A five DVD set gathering programs from the Masters of American Music series of jazz documentaries will be released by Naxos USA and EuroArts on October 25. The first four discs focus on the individual performers Charlie Parker, Billie Holiday, Thelonious Monk and Sarah Vaughan, while the fifth is called “The Story of Jazz.”
Over 80 interviews were filmed in the making of the series, which also includes rare performances, period footage and vintage photographs. The DVDs were previously released individually during 2009-10. This limited edition “best of” box available at a suggested retail price of $39.99.
Program
DVD1: Lady Day-The Many Faces of Billie Holiday: Includes: What a Little Moonlight Can Do, You can’t Take That Away From Me, Lover Man, On the Sunny Side of the Street, God Bless the Child, Strange Fruit, Fine and Mellow, and Swing, Brother, Swing.
DVD2: Celebrating Bird-The Triumph of Charlie Parker: The first and only authorized documentary about Bird.
DVD3: Sarah Vaughan-The Divine One: This production recounts the career of Sarah Vaughan, from her beginnings at the Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Newark, N.J., to her debut at the Apollo Theater and her pre-eminence in nightclubs, concert halls and jazz festivals around the world.
DVD4: Thelonious Monk-American Composer: A bio of the renowned pianist/composer.
DVD5: The Story of Jazz: Profiles some of the music’s pivotal figures: John Coltrane, Sarah Vaughan, Miles Davis, Count Basie, Thelonious Monk, Billie Holiday and Charlie Parker. The film places these important artists into historical context, allowing us to see them in the proper perspective.
Picture format DVD: NTSC 4:3 Sounds formats DVD: PCM Mono 2.0 Region code: 0
Booklet notes: English, German, French
Subtitles: German, English, French
Running time: DVD1 59 mins, DVD2 59 mins, DVD3 56 mins, DVD4 59 mins, DVD5 98 mins
5-DVD ‘Masters of American Music’ Set Due
Includes Bird, Monk, Billie, Sarah and ‘The Story of Jazz’