Jazz music had first emerged in the black cultures of New Orleans from the mixed influences of ragtime, blues, and music that was played at funerals in New Orleans (“Jazz”). Louis Armstrong, nicknamed “Satchmo”, “Pops”, and later “Ambassador Satch”, was considered to be one of the most influential artists in jazz music and he was a trumpeter, bandleader, singer, soloist, film star, and comedian (“Louis Armstrong”).
Louis Armstrong was born on August 4, 1901 in New Orleans, Louisiana to William Armstrong and Mary Albert (“Who is”). His father abandoned him shortly after his mother and him separated when Louis was five, and his mother would turn to prostitution so he mostly lived with his maternal grandmother and uncle (Biography). In 1913,
By this time, he had switched from cornet to trumpet, and The Armstrong Hot Five and Hot Seven recordings of 1925-28 were how he emerged as the first great jazz solo artist and also by that time, the New Orleans ensemble style was not able to contain the creativity that he gave off such as his brilliant technique, his sophisticated and audacious sense of harmony, his always expressive attack, timbre, and inflections, his gift to create vital melodies, its dramatic, often complex sense of individual design, and his enormous energy and musical genius made these recordings great innovations in jazz (“Louis Armstrong”). His fame began rising and by 1929, he was playing with Carrol Dickerson’s Orchestra while also leading his own band in the same place, Hot Chocolates, with the name of Louis Armstrong and his Stompers (Louis ‘Satchmo’). Here, he sang “Ain’t Misbehavin’ ” which became his first popular hit song and his trumpet playing hit a peak around 1933 which after that his music became less complicated giving it a mature feel compared to his playing in previous years and actually re-recorded some of his songs and ended up with great results (“Louis
Unfortunately, "What a Wonderful World" received little promotion in the United States, but the song became number one worldwide, such as in England and South Africa, and eventually became Armstrong's most enduring song after its use in the 1986 film Good Morning, Vietnam (Ruhlmann).
In 1968, Armstrong's demanding lifestyle finally caught up with him as his heart and kidney problems constrained him to stop acting in 1969 and that same year, his former manager, Joe Glaser, died, so Armstrong spent much of that year at home, but he still managed to continue practicing the trumpet every day (“Louis Armstrong”). In the summer of 1970, Armstrong was allowed to publicly perform again and play the trumpet, and after a successful engagement in Las Vegas, Armstrong began making commitments around the world, including in London and Washington, D.C. and New York (“Louis
Throughout history, and even today, music has shaped America’s culture, society, and even politics. One of the most outstanding and enduring musical movement has been from African American artists, ranging from bebop to jazz to hip-hop to rap. During the 1920’s , jazz artists stepped into the limelight and began their impact on American and even world history. Louis Armstrong was one of the most influential leaders during the Harlem Renaissance and his jazz legacy and impact of American history is everlasting. A master of his craft, Armstrong and his music heavily influenced America’s white and black populations from the 1920’s and up until his death.
Armstrong could also start improvising while the tune was still playing. This opened many doors for musicians everywhere and it is still going on today. During 1925 to 1928 Louis made some recordings with many musicians. He called the group Louis Armstrong and His Hot Five. These recording prepared the art of solo improvisation. A lot of people viewed this as the start of traditional Jazz. They also laid the groundwork for the swing era. Some of these recording were Muskrat Ramble, Sweet Little Papa, The King of Zulus, and Fireworks.
Armstrong’s career drastically changed, due to “the decline of the big-band era in the mid-forties combined with his appearance in the film New Orleans” (Oxford). The producer of New Orleans, Leonard Feather, “arranged for Armstrong to appear with Edmond Hall’s New Orleans revivalist band at Carnegie Hall” (Oxford). This brought about the “now-famous Town Hall concert … with a select group of performers impulsively billed as the All Stars” (Oxford). Louis continued to play with this group, called Louis Armstrong’s All Stars, up until his
"Louis was at the forefront of changing jazz from ensemble-oriented folk music into an art form that emphasized inventive solo improvisations. 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"). Louis changed the very way that jazz was performed and created. Jazz music was never the same after Louis started to perform his improvised solo's. His impact on jazz was so strong that an entirely new era of jazz began.
