Louis Armstrong, asked to define jazz, said “if you’ve got to ask, you’ll never know” (Cooke and Horn 2). As he put it, jazz has been an ever evolving genre. Armstrong’s style itself became out of step with a public demand by the early 40s (Larkin 246). Yet, even as Armstrong fell out of style, he greatly influenced later jazz artists. Armstrong’s creation of scat singing – vocal with random syllables – has been imitated by other musicians. Armstrong’s sophisticated pitch choice and extended range of his trumpet was revered and imitated. Armstrong was so greatly imitated that he became the most imitated jazz artist until the 1940s (Sadie 31). Armstrong was not the only significant jazz artist at his time, but with his vibrant and creative playing style as well as his natural ability to entertain thousands, he played a great role in turning jazz into the genre of individual expression. Armstrong was born in Storyville, the red-light district of New Orleans (Greig 9), in August 4, 1901 (Sadie 30). Around the time of his birth, his father, William Armstrong, left the family shortly after Louis was born. He was raised by his mother, Mary Albert Armstrong, and his maternal grandmother. While attending grade school, Armstrong got his first taste in music from a junk dealer whom he worked for. The dealer helped Armstrong buy a cornet, and Armstrong immediately fell in love with the instrument. At the age of 11, Armstrong dropped out of school in the fifth grade to join a street-cornet quartet as a cornettist (Baker 115). Unfortunately, his career took a little detour as he was convicted of firing a gun in a public place on New Year’s Eve 1912 (Baker 115). On the other hand, Armstrong received his first formal music training in the refo... ... middle of paper ... ...s across different genre. Works Cited Baker, Theodore, Nicolas Slonimsky, and Laura Kuhn. Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians. Centennial ed. Vol. 1. New York: Schirmer, 2001. 114-16. Print. Berliner, Paul. Thinking in Jazz: The Infinite Art of Improvisation. Chicago: University of Chicago, 1994. Print. Cooke, Mervyn, and David Horn. The Cambridge Companion to Jazz. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2002. 2+. Print. Dance, Stanley. The World of Swing. New York: C. Scribner's Sons, 1974. 6+. Print. Greig, Charlotte. Icons of Black Music: A History in Photographs 1900-2000. Brown Partworks: London, 1999. 9. Print. Grove, George, and Stanley Sadie. The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. 2nd ed. Vol. 2. London: Macmillan, 1980. 30-32. Print. Larkin, Colin. The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. 4th ed. Vol. 1. Oxford: Oxford Univ., 2006. 245-47. Print.
The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, ed. Stanley Sadie, 20 vols. (London: Macmillan, 1980)9: 708-709
Ferdinand Joseph LaMothe, more commonly known as Jelly Roll Morton, was born to a creole family in a poor neighborhood of New Orleans, Louisiana. Morton lived with several family members in different areas of New Orleans, exposing him to different musical worlds including European and classical music, dance music, and the blues (Gushee, 394). Morton tried to play several different instruments including the guitar; however, unsatisfied with the teachers’ lack of training, he decided to teach himself how to play instruments without formal training (Lomax, 8). ...
3. Davis, Nathan T. Writings in Jazz. Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company. Dubuque, IA. 1996. p. 152-153, 163, 166.
“His relaxed phrasing was a major change from the staccato style of the early 20’s and helped to set the stage for the Swing Era” (“Life & Legacy”). And as such a prominent artist, and in particular, jazz artist, Armstrong did not only change the perception of jazz and swing, but the views on African Americans and their culture. Armstrong and the Harlem Renaissance reflected black history and culture, and it became popular, even in white communities and clubs. Jazz as a whole genre helped further society’s views through the universal language of music, where any ethnicity could partake in it. And the revolution of jazz was lead by the stylings of Louis Armstrong. The duration of the jazz and swing era, lasting decades past the 1920s, symbolized the civil rights movement directly through the lyrics, sounds, and artists
His boisterous personality influenced many aspects of American culture, and his contributions and influence on Jazz are immeasurable. Nobody has done more for Jazz than Louis Armstrong, without question he is a Jazz legend (Friedwald). Armstrong excelled at everything he performed. A renaissance man of our time, his appreciation for music and life showed in his performances, and his talent showed his techniques and improvisation. Louis’s technique and improvisation on the trumpet set the standard for Jazz musicians (Friedwald). Fellow trumpeter Dizzie Gillespie credited Armstrong with this honor stating, “If it weren’t for him there wouldn’t be any of us.” This reputation would lend him to be referred to as Jazz royalty. With his trumpet and his scat singing he revolutionized Jazz. Though vocally limited, his understanding of how to use his voice beyond his natural abilities led to his perfection of scat (Edwards). Scatting allowed him to perfect his improvisational skill. Scatting, or scat singing would come to be known as the “House that Satch Built” and Armstrong the “Original Man of Scat.”
