Biography & Memoir
Hannah Rothschild talks to David Freeman
The Baroness and Showing of Documentary The Jazz Baroness
1:00pm | Friday 14 September 2012Tickets: | Duration: | Venue: |
£N/A | 2 Hours | Blenheim Palace, Courtyard Restaurant |
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This was an Oxford Literary Festival 2012 Event.
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What made a member of one of Europe’s wealthiest families turn her back on her privileged lifestyle to immerse herself in the New York jazz scene? Writer and filmmaker Hanna Rothschild tells the story of her great-aunt Pannonica Rothschild in her book The Baroness and in her documentary film The Jazz Baroness. Here she discusses her great-aunt’s life with writer and broadcaster David Freeman, before introducing a showing of the documentary.
Pannonica Rothschild’s life spanned a fascinating period in history. She was born into the wealthy and privileged Rothschild family in 1913, marrying a French baron before the outbreak of World War II. During the war, she was a lieutenant in the French Resistance and decorated for her bravery. Following the war she made a trip to New York and was captivated by a record by a young jazz musician Thelonious Monk. She left her husband and five children and immersed herself in the new jazz scene of New York. She supported some of the great artists of the day through their financial and other troubles, in particular Monk whom she moved into her home when his health declined. Over 20 pieces of music were named after Pannonica Rothschild.
The Baroness is Hannah Rothschild’s investigation into her great-aunt and is based on interviews with family and friends and with Pannonica herself. Hannah Rothschild records tracking her great-aunt down to a New York jazz club in 1984. She had a long list of questions but Pannonica just smiled and said: ‘Ssh . . . just listen to the music Hannah, just listen . . .’ The book is both a story of one of the world’s wealthiest families and a fascinating insight into the jazz age.
Hannah Rothschild has made documentaries including Mandelson, The Real PM? and Keeping up with the Medici. Her features and interviews have appeared in publications such as Vanity Fair, The Telegraph, The Times, The Spectator, and Vogue.
This event lasts two hours.