thelonious Monk, Art Blakey, Dexter Gordon and Sonny Rollins. Blue Note, the most successful movie ever made about jazz, is a testimony to the passion and vision of these two men and certainly swings like the propulsive sounds that made their label so famous.

Od začiatku až do kolísky – 80 rokov Petra Lipu

Who in the Hell Is Regina Jones?

Before Rolling Stone, there was Soul Newspaper. Behind Soul, there was Regina Jones. Against all odds, Regina blazed her own path, and at 80 has found herself again.

Let's Get Lost

Documentary about jazz great Chet Baker that intercuts footage from the 1950s, when he was part of West Coast Cool, and from his last years. We see the young Baker, he of the beautiful face, in California and in Italy, where he appeared in at least one movie and at least one jail cell (for drug possession). And, we see the aged Baker, detached, indifferent, his face a ruin. Includes interviews with his children and ex-wife, women companions, and musicians.

Trap Jazz

Atlanta musicians behind some of the biggest names in music embark on an uncertain journey into the spotlight with a new genre of music that fuses trap music with jazz.

Musician

Common sense says you can't make a living in America playing avant-garde improvisational jazz. But Ken Vandermark does it anyway. Among musicians, Vandermark's work ethic is almost mythic. The Chicago reed player has released over 100 albums with nearly 40 ensembles, spends over eight months per year on the road, and lives every other waking moment composing, arranging, performing—and trying to discipline his two hyperactive canines. Though Vandermark was the recipient of a 1999 MacArthur genius grant, he still spends most of his life in smoky clubs and low-budget recording studios, hoping people will plunk down hard-earned cash to hear his wholly non-commercial music. Following the artful cinéma vérité style of the internationally acclaimed Sheriff (Work Series #1), Musician (Work Series #2) forgoes all interviews and voice-overs. It is a fly-on-the-wall time capsule that expertly captures every subtle sound and texture of this most American of art forms.

Oscar Peterson: Music in the Key of Oscar

This riveting music documentary traces the history of Jazz piano legend Oscar Peterson, from his early days as Montreal's teenage Boogie-Woogie sensation through his meteoric rise to international celebrity with Norman Granz and the ground-breaking Jazz at the Philharmonic and beyond. In this award-winning autobiographical portrait, legendary jazz pianist Oscar Peterson narrates his story, from his beginnings in smoke-filled Montreal clubs to hallmark performances with jazz greats. Concert footage includes an unforgettable combo -- Nat King Cole with Jazz at the Philharmonic and the Oscar Peterson Trio Wall reunion. Quincy Jones, Ella Fitzgerald and Dizzy Gillespie are interviewed, among others. - Ray Brown, Herb Ellis, Ella Fitzgerald

Chasing Trane

An account of the life of the brilliant jazz musician John Coltrane (1926-67), a gifted saxophonist, an extraordinarily talented thinker whose original, avant-garde work has impacted and influenced people all over the world. A story about music's ability to entertain, inspire and transform.

Satchmo: The Life of Louis Armstrong

Satchmo. There are few people in this country - or around the world - who will not recognize that name. Louis Armstrong embodied 20th-century American culture. He revolutionized the world of music and became one of the nation's most influential entertainers. No other performer of his era has such a profound effect as a singer as well as an instrumentalist.

Vince Guaraldi: The Maestro of Menlo Park

A short documentary about Vince Guaraldi, the composer most well known for his work on several 'Peanuts' animated television specials.

Weird Nightmare

A tribute to Charles Mingus.

Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool

An immersive look at the eventful life and brilliant artistic career of visionary American jazz trumpeter Miles Davis (1926-1991).

Thunder Soul

Jamie Foxx presents the inspiring true story of high school band leader Conrad O. Johnson, who transformed his ragtag jazz band students into a legendary funk powerhouse that took the nation by storm.

Untitled Earth, Wind & Fire Documentary

Examines the legacy, cultural impact, and body of work of American R&B/punk/jazz/soul/disco band Earth, Wind & Fire, and will feature exclusive access to the band’s archives of visual, audio, and written material, as well as the support of the estate of Maurice White and the band.