Westport Public Library MOVIE & MUSIC Blog

It was quite interesting to learn how Armstrong cancelled a 1957 tour to the Soviet Union due to the government's mishandling of school integration in Little Rock, Arkansas. His temerity caused the United States government to reconsider their position, and Armstrong later led a jazz trip to South America. This cultural diplomacy was described in great detail by Penny Van Eschen in Satchmo Blows Up the World: Jazz Ambassadors Play the Cold War.

It is quite fitting for our Library to host a lecture on Louis Armstrong two days before his purported birthday of July 4th. Author and scholar Todd Bryant Weeks, who has taught Jazz History and Introduction to Music at Rutgers University and has lectured at the Institute of Jazz Studies in Newark and at the Louis Armstrong House Museum in Corona, New York, will share his knowledge of this remarkable musician on Wednesday, July 2 at 7:30 p.m. in the McManus Room.

Anderson was born and raised in Cambridge, Massachusetts where he studied piano and organ with his mother and Henry Gideon, and double bass with Gaston Dufresne. His undergraduate years were spent at Harvard where his composition teachers were Walter Piston and George Enescu. Anderson followed his exuberant instincts by conducting the Harvard Band and playing accordion. His unusual arrangements of Harvard University's songs were heard by the young conductor of the Boston Pops Arthur Fiedler, who had him orchestrate and compose original works for the Pops. His 1938 pieces "Jazz Pizzicato" and "Jazz Legato," became hits and were followed by more than 50 other light classics like "Governor Bradford March", "The Typewriter", "Blue Tango", "The Penny-Whistle Song", etc. His specialty of light classical music calls to mind Franz von Suppe's operetta overtures and songs, Antonin Dvorak's Slavonic Dances and Johann Strauss's waltzes and polkas.

Among the honors posthumously bestowed upon him were a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1976 for his contribution to the recording industry, a bandstand dedicated it to him on Woodbury Connecticut's North Green in 1986, election to the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1988, the naming of Harvard University Band headquarters In 1995 and the dedication of the corner of Chatham and Crawford Streets as Leroy Anderson Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts on May 31, 2003.

Mama Mia – My My

Mama Mia! With the penchant to turn hit Broadway shows into movies, it was just a matter of time until the hit Broadway play made it to the big screen. July 18th marks the release of the all star cast movie staring some pretty heavy hitters from the world of film including Meryl Streep, Pierce Bronson and Colin Firth. (I imagine we’ll reserve judgment until after the release.) Rounding out the cast is a genuine Broadway musical veteran, Christine Baranski who is no stranger to film adaptations of musical comedy hits. She was featured in The Birdcage based on Harvey Fierstein and Jerry Herman’s Tony Award winning hit La Cage Aux Folles which was based on a French film.
Upcoming Birthdays

Perhaps I am stretching, but there is something to be said for the time warp connection between Broadway, movies and actors. (Just ask Rocky Horror fans.)

Jean Marsh, like the above mentioned Colin Firth, is no stranger to British period pieces. The library collection has a great representation of films based on literary classics, many of which feature this actress who became well known to American audiences through her performance in the British TV series Upstairs/Downstairs. She turns 74 on July 1st.

And Mel Brooks who made a comedy, The Producers that morphed into a Broadway musical phenomenon and then turned right around and became a film is 80 this Saturday.

Oh, and Meryl Streep just turned 60 last Sunday. Coincidence? I wonder...

For those lovers of Broadway tunes, familiar operatic melodies, light classics and outdoor ambience, the Greater Bridgeport Symphony has a treat for you. On Saturday, June 28, 2008, this organization will be giving a free outdoor concert on the grounds of Fairfield University at 8:00 p.m. Conductor Matthew Savery will be at the helm, and the winner of the 2007 Jenny Lind Competition, Rebecca Sjowall, will sing selected songs.

Mr. Savery serves as music director of the Bozeman Montana Symphony Orchestra and Symphonic Chorus and has led other groups including the Boise Philharmonic, Butte Symphony Orchestra, Naples Philharmonic and Springfield, Massachusetts Symphony Orchestra. As of July 2008, he will become the leader of the Wyoming Symphony Orchestra.

