Personal Biography
John Birks Gillespie, otherwise known as “Dizzy” or “Cheeks”, was born in Cheraw, South Carolina on October 21, 1917. His music will later become a joyful experience that would reach people of all races and ethnicities and you will see how he became the famed “Dizzy Gillespie”. His mother was Lottie Gillespie and his father was James Gillespie. James Gillespie was a bricklayer, a pianist and a local bandleader. So because of the instruments that were easily available to John and he started to play the piano at the early age of four. John’s father died when John was 10, two years later John learned to play the trombone and the trumpet.
When he was 18, John moved with his family to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He joined
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While touring in 1940, John met Charlie Parker in Kansa City and soon started joining Parker, Thelonious Monk, Kenny Clarke, and others for an after-hours jam session in New York. This group of young, experimenting players gradually developed the new, more complex style of jazz that was called bop. Calloway fired Gillespie in 1941 after they had an argument.
He recorded a full, formed bop solo within a swing band context on Little John Special in 1942. During the winter of 1943-1944, John led a small group with Oscar Pettiford. In 1944, Billy Eckstine, the singer with the Hines band, formed a big band of his own and asked John to play and to be the music director. During the same time, John completed some of the first small-group bop recordings. In 1953, someone accidentally fell on John's trumpet. The bell was bent backwards. After John played it, he discovered that he liked the sound. From that point, he had trumpets built for him with the bell pointing upwards at a 45-degree angle. The design was John’s trademark and more than three decades, he was the only major trumpeter in jazz who played such an
John Birks, also known as “Dizzy Gillespie” was born October 21,1917. He grew up in Cheraw, South Carolina. Gillespie was the youngest of his nine siblings. Gillespie’s father was a bandleader as well as a bricklayer. His father died when he was only ten years of age. Several years after his father passed away Dizzy Gillespie became a self-taught trombone and trumpet player (“David”). His skills increased so much over time that he later learned how to play the cornet. Gillespie had a special talent for playing these instruments. He was enrolled into the Laurinburg Institute of North Carolina in 1932. The school told him that they wanted him to play for their band. During his time at the school, he practiced his instruments mostly by himself.
Louis has being the most prominent trumpet player in history. His trumpet playing techniques significantly impacted all other instrument players who came after him and emulated his techniques in all other instruments. His style and innovative perspective of jazz changed all the forthcoming jazz singers who had a lot to learn from him, including Bix who learnt a lot from Louis Armstrong. Two of his most famous hit sounds were “What a Wonderful World” as well as “Hello Dolly” among others. The emotions attached to his music is what attracted most people and led to the spread of his music. The charm present in the music was also adored and enjoyed by
violin, piano, cornet, alto horn, flute, baritone. Like his father, who played the trombone in the U.S. Marines Band, John, too, learned to play the trombone. John also spent time studying voice.
Developed in the early 1940's, Bop had established itself as vogue by 1945. It's main innovators were alto saxophonist Charlie Parker and trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie. In this stage in jazz, improvisation differed immensely. Bebop soloists engaged in harmonic improvisation, often avoiding the melody altogether after the first chorus. Usually under seven pieces, the soloist was free to explore improvised possibilities as long as they fit into the chord structure. Popular and influential jazz artists include: Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, & Cannonball Adderley. Armstrong is most known for his involvement in hot jazz as a trumpeter, but is especially renowned for his improvisation capabilities. Louis Armstrong, born August 4, 1901 right in the beginning stages of the jazz movement, was originally from New Orleans. Armstrong was a bandleader, soloist, comedian/actor, and vocalist. Another famous, Miles Davis, is what some consider to be the best trumpeter of the era. Davis was born on May 26, 1926 in Alton, Illinois. One unique thing about Davis was that he was taught to play without vibrato, which was incredibly contrary to the popular way of
The music of jazz became an important aspect of American culture in the early 20th century. The crisp syncopation of ragtime and the smooth tunes of the blues seeped into American mainstream music through dance halls and saloons and later through ballrooms. Instruments like the piano, trumpet, trombone and clarinet became important and symbolized the “swing-feel” of jazz because of their capability to syncopate and improvise precisely. With the help of the booming recording industry, musical geniuses were discovered and their talent and contributions to the emergence of jazz spread throughout the entire country. Such musicians include composer, arranger and pianist Jelly Roll Morton who heavily influenced the development of early jazz by his unique piano style, his “invention” of musical notation for jazz, and his compositions that have become the core in the jazz repertory. Because the style was new and different and so successful in drawing in large audiences, musicians around the world tried to mimic it. Furthermore, Morton’s masterpieces were the first to show notation for complicated jazz music and thus, formed the basis for standard notation in jazz compositions today.
