Piece Description

This new one-hour radio documentary goes behind the making of Ken Burns' latest film for PBS - THE WAR. Burns and co-producer Lynn Novick discuss what inspired their latest project, and how the soundtrack music helped to underscore the narrative of the film. Songs from the WWII era, archival news footage and speeches by world leaders are included to provide additional historical context. Chuck Granata, an historian of music from the 1940s, is also interviewed. The host is David Cruz, news anchor from NPR station WBGO-FM in Newark, NJ. ** LOOK FOR PROGRAM AUDIO TO BE AVAILABLE FROM PRX BY TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 18. ** THE WAR, a seven-part series directed and produced by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick, premieres on PBS stations on Sunday, September 23, 2007. It tells the story of the Second World War through the personal accounts of a handful of men and women from four quintessentially American towns. The series explores the most intimate human dimensions of the greatest cataclysm in history, a worldwide catastrophe that touched the lives of every family on every street in every town in America, and demonstrates that in extraordinary times, there are no ordinary lives. More information is online at www.pbs.org/thewar. Sony BMG Legacy Recordings will release the official CD soundtrack for THE WAR on Tuesday 9/25, as well as related compilations of music and spoken-word recordings of the WWII era. More details about these titles are online at www.soundsofthewar.com.