DVD details

Actor: Stephane Grappelli
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0; English (Subtitled)
Format: Color, DVD, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 128 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2003-07-01
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Decca

DVD Reviews of Stephane Grappelli: A Life in the Jazz Century

DVD Review: What A Life!
Summary: 5 Stars

Stephane Grappelli: A Life in the Jazz Century
This 2-disc documentary is what all documentaries should be, interesting and informative. Grappelli was 88 at the time, but whilst his voice was weak, his mind was still very sharp. Full of performance clips, photos and interviews with talking heads. Disc 2 includes more interviews, plus complete versions of performance films, including all existing footage of Django Reinhardt, including the priceless 6 minute film, Jazz Hot.
To sum up : A Gem of a Documentary. Highly recommended.

DVD Review: Talk is... cheap, but...
Summary: 2 Stars

Stephane Grappelli talks, talks, and talks telling his own story of a 77 year career with: Django Reinhardt, Yehudi Menuhin, Nigel Kennedy, Martin Taylor, George Shearing, Joe Venuti and Eddie Lang, The Paul Whiteman Orchestra, Diz Disley, John Etheridge, Bing Crosby and the Rhythm Boys, Gregor et ses Gregorians, Lew Grade, Michael Parkinson, Duke Ellington, and rare footage of Art Tatum. This two disc special edition contains all known film footage of Django Reinhardt. A bonus material adds: 11 Bonus Chapters, 7 Music Archive Clips, a making off, trailer, director's comentary, Research Notes, Bibliography/Discography, websites finder, jukebox, Music On Earth Timeline - "Jazz Comes to Europe", Rare Stills Photo Montage, interactive Montmartre map.

DVD Review: Wonderful Tribute to Steph:
Summary: 5 Stars

I was first exposed to Stephane in 1972 during my years as a professional player.... The first recordings I heard were of his wonderful sessions in 1934-35 with my idol, Django Reinhardt...... Both in their 20's in those days, Stephane and Django were at their very best..... They were already two of the finest musical improvisors known to man....but the two men together were like throwing nitroglycerine on a house fire ..

This DVD is a rare biographical tribute to the genuine quality of Stephane Grapelli himself.... from his earliest days as an orphan, to his last days where he died in Paris just a few blocks from the hospital where he was born. We are taken on a round the world tour with Stephane as he collaborates for nearly 7 decades with the finest musicians the world has to offer..... players from virtually every field of musical endeavor....

The editorial contributions and tributes from all the musicians, young and old is a fitting testimony to Stephane's greatness both on and offstage. The insights into his purity as a human soul are a fitting reminder of what it means to be both a fine human being and a world class fiddler....

Stephane's true essence is reflected in this wonderful biography of a dear departed friend......

If you've ever been a fan.... This DVD is for you.....

Timothy A. Di Pietro
Certified Django (and Stephane) Junkie

DVD Review: A Musical Genius
Summary: 5 Stars

Ordered on 16 of Jan. received on 28 of Jan, and I am in Australia.
What a wonderful DVD this is, it's more than I dreamed of, great sound and pictures. To see this great musician from an early age up to advanced age is wonderful, he has remained a humble man despite his genius. And to see Django Reinhardt play is certainly the icing on the cake. What can one say about the DVD except that it is a great pleasure to watch it. I regret never having met him or seen him play. The DVD is surely a must have for every lover of music.
Aalf Molenberg.

DVD Review: Fantastic DVD
Summary: 5 Stars

This amazing double DVD pack uses incredible variety of sources to document the life and art of one of true European jazz giants; picturing him as a young member of Gregor and ses Gregorians (basically a vaudville-musical act with mere elements of jazz), founding member of the great Quintette du Hot Club de France (with rare and amazing footage of Django's playing - his torched left fist is not a myth - how could he play so divinely with such an impediment?)... Then you see him heading a group with young British talent George Shearing on piano, playing with Diz Disley and other younger swing enthusiasts, as well as classical mega-star Yehudi Menuhin and a strange cross-over artist Nigel Kennedy...

As a film, this great two hours documentary is a tad too long and insufficiently imaginative in depicting the life of an extraordinary artist, but fans of jazz (particularly classical jazz) will be flabergasted by the material in the film and on bonus DVD... And there are high points in film as well - description of Menuhin and Grappelli's initial misgivings before the collaboration, a collegue's description of Diz Disley as being "mercurial", story of Stephane's encounter with Miles Davis, surprising statement that he never received the record he made with Ellington and Sven Assmusen ("Ellington Violin Summit"), etc...

Naturally, cross-over efforts (f. i. with Menuhin) are of lesser interest to a strict jazz fan, but there is more than enough magnificent jazz-fiddling on this double DVD to satisfy any jazz purist... It is quite amazing to listen how well he played for such a long career span and, between his charming comments and bonus tracks on second DVD, you even get some of Grapelly's personality (without much dwelling on details of his personal life)...

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