Tag Archives: jazz

The Glenn Miller Story (1954)

You absolutely cannot name the greats of the Big Band era without listing Glenn Miller. His unique combination of jazz and Big Band made him a legend. In “The Glenn Miller Story,” we see his life portrayed by Jimmy Stewart as filmed in 1954, ten years after Miller’s death. Glenn has always wanted to be a musician. His greatest love is doing arrangements, but he has difficulty in selling his arrangements and has to pawn his trombone frequently in order to eat. As soon as he gets some money, he rescues his instrument, only to pawn it again later. He … Continue reading →

The Benny Goodman Story (1955)

I’m a huge fan of the music of the 1930’s-1940’s, so it was a treat for me to watch “The Benny Goodman Story” starring Steve Allen. As I always do when watching what is, supposedly, a true story, I went online to find out what parts of the movie were based on reality and which parts were fabricated for Hollywood. Unlike “Night and Day,” the story of Cole Porter, “The Benny Goodman Story” is largely based on fact. Benny was born to Polish immigrants and raised in the Jewish faith. Benny was introduced to the clarinet through a teacher at … Continue reading →

Using Jazz in Our School Curriculum

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Much research has shown that music enhances learning. Music has been researched in academic terms from listening to classical orchestras in the womb to music in the classroom. Washington University has taken music education one-step further. Throughout the month of July, the University will be hosting a summer institute for high school educators. The program will introduce the teachers to using jazz in their curriculum. Jazz began in the 1900s and has continued to be very popular in America. The idea is to inform teachers that the history of jazz can be used to help students expand their knowledge of … Continue reading →

The Philadephia Story (1940) and High Society (1956)

You’re getting two for one today. “High Society” is a musical remake of “The Philadelphia Story,” and the two movies are so similar, I thought I’d just review them side by side. The basic story is as follows: Tracy Lord, an aristocratic divorcee, is preparing for her second marriage. Her ex-husband, C. K. Dexter Haven, is a loveable lout who is still in love with her. He’s made no secret of the fact that he’d like her back, but she’s too stubborn to even talk about it. Tracy’s father has been philandering with an actress, and if the story gets … Continue reading →

Make Mine Music (1946)

“Make Mine Music” is a classic Disney film that was probably a lot more popular with kids of a past era than it is with kids today. It’s a series of songs accompanied by illustrations, but it has no overriding plot to tie it all up. It’s like watching a whole bunch of shorts strung together, and while all of them are well done, I’m not sure all of them are very interesting to today’s more particular audience. We start the movie with the song “Blue Bayou,” where we see everything painted in blue. We drift through some dangling Spanish … Continue reading →