Celebrating Bird: The Triumph of Charlie Parker
The first and only authorized documentary about one of the great legends in American music.
A virtuoso saxophonist, Parker created a new style of jazz before his death at thirty-four and won equal fame as the king of the hipsters. Film clips, photos, and interviews trace Parker's life from Kansas City, where he was born, to his ascendancy as a pioneer in the New York City jazz scene of the 1950's, where he transformed jazz traditions into startling and innovative music. "Celebrating Bird" is the story of a musical era.
With Jay McShann, Dizzy Gillespie, Leonard Feather, Chan Parker, Roy Haynes, Roy Porter, Frank Morgan, and Parker's first wife, Rebecca, interviewed here for the first and only time.
Produced by Toby Byron; directed by Gary Giddins and Kendrick Simmons; written by Gary Giddins; narrated by Ted Ross.
A coproduction of Toby Byron/Multiprises, Sony Video Software, and Pioneer Laserdisc.
58:30
The first and only authorized documentary about one of the great legends in American music.
A virtuoso saxophonist, Parker created a new style of jazz before his death at thirty-four and won equal fame as the king of the hipsters. Film clips, photos, and interviews trace Parker's life from Kansas City, where he was born, to his ascendancy as a pioneer in the New York City jazz scene of the 1950's, where he transformed jazz traditions into startling and innovative music. "Celebrating Bird" is the story of a musical era.
With Jay McShann, Dizzy Gillespie, Leonard Feather, Chan Parker, Roy Haynes, Roy Porter, Frank Morgan, and Parker's first wife, Rebecca, interviewed here for the first and only time.
Produced by Toby Byron; directed by Gary Giddins and Kendrick Simmons; written by Gary Giddins; narrated by Ted Ross.
A coproduction of Toby Byron/Multiprises, Sony Video Software, and Pioneer Laserdisc.
58:30
Awards
1990--Special invitation screenings, Umbria Jazz Festival, Italy, and North Sea Jazz Festival, Den Haag, Netherlands: "Celebrating Bird"
1987--American Film Institute/Billboard American Video Conference, Best
Music Video Longform: "Celebrating Bird: The Triumph of Charlie Parker"
1987--Video Magazine’s Best Music Video Documentary: "Celebrating Bird: The Triumph of Charlie Parker"
1987--American Film Institute/Billboard American Video Conference, Best
Music Video Longform: "Celebrating Bird: The Triumph of Charlie Parker"
1987--Video Magazine’s Best Music Video Documentary: "Celebrating Bird: The Triumph of Charlie Parker"
