The Great Flood

Many consider the flooding of the Mississippi Delta in 1927, which left 75,000 square kilometers of land underwater, to be the greatest natural disaster in the history of the United States; the unprecedented calamity would set a train of economic, political and also musical developments in motion. Deprived of their livelihoods, thousands of laborers quit the South for the Northern states in a tidal wave of internal migration.

Along with their memories, the migrants brought their sound with them, introducing a southern note into these more northerly climes. This is how the Chicago rhythm & blues sound came into being, which would later provide the roots of rock and roll. It is these events that are described in “The Great Flood”, a cinematic elegy based on contemporary photographs and newsreels and focused firmly on ordinary men and their ability to adapt under extraordinary circumstances.

The great American composer and guitarist, Bill Frisell, will be accompanying the film live on stage at the Onassis Stegi. The film’s director, Bill Morrison, chose Frisell because: “Mixing rock and country with jazz and blues, he's found what connects them: improvisation and a sense of play”. The result is an impressive all-American soundtrack.