Musiqology at the Black Star Film Festival this Saturday

We’re excited about the debut screening of Musiqology’s first documentary, Amazing: The Tests and Triumphs of Bud Powell at the Black Star Film Festival on Saturday, August, 1st at 2:40pm.

“Amazing: The Tests and Triumph of Bud Powell” will be shown with a collection of shorts showcasing virtuosity in music at 2:40 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 1, at International House, 3701 Chestnut St. Single-show tickets for the screening range from $6-$12 and are available online or at the box office.

The documentary is based on Ramsey’s 2013 book, “The Amazing Bud Powell: Black Genius, Jazz History and the Challenge of Bebop,” which paints a portrait of the life and times of Earl Rudolph “Bud” Powell. Born in Harlem in 1924, Powell was an architect of the 1940’s modern jazz style of bebop. He moved from the recording studio and stage as one of the greatest pianists of his era, to the psych ward, jail, and an untimely death at age 41 from complications of tuberculosis and alcoholism.

Like Powell, Ramsey is a pianist. He is a composer, arranger, and bandleader of a sextet called Dr. Guy’s MusiQology. His group has released two CDs of original music that blends the sounds of jazz, rhythm and blues, gospel, neo-soul, and classical. A widely published writer, Ramsey is also the author of “Race Music: Black Cultures from Bebop to Hip-Hop” and the founder and editor of the blog Musiqology. 

Read more at UPenn.