This new music developed, at first in spurts, originally in Kansas City and then most of all in musician's hangouts in Harlem, particularly at Minton's Playhouse, and once again at the beginning of a decade. Contrary to what has been claimed, this new music did not develop when a group of musicians banded together to create something new, because the old could no longer work. The old style worked very well. It also is not true that the new jazz style was developed as an effort on behalf of an interconnected group of musicians.
After high school, from 1927-1934, Louis played throughout New Orleans and recorded more than 70 titles for various labels, and at the age of 24, he took his considerable talents as a trumpet player and bandleader to New York City. It was at around this time that Louis coined the expression "Swing," as well as many others, and once The Louis Prima Band played their version of Big Band inspired, Dixieland Jazz infused "Swing" music at the Famous Door Club, the entire 52nd Street between Fifth Avenue and Broadway was dubbed "Swing Street." Thus, a whole new era of music began. Even the "King Of Swing," Benny Goodman wouldn't have near the notoriety without the Prima penned "Sing Sing Sing," which is still considered a Swing Era classic.
By this time a major change in jazz was afoot, and a young trumpet player named Dizzy Gillespie formed his own small prototype group at the Onyx Club in New York. This group met regularly and played original music based on popular swing tunes, with improvised melodies, and modified chordal structure. This new music was called bebop,
Edward Kennedy Ellington was born on April 29, 1899 to his middle-class parents James Edward Ellington and Daisy Kennedy Ellington, who were both pianist. At the age of 7 his parents put him in piano lessons and enforced the necessity for sophistication and etiquette, which is actually where his nickname Duke came from because his style of dress and his mannerisms reminded his friends of that of a nobleman. He attended At age 15 although he was a talented pianist, he was rough around the edges and could not read or write music, but that did not stop him from composing his first piece “Soda Fountain Rag”, which he created by ear while working as a soda jerk. Upon viewing various ragtime artists while vacationing with his mother Duke felt encouraged to better his piano skills and through the help of Dunbar High School’s Henry Lee Grant and local big band leader Oliver “Doc” Perry, Duke learned to read and write music, become far more polished in his playing techniques, and overall raise his playing ability. While by professional at this point he was a sign painter, he played party gigs and dances ...
It would be an understatement to say that Miles Dewey Davis III was one of the greatest jazz musicians of all time. Widely considered one of the most revolutionary and influential figures in the history of music of the twentieth century, Miles Davis has played an integral role in shaping the sounds of jazz, one of the few uniquely and entirely American genres. Needless to say, the brilliant artistry that coolly flowed from his trumpet speaks for itself and clearly shows what a phenomenally inventive and talented musician he was. One could go on and on discussing, analyzing, and meticulously scrutinizing his music, as has been done readily in the past, but the purpose of this paper is to examine his rare appearances on television and the impact his music had on American culture.
It is argued that the start of the “Swing Era” started the day that Louis Armstrong joined Fletcher Henderson’s band in 1924. The style Armstrong played on the trumpet, which was shown off to the world after joining Henderson’s band was the main thing that would lead to swing jazz. The official start of the swing era began ten years after Armstrong joined the band and almost a full ten years after the first swing dance, the Lindy Hop.
By 1926, Armstrong was hired as featured soloist with the Carroll Dickerson band, at sunset café, for the first time his name was up in lights, as “the world’s greatest trumpet player”. Posters were hanged up advertising Armstrong,”Louis Armstrong in person!” Armstrong and his desire of greatness moved wit ha number of different musical groups, soon realizing that his style was best suited as a smaller ensemble. He played in big popular bands to reach more popularity. Armstrong established jazz as music that pri...
In the 1920s a new kind of music rose in New Orleans. Different from the ballroom songs popular in that day, former slaves and their families created this new music called jazz, which spread like wildfire. Many artists influenced the growth of this great type of music including Frank Sinatra, Duke Ellington and Count Basie. Louis Armstrong played as one of these great men. Growing up in a poor section of the “Birthplace of Jazz”, Armstrong taught himself to play the trumpet, also known as the cornet. Louis Armstrong was the most influential jazz trumpet player to walk this earth due to his own created style of jazz including many songs that are still used today.
He began with Johnny Cash and The Tennessee Two. Then became They signed a record deal with Sun Records, and despite the fact that Johnny went in as a gospel singer the record label though he could be so much more than gospel. Sam Phillips is the man who gave them their chance. His signing of Cash ended up with sells of over ninety-million records. Johnny Cash became the youngest member of the Country Music Association Hall of Fame after being inducted in 1980.
his father, but didn't become interested until the days of Elvis. After he joined The Quarrymen with