The Devil's Horn
Directed by Larry Weinstein
2016Documentary86 minCanada
Seductive, feared and banned by Nazis, Communists and the Pope: Larry Weinstein tells the story of the saxophone and its legendary curse.
Synopsis
From Adolphe Sax’s workshop of the 1840's to the legendary era of jazz and bebop, it was forbidden by Nazis and Communists and banned by the Pope – gradually conquering all music genres. Throughout its 175-year history the saxophone has been both the most seductive and most feared instrument. Award-winning Canadian filmmaker Larry Weinstein illuminates and mythologizes the story of the saxophone, featuring its most legendary players as well as astonishing discoveries. The Devil's Horn explores the sax's longstanding curse that stemmed from the difficult life of its mad inventor, and is still said to affect saxophonists who fall prey to the instrument’s dark powers.
The director
Larry Weinstein is a Toronto director and a co-founder of Rhombus Media, with more than 40 productions to his name. He is celebrated for unconventional, emotionally charged music documentaries, among them Ravel's Brain, Beethoven's Hair and Mozartballs.
