Ray Nance

Ray Nance, born in Chicago in 1913, passed quite 25 years to play trumpet, cornet, violin, to dance and sing in the Duke Ellington's orchestra.

"Ray Nance never played a bad note in his life, so this makes him unique among artists who practice freedom of expression in music. Singer, violonist, cornetist, and dancer, he is consistently a gas!...
There's really only one. Ray Nance."

"Ray Nance n'a jamais joué une seule fausse note de sa vie, ce qui en fait un personnage unique parmi les artistes attachés à la liberté d'expression en musique. Chanteur, violoniste, trompettiste et danseur, il est excellent en tout! ... 

C'est un pur artiste, et aucun trompettiste n'improvise sur le "Take the "A" train" de Billy Strayhorn sans citer des passages de son solo dans le premier enregistrement de ce morceau...

Que dire d'autre de cette homme de petite taille, mais qui dominait de dix coudées ses collègues et concurrents? Ray Nance est unique."

Duke Ellington in "Music is my mistress" - 1973

More details and music about this amazing artist, across his career, at "Latino Bar"

& as a prologue,

Duke Ellington - C Jam Blues (1942) with Ray Nance playing violin

Radio Nova' jingles

From the early 80s, some more new "Radio Nova archives" in Paris, France,
when this radio was cheeky, experimental and free.

and many others on "Radio Nova archives" 

Herakles 2

"Herakles 2" is a music for 5 brass instruments, drum and sampler
composed by Heiner Goebbels in 1992
Commissioned by the Ensemble Intercontemporain, it was first released in Paris,
then on the 1993 ECM record interpreted by Ensemble Moderne.

The title was taken from prose text in Heiner Muller's play "Zement" which describes Hercules' second task, his struggle with the Hydra.
The structure of the music is inspired by the architecture of the text.

"For a long time, he believed he was still walking through the woods, in the stupefying hot winds that seemed to blow from all directions, making the trees twist like serpents in the immutable dusk, following a barely visible spoor of blood on the steadily shifting ground, alone in his battle with the beast..."

Here live in concert in Hannover, Germany
29th of March 2012
with the music brass Ensemble Schwerpunkt

other Heiner Goebbels' works on "Beyond the coda" : <<<>>>

Wings of desire

Unforgetable!
great song, great singer, great film!

46 bis

En 1988, Pascal Baes réalise un court métrage 16mm en noir et blanc intitulé "46 bis".
Interprété par les danseuses Laurence Rondoni et Sara Denizot, ce film expérimental est tourné en pixilation, technique d'animation où des acteurs réels ou des objets sont filmés image par image.
Pascal Baes réalisera par la suite de nombreux films expérimentaux dont le non moins célèbre "Topic", tourné à Prague en 1989. 

In 1988, Pascal Baes directed a short film 16mm in black and white entitled "46 bis".
Interpreted by dancers Laurence Rondoni and Sara Denizot, this experimental film was shot in pixilation, an animation technique where real actors or objects are shot frame by frame.
Pascal Baes subsequently made numerous experimental films, including the notorious "Topic", shot in Prague in 1989. 

"46 bis", magique film (devenu culte) des années 80, sur le célèbre tango "Ana El Owerka" du chanteur juif algérien Lili Boniche, a été tourné dans une cour de la rue de Belleville à Paris, au N° 46bis, un jour de pluie. 

"46 bis", a movie of the 80s which became cult, on the famous tango "Ana El Owerka" of the Algerian Jewish singer Lili Boniche, was shot in a courtyard of the street of Belleville in Paris, a rainy day.

Pixilation: terme créé par le réalisateur canadien Norman MacLaren en 1959 pour son film "Neighbours" à partir du slang americain "pixilited" = démarche grotesque, saoul, saccadé, avec des discontinuités. 

New ladies bands

Blind Girls Brass Band - unknown date and location

 Women mandolin band - unknown date & location

 Janietz Elite Damen Blas Orchester - Germany - circa 1914

The spanish orchestra - Iowa - 1926

 Gierk' Ladies band - Richmond, Michigan - circa 1912 - 1916 

 a ladies orchestra in Wien - circa 1910

 the Orchestra of the Iowa Industrial School for Girls - Mitchellville - Iowa - circa 1900

Thanks to the excellent blog temposenzatempo which collect a lot of these old pictures & stories, and focus on details.