By Jill Yesko , University Relations
Contact (336) 334-3890
Posted: 1-4-07
GREENSBORO, N.C. – The musical, cultural and social history of jazz will be the subject of a six-part film and discussion series titled “Looking at Jazz: America’s Art Form.” The series will take place Sundays, Jan. 14 – Feb. 18, at 2 p.m. at the Weatherspoon Art Museum at UNCG.
The series focuses on the origins of jazz and its many forms, from its roots in New Orleans-style rags and marches, to bebop, swing, Latin jazz and contemporary International fusion. Participants will view clips from films and documentaries with jazz scores.
Students from UNCG’s Miles Davis Jazz Studies Program will perform at each event. Steve Haines, associate professor at the School of Music and director of the Miles Davis Jazz Studies Program will lead a discussion of each session’s topic.“The history of United States can be seen through the lens of jazz,” said Haines. “Jazz at its core is music of optimism; it can heal.”
Specific topics include:
January 14: New Orleans and the Origins of Jazz
January 21: The Jazz Age and Harlem as the Center for Jazz
January 28: The Jazz Vocalists
February 4: The Swing Era
February 11: Jazz Innovators
February 18: Latin Jazz and Jazz as an International Music
UNCG is one of 50 locations nationwide selected to participate. The series is part of a national initiative of Re:New Media in partnership the American Library Association and Jazz at Lincoln Center and with major support from the National Endowment for the Humanities.
“UNCG is the perfect backdrop for this series because we can offer a full selection of resources for further study of any of the topics related to jazz,” said Sarah Dorsey, director of the Music Library at UNCG and project coordinator. Films from the series will be available for viewing at the Music Library.
Holding the series at the Weatherspoon Art Museum provides additional ways for audiences to experience the history of jazz within the context of the visual arts of that time, according to Ann Grimaldi, curator of education at the Weatherspoon.
The series is sponsored by the UNCG University Libraries, the School of Music, the Weatherspoon Art Museum and the UNCG Miles Davis Jazz Studies Program.
The public is welcome at no charge to the events. For more information about Looking at Jazz, visit www.uncg.edu/mus. For more information about the Weatherspoon Art Museum, visit http://weatherspoon.uncg.edu.
