Louis Armstrong

New Orleans, Louisiana, a city most known for its tasty seafood, its French cuisine, and its largest celebration of Mardi Gras in the nation, also has a long history of being innovative when it comes to the subject of music. This can be proven when looking at the creation of multiple musical genres including jazz. Most notably, Dixieland Jazz or New Orleans style jazz took root in the city throughout the early 20th century. Throughout this period, many artists began to implement this new style of music that derived ultimately from the roots of jazz. In this, New Orleans became an incubator for an expansive and igniting fuse in the music industry and set the stage for one of the greatest African American jazz musicians: Louis Armstrong. Because of Armstrong’s innovative improvisation, music, and singing, he became the leading trumpet player and one of the most influential artists in jazz history.

Louis Armstrong, better known as Sactchmo which is short for “Satchel mouth”, was born on August 4, 1901 in New Orleans, Louisiana. The product of a household servant and textile worker, Armstrong consequently grew up poor in a neighborhood known as “The Battlefield.” Because of his family’s lack of financial resources, Armstrong’s mother, Mayann, was forced to participate in illegal acts such as prostituting in order to provide for him and his sister. Armstrong, in an attempt to keep his mother off the street, began to work as a paperboy. Through this work, Louis began to explore different dance halls and clubs that he would encounter on his delivery route (Pops 39). As a result, Armstrong’s musical experiences occurred very early in his life. As stated in Armstrong’s memoir, Satchmo , Armstrong’s first musical experience was when he hea...

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...as wide concert appeal because it mixes multiple bass instruments. Furthermore, I think it also has wide concert appeal because of its simple lyrics that fans and audiences can easily learn. Armstrong’s performance of the song further exemplifies the beauty of the song through his flawless trumpet solo, vocal solo, and scatting.

In conclusion, the composition evoked a nostalgic feeling when listening to the song. I felt as if I had just been transported back to the time period in which the composition was created.

Works Cited

Armstrong, Louis. Satchmo. N.p.: New American Library, 1961. Print.

The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones, Vol. 3, Disk 7, Mystery of the Blues Special Features, Louis Armstrong: Ambassador of Jazz (DVD). Lucasfilm, Ltd. Event occurs at 17:30.

Teachout, Terry. Pops: A Life of Louis Armstrong. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009. Print.