The Devil's Horn.

Format:

Video

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

United States and Canada.

Performing arts life.

Local Subjects:

United States and Canada.

Performing arts life.

Genre:

Documentary

Physical Description:

1 online resource (81 minutes)

Place of Publication:

Paris, Ile-de-France : Qwest TV, 2015.

Language Note:

In English.

Original language in English.

System Details:

video file

Summary:

What a historical treat examining the history and development of jazz's great instrument: the saxophone and its mythic—and real—view as "the devil's horn." With a voiceover of the instrument's beginnings (invented by Adolph Sax in Belgium) and development in various cultures and eras, the documentary is an ear-opener, eye-opener of the sax's development with lots of interview time with Jimmy Heath, who tells his stories of coming up with the classics Charlie Parker and Sonny Rollins. There are visual interviews and concert excerpts as well as a review of stories of tragic ends of the saxophone greats. "It casts a spell that can never be broken" is what drives this film forward. But there are also the sweet stories of how people respect the saxophone that "allowed the players to bend the sound to their will." Throughout it's the profound storyline: that the sax was a "symbol of unbridled freedom and all its consequences." Extremely entertaining and high-grade filmmaking. *RIP to Jimmy Heath. Qwest TV will continue to celebrate the career and legacy of this jazz legend, who was a big part of this documentary, as well as the development of his favoured instrument: the saxophone. 19/01/2020. Dan Ouellette

Notes:

Title from resource description page (viewed July 15, 2024).