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Jazz

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Episodes:

• Jazz: Ep.10 - A Masterpiece by Midnight

  JAZZ is a series that celebrates America's greatest original art form, a music whose improvisational spirit perfectly reflects the nation that gave it birth. Beginning with that birth at the dawn of the Twentieth Century, this is the first television series ever to tell the story of jazz. The series incorporates the wide range of American culture and historical events that interact directly with the music. In the tenth and final episode: during the Sixties, jazz is in trouble. Critics divide the music into "schools" - Dixieland, swing, bebop, hard bop, modal, free, avant-garde. But most young people are listening to rock 'n' roll. Though Louis Armstrong briefly outsells the Beatles with Hello Dolly, most jazz musicians are desperate for work and many head for Europe, including bebop saxophone master, Dexter Gordon. At home, jazz is searching for relevance. During the Civil Rights struggle, it becomes a voice of protest

  Length:	01:51:34

• Jazz: Ep.1 - Gumbo

  JAZZ is a series that celebrates America's greatest original art form, a music whose improvisational spirit perfectly reflects the nation that gave it birth. Beginning with that birth at the dawn of the Twentieth Century, this is the first television series ever to tell the story of jazz. The series incorporates the wide range of American culture and historical events that interact directly with the music. JAZZ begins in New Orleans, nineteenth century America's most cosmopolitan city, where the sound of marching bands, Italian opera, Caribbean rhythms, and minstrel shows fills the streets with a richly diverse musical culture. Tonight, meet the pioneers of this revolutionary art form.

  Length:	01:29:38

• Jazz: Ep.2 - The Gift

  JAZZ is a series that celebrates America's greatest original art form, a music whose improvisational spirit perfectly reflects the nation that gave it birth. Beginning with that birth at the dawn of the Twentieth Century, this is the first television series ever to tell the story of jazz. The series incorporates the wide range of American culture and historical events that interact directly with the music. Speakeasies, flappers, and easy money - it's the Jazz Age, when the story of jazz becomes a tale of two great cities, Chicago and New York, and of two extraordinary artists whose lives and music will span almost three-quarters of a century - Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington.

  Length:	01:49:17

• Jazz: Ep.3 - Our Language

  JAZZ is a series that celebrates America's greatest original art form, a music whose improvisational spirit perfectly reflects the nation that gave it birth. Beginning with that birth at the dawn of the Twentieth Century, this is the first television series ever to tell the story of jazz. The series incorporates the wide range of American culture and historical events that interact directly with the music. In the third episode, as the stock market continues to soar, jazz is everywhere in America, and now, for the first time soloists and singers take center stage, transforming the music with their distinctive voices and the unique stories they have to tell.

  Length:	01:53:25

• Jazz: Ep.4 - The True Welcome

  JAZZ is a series that celebrates America's greatest original art form, a music whose improvisational spirit perfectly reflects the nation that gave it birth. Beginning with that birth at the dawn of the Twentieth Century, this is the first television series ever to tell the story of jazz. The series incorporates the wide range of American culture and historical events that interact directly with the music. Episode four begins In 1929, when America enters a decade of economic desperation, as the Stock Market collapses and the Great Depression begins. New York is now America's jazz capital. On Broadway, Louis Armstrong revolutionizes the art of American popular song and displays a flair for showmanship that makes him one of the nation's top entertainers. But it is Duke Ellington who takes jazz "beyond category," composing hit tunes with a new sophistication that has critics comparing him to Stravinsky. Meanwhile, Benny Goodman is making a name for himself, broadcasting big-band jazz nationwide, based on Fletcher Henderson's arrangements.

  Length:	02:02:10

• Jazz: Ep.5 - Swing: Pure Pleasure

  JAZZ is a series that celebrates America's greatest original art form, a music whose improvisational spirit perfectly reflects the nation that gave it birth. Beginning with that birth at the dawn of the Twentieth Century, this is the first television series ever to tell the story of jazz. The series incorporates the wide range of American culture and historical events that interact directly with the music. In the fifth episode, as the Great Depression drags on, jazz comes as close as it has ever come to being America's popular music, providing entertainment and escape for a people down on their luck. It has a new name now - Swing - and for millions of young fans, it will be the defining music of their generation.

  Length:	01:29:48

• Jazz: Ep.6 - Swing: The Velocity of Celebration

  JAZZ is a series that celebrates America's greatest original art form, a music whose improvisational spirit perfectly reflects the nation that gave it birth. Beginning with that birth at the dawn of the Twentieth Century, this is the first television series ever to tell the story of jazz. The series incorporates the wide range of American culture and historical events that interact directly with the music. In the sixth episode, as the 1930's come to a close, Swing-mania is still going strong, but some fans are saying success has made the music too predictable. Their ears are tuned to a new sound - pulsing, stomping, suffused with the blues. It's the Kansas City sound of Count Basie's band and it quickly reignites the spirit of Swing.

  Length:	01:44:36

• Jazz: Ep.7 - Dedicated to Chaos

  JAZZ is a series that celebrates America's greatest original art form, a music whose improvisational spirit perfectly reflects the nation that gave it birth. Beginning with that birth at the dawn of the Twentieth Century, this is the first television series ever to tell the story of jazz. The series incorporates the wide range of American culture and historical events that interact directly with the music. In the seventh episode of the series, when America enters World War II, jazz is part of the arsenal. For many black Americans, however, that sound has a hollow ring. Segregated at home and in uniform, they find themselves fighting for liberties their own country denies them, as authorities padlock the Savoy Ballroom to keep servicemen off its integrated dance floor, and military police patrol Swing Street, breaking up fistfights sparked by prejudice and pride.

  Length:	01:58:46

• Jazz: Ep.8 - Risk

  JAZZ is a series that celebrates America's greatest original art form, a music whose improvisational spirit perfectly reflects the nation that gave it birth. Beginning with that birth at the dawn of the Twentieth Century, this is the first television series ever to tell the story of jazz. The series incorporates the wide range of American culture and historical events that interact directly with the music. In the eighth episode, the postwar years bring America to a level of prosperity unimaginable a decade before, but the Cold War threat of nuclear annihilation makes these anxious years as well. In jazz, this underlying tension will be reflected in the broken rhythms and dissonant melodies of bebop, and in the troubled life of bebop's biggest star, Charlie Parker.

  Length:	02:05:11

• Jazz: Ep.9 - The Adventure

  JAZZ is a series that celebrates America's greatest original art form, a music whose improvisational spirit perfectly reflects the nation that gave it birth. Beginning with that birth at the dawn of the Twentieth Century, this is the first television series ever to tell the story of jazz. The series incorporates the wide range of American culture and historical events that interact directly with the music. In the ninth episode, the late 1950s, America's postwar prosperity continues, but beneath the surface run currents of change. Families are moving to the suburbs, watching television has become the national pastime, and baby boomers have begun coming of age. For jazz, it is also a period of transition when old stars will burn out while young talents arise to take the music in new directions.

  Length:	01:54:56

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