Martin Scorsese's The Blues Martin Scorsese's The Blues A worldwide multi-media celebration that raises awareness of the blues and its contribution to American culture and music.
Watch the TrailerThe Series
Under the guiding hand of Executive Producer Martin Scorsese, The Blues™ is a seven-film television series of personal and impressionistic films viewed through the lens of seven world-famous directors who share a passion for blues music. Charles Burnett, Clint Eastwood, Mike Figgis, Marc Levin, Richard Pearce, Martin Scorsese, and Wim Wenders each capture the essence of blues music and delve into its global influence—from its roots in Africa to its inspirational role in today’s music.
The blues is a powerfully influential music genre; an expression of the African-American experience that speaks of universal emotions. Many of the world’s most celebrated artists have credited the blues with influencing their music. The Blues™ traces the actual journey of the music from Africa, across America, and to Europe, and also looks at the effects of the blues on all popular music. Driven by the beat of performances by famous players from every kind of music the blues has inspired—hip-hop, rhythm and blues, soul, country and rock 'n' roll—this series takes us on a journey as soulful and ebullient as the music itself.
For The Love of Music
Born from a desire to explore Classic American music on a scale never before seen, The Blues grew from Paul G. Allen’s love of American music and his desire to share its history with a wide public. In addition to the seven-part PBS television series, Vulcan Productions developed a teacher's guide containing blues lesson plans, teaching strategies and resource materials for high school teachers of English, Social Studies and Music. These materials were designed to help educate students about the cultural heritage of blues music, and to inspire them to explore their own personal relationships with the blues.
06.06.2003
"The blues is at once American and worldly. It's a form of storytelling that is so universal that it has inspired beyond our borders and
Martin Scorsese
06.01.2003
"The blues has always been part of my musical life and the piano has a special place, beginning when my mother brought home all of Fats Waller's records. Also, the music has always played a part in my movies. A piano blues documentary gives me a chance to make a film that is more directly connected to the subject of the music than the features that I have been doing throughout my career."
Clint Eastwood
06.01.2003
“These songs meant the world to me. I felt there was more truth in them than in any book I had read about America."
Wim Wenders
The Blues in the classroom
The Blues educational outreach campaign, created by EMP Museum, provides teaching strategies and resources to help in integrating blues music, culture, and history into American classrooms. Students can consider the genre within a historical and cultural context through questions like: “How might different disciplines explain the Blues?” “How can the Blues be understood in terms of time and place?” And “What are the various factors that have shaped the form and content of the Blues?” The Blues Educational Outreach Advisory Board was created to develop classroom materials and lessons that meet National Education Standards. Downloadable lesson plans include a Blues discography and bibliography; video clips from The Blues film series; audio clips of significant blues recordings; The Blues teacher's guide CD; and a printed Teacher's Guide.
08.15.2003
Vulcan Production's guide and CD were distributed to nearly 25K high school educators in the U.S.
09.01.2003
06.01.2003
"The sound of the blues was a part of my environment that I took for granted. However, as years passed, the blues slowly emerged as an essential source of imagery, humor, irony, and insight that allows one to reflect on the human condition.”
Charles Burnett
The Blues on Tour
In February of 2003, thousands of music fans gathered at Radio City Music Hall to honor the enduring legacy of blues music. Featuring blues royalty like Buddy Guy and B.B. King, and musical heirs ranging from Bonnie Raitt to Mos Def to India Arie, Lightning in a Bottle chronicled this landmark night in the history of popular music. Sweet Home Chicago, an original exhibit created by EMP Museum, showcased the history of the blues. It premiered at the museum in 2003 then travelled to cultural institutions across the U.S. The exhibit focused on the years 1946–1966 in Chicago, a 20-year period that saw a distinctive blues style emerge, evolve, and travel in new forms to urban centers across the country and around the world.
10.15.2005
06.04.2003
"When we were shooting Sam Lay and his band at the Chicago Blues Festival, they were playing Muddy Waters' classic, 'I Got My Mojo Workin.' I closed my eyes and was transported back to when I was a 15-year-old hanging in my buddy's basement listening to the Paul Butterfield Blues Band for the first time. My life was changed that day, and 35 years later the music's still shakin' my soul."
Marc Levin
06.04.2003
"The Blues is a chance to celebrate one of the last truly indigenous American art forms. Hopefully we'll get there before it's too late."
Richard Pearce
Action & Impact
Outcomes:
“Our goal never was to produce the definitive work on the blues. It was, from the start, to create highly personal and impressionistic films as seen through the eyes of the most creative directors around." Martin Scorsese
Awards:
2004 Grammy Award Nomination for Best Long Form Music Video
Awards:
Primetime Emmy Award Outstanding Cinematography For Nonfiction Programming: Soul of a Man
Awards:
2003 Grammy Awards Best Historical Album and Best Album Notes Martin Scorsese Presents The Blues: A Musical Journey
Outcomes:
“I've always felt an affinity for blues music—the culture of storytelling through music is incredibly fascinating and appealing to me." Martin Scorsese
The Filmmakers
Martin Scorsese Director
Martin Scorsese was born in 1942 in New York City, and grew up in the tough ...
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Charles Burnett Director
During his stint as a young student at UCLA's School of Theater, Film & Television ...
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Clint Eastwood Director
As one of the most prolific, versatile artists in the history of cinema ...
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Mike Figgis Director
Mike Figgis has emerged as a visionary filmmaker who thrives on taking risks ...
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Marc Levin Director
Marc Levin has been making provocative, award-winning films for more than 25 years ...
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Richard Pearce Director
Richard Pearce made his feature film directorial debut with the period drama Heartland ...
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Wim Wenders Director
Often hailed as one of the most important directors on the international scene ...
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