Ms. Sjowall's solo soprano roles have been Alice Ford in Verdi's Falstaff, La Marchesa del Poggio in Verdi's Un Giorno di Regno, Marguerite in Auber's Manon Lescaut and Pamina in Mozart's Magic Flute.

The Greater Bridgeport Symphony will demonstrate their expertise in Bernstein's Overture to Candide, Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture, and songs by George M. Cohan, George Gershwin and Rodgers and Hammerstein. If you come early, feel free to pack and enjoy a picnic feast.

Since we are enjoying the outdoor life with the clear blue skies, blooming flowers and all types of wildlife, we may want to listen to some popular summertime tunes. Songs that come to mind from the Library's collection include ABBA's Our Last Summer, Beach Boys' Summertime Blues, Chad and Jeremy's A Summer Song, Kirsty MacColl's Last Day of Summer, John Mellencamp's Summer of Love.

If you are contemplating a trip to Europe, Classical Destinations: An Armchair Guide to Classical Music by Matt Wills should not be missed. This book which is based on a PBS television series, is a sweeping photographic travelogue and discussion of classical music's significant European cities and their composers. As you peruse these pages and learn about the architecture, the history and tourist spots, your imagination will take flight as you visualize Vivaldi scurrying around Venice tending to his duties as priest, music teacher, violinist, and composer, or contemplate the development of Mozart's genius by his father Leopold in the family's third floor apartment at Getreidegasse 9 in Salzburg.

The book is organized by country with notable facts about the major composers as well as useful visitor information about the area. It can enhance one's journey with the color photographs, musical treats and special ways that the composers influenced the cities where they resided and touched the lives of their inhabitants. Even if you do not travel, it can whet your appetite for future study and enjoyment.

A different perspective of music in Europe during the 18th century may be gotten from Daniel Heartz's Music in European Capitals:The Galant Style, 1720-1780. This scholarly exploration of the capital cities which were paramount in the genesis and spread of music of that era, contains black-and-white and color depictions of various composers associated with a particular city as well as numerous musical examples. The author documents his work with specialized studies that demonstrate the cultural, economic, and social background of a region. This academic treasure will challenge all readers.

Should you wish to enhance your reading experience, the Library has the music of many of the composers mentioned in both books including Johann Sebastian Bach, Antonin Dvorak, Felix Mendelssohn or Modeste Mussorgsky.

Elgar, Edward. Pomp & Circumstances Marches 1-5

Fifes & Drums of Williamsburg. Marching Out of Time

Sousa, John Philip. El Capitan

Sousa, John Philip. Stars & Stripes ForeverSousa, John

Sousa, John Philip. West Point March

Wagner, Richard. Grand March from Tannhauser

Walton, William. Crown Imperial: A Coronation March

Walton, William. Fanfare and Marches

Williams, John. Olympic Fanfare

This afternoon I had the pleasure to attend author Max Wilk’s talk on They're Playing Our Song: Conversations with America's Classic Songwriters. This new edition of his 1973 book has 26 oral histories of legendary composers and lyricists with interviews that give readers an up-close-and-personal look at the individuals and inspirations behind some of the words and melodies that made musical history. Mr. Wilk provided anecdotes and recollections of some of these gifted individuals including Richard Rodgers, Oscar Hammerstein II, Lorenz Hart and Jule Styne. He also read some bad, insufferable lyrics from popular songs. Soprano Susan Terry and pianist Mark Cherry performed songs from Bells Are Ringing, Gypsy and Babes in Arms.

During the question and answer period, a member of the audience asked him if he had ever heard of a particular song that she had known many years ago. Another attendee started to sing it. After the talk, I located the title and words and wish to share it. The song, “The Carburetor – The Automobile Song” was written by Jewish comedian and vaudevillian Benjamin (Bell) Zamberg and was originally recorded in the 1940's.

