Tag: jazz

April Film Series — Mary Lou Williams: The Lady Who Swings the Band

This April, join the Delaware Historical Society for Saturday film screenings celebrating Arab American Heritage Month, Jazz Appreciation Month, and Earth Month. Screenings are available with admission to the Delaware History Museum.

For our final film in the series, we’ll celebrate Jazz Appreciation Month with a screening of “Mary Lou Williams: The Lady Who Swings the Band.”

During an era when Jazz was the nation’s popular music, Mary Lou Williams was one of its greatest innovators. As both a pianist and composer, she was a font of daring and creativity who helped shape the sound of 20th century America. Away from the piano, Williams was a woman in a “man’s world,” a black person in a “whites only” society, and an ambitious artist who dared to be different and struggled against the imperatives of being a “star.”

Winner of Outstanding Independent Documentary at the Black Reel Awards. Winner of the HBO Competition Award for Best Documentary at Martha’s Vineyard African American Film Festival.

April Film Series — Brownie Speaks

This April, join the Delaware Historical Society for Saturday film screenings celebrating Arab American Heritage Month, Jazz Appreciation Month, and Earth Month. Screenings are available with admission to the Delaware History Museum.

On April 12, in honor of Jazz Appreciation Month, we’ll screen “Brownie Speaks,” a feature-length documentary about the life, legacy, and music of Wilmington’s own Clifford Brown.

Jazz trumpeter Clifford Brown made an outstanding and influential contribution to music. This film presents a richly detailed account of Brown’s life, which was tragically cut short in a car accident when he was just 25 years old, and examines his historical importance in the context of three criteria–innovation, influence, and individuality.