Jazz and the French new wave in film

[ghost of miles]

Hey all, I'm preparing yet another radio show, this one on jazz and its usage in films of the French new wave.

Some of the films and soundtracks I'm focusing on include ELEVATOR TO THE GALLOWS (Miles Davis), BREATHLESS (Martial Solal), and DANGEROUS LIAISONS (Art Blakey & Duke Jordan). I'm looking for any articles and/or books that might discuss this topic.

Edited April 6, 2003 by ghost of miles

[brownie]

Ghost, the only books I know on the subject (there aren't many) are in French.

One suggestion, of the three films you mention only Godard's Breathless was

considered part of the French cinema New Wave. The two others (by Roger Vadim

and Louis Malle) were at best considered marginal contributors to the New Wave.

The actual French New Wave directors (Truffaut, Rivette, Rohmer, etc) were not

jazz fans. Godard was (he still is) an original who was/is interested in all

type of good music.

One worthy contributor to a New Wave film jazz score would be John Cassavettes

(and the music to his film 'Shadows).

In any case, the film music you have selected is excellent (New Wave or not)!

[ghost of miles]

Brownie, thanks for the quick education on the French New Wave. Perhaps I'd better broaden my approach to "Jazz and postwar French cinema..."

[Alexander Hawkins]

One film in which jazz seems to play an important part (a metaphor for escapism, in a gross oversimplification) is 'La Souffle au Coeur' by Louis Malle. That doesn't really answer your question, but perhaps is useful?!?

[Lemgruber]

The sound track of "Le Souffle au coeur" is mostly Charlie Parker's tune.

No need to bring this film to listen to Bird.

Louis Malle and Vadim are not considered as "Nouvelle vague" director.

But their films as open the way to the "Nouvelle Vague" directors.

Jean-Luc Godard liked a lot "Et Dieu créa la femme".

"Détective", a Godard film from 1985 with Johnny Hallyday, Jean-Pierre Leaud, Nathalie Baye & Claude Brasseur, he features some Ornette Coleman Music.

In the press conference in Cannes that Year, He indicates than he chooses OC to be in the soundtrack because "the critic spoke about him as they spoke about me, saying: what he was doing before is far better than what he is doing now". The assistance laught a lot but I think he was dead serious when making this statement.

As the "Nouvelle vague" is concern, and at the exception of Jacques Rosier ("Adieu Philippine", music by Maxime Saury) only second rate "Nouvelle vague" directors use jazz as soundtrack like Edouard Molinaro in "Des Femmes Disparaissent" (Art Blakey & The Jazz Messenger).

Vadim as also uses Art Blakey for "Les Liaisons Dangereuses".

It's Jean-Pierre Melville, who was considered as the "grand frère" of the "Nouvelle vague" who tell to Godard to take Martial Solal for the score of "A Bout de souffle".

It was also Melville who recommend Martial Solal for write the soundtrack of "Les Parents terribles".

Melville, himself as always use "jazz ambiance" in most of his film noir but never hired a real jazz musician to write a score for him, except, again, Martial Solal partly for "Deux hommes dans Manhattan" (1958) and, before that, Bernard Peiffer (with guitare solo by Sacha Distel) for "Quand tu liras cette lettre" (1953). Eddie Barclay as also write the music of "Bob le flambeur" but the main was much on the side of the "international variety" than real jazz. In "Le Doulos" the "piano bar music" who give his mood to the last spoken scene of the movie was writte (but not play) by Jacques Loussier.

If you want find jazz in french film, you must look for the second or third generation of post "Nouvelle vague" directors such as Jean-Louis Comolli or more straight one as Bertrand Tavernier or Claude Sautet.

[Guest Mnytime]

TCM is showin Michel Legrand's The Umbrellas of Cherbourg at 2am Eastern Sat, which is a Jazz Opera.

Some useful sites

http://www.loc.gov/rr/mopic/jazz/intro.html

[ghost of miles]

Lemgruber & Mnytime, thanks for your informative and helpful posts.