Jazz is referred as “America’s classical music,” and is one of North America’s and most celebrated genres. The history of Jazz can be traced back to the early era of the 20th century of the U.S. “A History of Jazz” presents From Ragtime and Blues to Big Band and Bebop, jazz has been a part of a proud African American tradition for over 100 years. A strong rhythmic under-structure, blue notes, solos, “call-and response” patterns, and
The word “jazz” is significant to America, and it has many meanings. Jazz could simply be defined as a genre or style of music that originated in America, but it can also be described as a movement which “bounced into the world somewhere about the year 1911.”. This is important because jazz is constantly changing, evolving, adapting, and improvising. By analyzing the creators, critics, and consumers of jazz in the context of cultural, political, and economic issues, I will illustrate the movement from the 1930’s swing era to the birth of bebop and modern jazz. As the 1930’s began, the effects of the Great Depression still ravaged the United States, which in turn caused a dramatic change in the music industry.
It was said that he thought he was born on July 4, 1900 (Armstrong 7). While Louis was still an infant his father, William Armstrong, abandoned his family. He spent the first years of his life living with his Grandmother since at the time his parents were going through a separation. At age 5, he moved into a home with his mother and sister, Beatrice, whom he called Mama Lucy. He grew up in a rough section of New Orleans. They were incredibly poor and did not have enough money. He would work different jobs just to take care of his family. Louis would work anywhere that he would be able to find work. He would sing on the street, which would result in his nickname, Satchelmouth that would be shorten to Satchmo. His nickname was a result of him having a wide
At the mention jazz music, that people will first think of is likely to be a great figure with a clown image, nicknamed Uncle Satchmo. The man was Lewis Armstrong. He is a husky singer, often with a trumpet in his hand. He played dramatic works of simple structure in Orleans jazz style and with the accompaniment of Dick jazz music. Each of the books on jazz music will mention his name. Lewis Armstrong was to jazz music what Bach is to classical music, Presley is to rock music (Berrett 230). This essay will have an introduction of the king of jazz music—— Lewis Armstrong and his great influence on jazz history.
One of the very monumental jazz artists during the jazz age was Louis Armstrong. Armstrong was a trumpet player, bandleader, soloists and singer. Louis was born on August fourth 1901 in a bad neighborhood of New Orleans called “The Battlefield”. His parents were not the best . Armstrong's father was a factory worker but left when he was young. His mother was around but she often turned to prostitution in order to help support him; therefore his grandmother was his primary guardian. Armstrong's first job was given to him by a Jewish family by the last name of Karnofskys working delivering coal and collecting junk The Karnofskys often fed him meals and always encouraged him to sing. Armstrong was a bit rough around the edges and he had an incident on new year’s eve in 1912 he fired h...
When it comes to jazz music, there is one name that everyone knows, whether they’ve never listened to jazz before or if they’ve listened to it their whole lives. That name is Louis Armstrong. Armstrong was one of the pioneers of jazz music, from his humble beginnings in one of New Orleans roughest districts, “the Battlefield”, to playing concerts for sold out crowds in Chicago and New York City, Louis left a massive impact on the way America listened to music for a long time. One of his premier tracks, “West End Blues”, left an impact on jazz music, which other musicians would try to emulate for years.
Teachout, Terry. "John Hammond's jazz." Commentary 122.3 (2006): 55+. Academic OneFile. Web. 16 Nov. 2011.
Jazz music prospered in the 1940’s and 1950’s. Jazz was created by African Americans to represent pain and suffering and also represented the adversity that racial tension brought. (Scholastic) African American performers like Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie “Bird” Parker came to be recognized for their ability to overcome “race relati...
Louis Armstrong was known as the King of jazz, a trumpeter and singer who was one of the most influential figures in jazz music. Famous for his innovative methods of playing the trumpet and cornet, he was also a highly talented singer blessed with a powerful voice. Known for his skills on being able improvise, he would bend and twist the many lyrics and melody of a song with dramatic effect. As his popularity grew in the mid-20th century America when racism was more prevalent, he was one of the first African-American entertainers to be highly popular among both the white and the colored segments of the society. Fondly nicknamed Satchmo or Pops by his fans, he is often regarded to be the founding father of jazz as a uniquely American art form. Born into poverty in New Orleans, he had a very difficult childhood after his father abandoned the family. As a young boy, he
As it mentioned above, the title itself, draws attention to the world-renowned music created by African Americans in the 1920s’ as well as to the book’s jazz-like narrative structure and themes. Jazz is the best-known artistic creation of Harlem Renaissance. “Jazz is the only pure American creation, which shortly after its birth, became America’s most important cultural export”(Ostendorf, 165). It evolved from the blues