The South African Zulu pianist and composer Bheki Mseleku is held in high esteem by colleagues in the jazz world and is rapidly establishing an international reputation. The first part of this programme centres round an informal session in which Bheki plays with trumpeter Hugh Masekela and saxophonist Courtney Pine, and the second part travels to New York to show him working in studio, recordings tracks with Pharaoh Sanders and Abbey Lincoln.
Rap
This lively programme is an exploration into the world of rap and hip-hop, from ist origins in the streets and block parties of New York’s South Bronx, through the explosion of so-called Gangsta Rap in Los Angeles, to the global spread of rap music. Featured artists include Ice Cube, Public Enemy, Arrested Development and UFO.
Te Deum
Following his comeback performance at the Vienna State Opera in 1988, this gala concert from the Alte Oper Frankfurt given on September 12, 1992, was one in a series of highly acclaimed performances that marked José Carreras’ return to the concert platform after his battle against leukaemia in 1987/88. Providing the high musical and artistic level of this evening, alongside Carreras are the Vienna Philharmonic – celebrating ist 150th anniversary –, the Vienna State Opera Chorus, the Prague Philharmonic Choir and the Tölzer Boys Choir, all under the baton of conductor Claudio Abbado.
Lenny Henry Hunts the Funk
Black comedian Lenny Henry investigates his favourite music, and finds that it’s also a language, a style, and a type of behaviour. At the artist formerly known as Prince’s recording studios in Minneapolis, Lenny meets an unparalleled array of funk artists, including the father of funk, James Brown, and members of his band. There is an orgy of performance clips featuring funk’s main men – Brown, George Clinton, Prince, MC Hammer – and the beat just goes on…
Irish Rock Music
Ireland’s output of both influential writers and famous rock musicians is quite disproportionate to the size of the country. This focus on Irish rock music searches for the roots of that creative talent and discovers the importance of the rich tradition of story-telling and mythology that it still very much alive there today. Van Morrison, Sinead O’Connor, Bono of U2, Shane McGowan, Clannad and others contribute their music and their thoughts to the programme.
Five Blind Boys
Gospel influences many musical styles, including blues, funk and rock. In this programme, great gospel veterans The Five Blind Boys of Alabama are seen in performance and talk about their music.
Harald Metzkes
Based on a major Berlin retrospective and conversations with Metzkes, this film shows how this first-rate draughtsman uses subject matter drawn from literature and mythology in his work. Metzkes played an important part in the artistic life of the German Democratic Republic and his creative reaction to the political situation he lived through is also brought into focus.
Bernhard Heisig
As a member of the oldest generation of artists in the former German Democratic Republic, Heisig played an important role in shaping a school of Realist painting relevant to the social and political conditions. A staunch believer in the importance of history, his depiction of historical themes has been refined over many years. This 35mm film gives an overview of his work and sets it in the context of the political upheavals he has lived through.
Wolfgang Mattheuer
This film looks at the work of one of the artists who enjoyed considerable success in the German Democratic Republic, despite the fact that he mined a seam of elusive and ambiguous imagery, constructing allegories which contained covert criticism of the GDR. An in-depth interview with Mattheuer and a comprehensive survey of his work provide a fascinating insight into his creative genius and his response to the political régime he lived under from 1949 to 1990.
Willi Sitte
“It is self-evident that nobody can live in a society and at the same time be free from it. Hence everything we do or don’t do has a political dimension, and that includes our work as artists.” This view, expressed by Sitte, one of the painters who played an important role in the artistic life of the German Democratic Republic, indicates the commitment he shared with many of his contemporaries to use art as a force for social change. In this profile, Sitte is seen at work and reviewing recurring themes in his paintings.