A couple was once seated in a little motor car,
They were sweethearts and they didn't care who knew
They were holding hands together as the motor loudly roared
And the price of gas went up to twenty-two
He was an automobile mechanic working steady throughout the year
And in terms of his profession, he whispered in her ear

Will you love me when my carburetor's busted,
Will you love me when I cannot shift my gears?
When my spark plug is as dead as Kelsey's doorknob,
And my clutch begins to slip, will you shed tears?
Will you love me when my old exhaust gets noisy,
Will you love me when my pump is on the blink?
By heck,
When my fender has a dent,
And my piston-rod is bent,

Will you love me when my flivver is a wreck?
Will you love me when my fuel pipe is empty,
Will you love me when my rear end's worn and torn,
Will you love me when my rim-rod's old and rusty,
Will you love me when I cannot blow my horn?
Will you love me when my inner tube is busted,
Will you love me when my tank begins to leak?
By heck,
When the junkman says, "No use",
And my nuts and bolts are loose,
Will you love me when my flivver is a wreck?

On Monday night June 9, 2008, author and disc jockey Pete Fornatale will expound on this remarkable partnership from his book Simon and Garfunkel's Bookends at 7:30 p.m. in the Library’s McManus Room. His book, compiled from interviews with the musicians, digests and dissects the personalities and the products of this creative, volatile team.

If you want to read more about Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel, the Library has Victoria Kingston's Simon & Garfunkel: the Biography and The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll. Their music may be sampled from Bookends, Bridge Over Troubled Water, Collected Works and Sounds of Silence.

There is still time to see some of the films from the Utah festival at Sundance at BAM hosted by the Brooklyn Academy of Music. The screenings end June 8th.

Israeli movies are becoming more and more popular in the United States, particularly in the tri-state area. There is just one day left for the Film Society of Lincoln Center’s Israel@60 series. However, we have a wide selection of Hebrew films including several shown at the festival. Ushpizin is the story of Moshe and Malli (played by the real-life couple Shuli and Michal Bat-Sheva Rand), new adherents to religious orthodoxy. The couple spends the Sukkot holiday praying for a child as well as for guests to come and share their temporary abode. They get a little more than prayed for when 2 fugitive criminals invade their space, one of whom happens to be Moshe’s old friend from his pre-religious days. Campfire (Medurat Hashevet) focuses on a 42 year-old widowed mother of 2 teenaged daughters with their own rebellions who wants to join a founding group of a new settlement in the West Bank. Or, the title character in this film, has a full time job in a restaurant but a part-time job taking care of her ailing Mother. The movie is of a mature nature. Close to Home (Karov la Bayit) explores the friendship between two very different female soldiers assigned to Magaz, the Israeli Border Patrol and explores the experience of women in the Israeli army.

His band, known as the Jive Cats, eventually auditioned for Chess Records in 1954; the release of the single "Bo Diddley" on the Checker label in early 1955 reached the number 2 position on the rhythm and blues chart followed by "I'm a Man". His biggest popular hit was in 1959 with "Say Man". He toured steadily throughout the 1950's, 1960's and early 1970's. Many of his songs were later covered by the British pop groups including the Animals, the Rolling Stones and the Yardbirds.

Although he felt that he was monetarily cheated by the recording industry, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986 and the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences Hall of Fame in 1998. He had the distinction of appearing at two presidential inaugurations for George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton.

This You Tube video captures the essence of Bo Diddley:

Michael Delson a Staples High student is currently interning at the Westport Library as part of the pilot year of their Senior Internship Program. He is one of many students gaining real world work experience. As his major project he is helping with the continuation of an ongoing DVD collection enhancement project made possible by generous grants from the Adolph and Ruth Schnutmacher Foundation, Inc. Michael is tracking VHS usage by genre through our catalog records which detail the number of times an item was checked out to the public. Using a formula based on this plus how recently the video was circulated he is helping AV staff determine the priority for ordering a DVD copy of the movie. But his job doesn’t stop there. At this point, Michael picks up and writes his first blog entry for us.

The next part of the project involves going into the library’s vendor (Baker & Taylor) ordering website to see if the DVD is available to purchase. If so, I create a shopping cart for Beth, the selector to review. I’ve already completed looking at the war videos and now I’m in the middle of a really popular genre, action/adventure. I’m a little less excited about the next two genres to review, Romance and Musicals! I am finding some surprises about some movies the library doesn’t own on DVD yet, such as the Terminator movies. But my part in the project will help change that. I was surprised to learn that some of the most popular movies have gone out over 300+ times. A movie I never heard of Payback, checked out 303 times. One movie I like went out 540 times.

I’ve loved my time so far at the library and think that it is one of the most fascinating experiences in my first 18 years!