Past screening

Blue Notes Records: Beyond the Notes

Directed by: Sophie Huber
Runtime: 1hr 25min Year: 2018

Details

Directed by: Sophie Huber
Runtime: 1hr 25min Year: 2018
Country: Switzerland, United States

In its eighty year history, the iconic American record label Blue Note has repeatedly pushed creative boundaries. Founded in 1939 by Jewish German refugees, who simply loved the new type of music called jazz, the label became a game changing platform for African Americans.

As some of Blue Notes’ biggest artists, including Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter, convene for an all stars album, they reflect on the outsized influence the label has had on their careers. Tracing Blue Notes’ collaboration with jazz greats like Thelonious Monk, John Coltrane and Miles Davis, the film highlights how the focus on freedom of expression over the bottom line allowed artists to flourish.

Throughout, the freewheeling music championed by the label changed with the age, evolving from the politically turbulent sixties to the current embracing of a hip hop aesthetic that reflects our troubled times.