He had a wonderful ear and a wonderful memory. All you had to do was hum or whistle a new tune to him and he’d know it right away” (Boujut 21). At the end of 1918 Armstrong married Daisy Parker, a prostitute he had met at a dance hall that he played on Saturday nights. The marriage ended only four years later due to her beating him regularly (Bergreen 87). Louis Armstrong was hired in May of 1919 to play on a riverboat that traveled the Mississippi River from New Orleans to St. Louis. Armstrong soon became very popular in St. Louis and was in high demand (Collier 124). Two and a half years later, he was thrown off the riverboat and fired due to a fight. After returning to New Orleans, he received a telegram from King Oliver in Chicago. It was an invitation to join The Creole Jazz Band – an offer Armstrong couldn’t refuse. The Jazz Band cut it’s first record in the spring of 1923 and toured throughout Illinois, Ohio,...
Louis Armstrong was famous musician who made iconic songs such as "A Wonderful World", "When The Saints Go Marching In", and " La Vie En Rose." Louis Armstrong was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, August 4 1904 and died July 6, 1971. Louis Armstrong played the trumpet and cornet and played jazz music through many of his days.
While performing around the New Orleans area, Armstrong was recognized by some of the great jazz musicians. The most important musician that noticed was Joe “King” Oliver. Oliver would serve as a father figure for Louis and really helped him get his career headed towards the right path. In 1919, Oliver resigned from his position in Kid Orys band and let Armstrong take his position. Armstrong also got to play in the Fate Marble band, which played on a steamboat down the Mississippi river. Armstrong would compare that experience to a normal k...
“West End Blues” begins with a 12-second trumpet solo that displayed Armstrong’s wonderful range and demonstrated the syncopated styling unique
Louis Armstrong is one of the most Famous Jazz Musician In America’s Musical History. Armstrong was Born on August 4, 1901 until July 6, 1971 Louis Daniel Armstrong was an Trumpeter,Composer, Singer, and Actor. Armstrong was the first African American entertainment to be accepted in a white society.Before that he was born and raised in Louisiana, New Orleans working as a coal deliverer for a Jewish Family.Growing up he spent most of his youth in poverty in a rough neighborhood. Delivering the coal on the way he used to pass by many spasm bands and house musicians sparking his interest in Jazz. Armstrong is an Revolutionary creating a huge impact on his musical community and eventually the world.
Louis Armstrong was known for his “hot jazz” while Bix Beiderbecke was known more for his “cool reflective” jazz style. Louis Armstrong developed a new style of jazz music that took New Orleans by storm, and many other bands decided to move to north Chicago because of it. In 1925 Louis recorded his first Hot Five records and this was the first time he developed songs under his name. Then later on he made the Hot Seven and these two records are considered some of the biggest jazz classics. These records really established Louis Armstrong’s “hot jazz” style and many people recognized that. Many people and critics also considered these records as some of the finest jazz recordings in history, solos began to emerge and that really characterized jazz. These tracks were very important because it not only expressed Louis style but it influenced a lot of the jazz world. After the tracks many people began to change from polyphony to soloists, from embellishment to improvisation, and changing from breaks to having solos and their was much more influence. Then there was Bix Beiderbecke who was known for his “cool reflective” jazz. He was known for having a unique lyric tone, he had a vibrant sound, and he and he was different from other trumpet and cornet players. These were the type of things that led to the development of what is known as “cool jazz”. Everything that he went through in his life, the sadness, his heroic side, all this led to his music style. These two had a huge impact with their type of styles, which is the reason for their success. There uniqueness is what led to their style and them being known for their type of jazz, one simply can not say that one is better than the other because they simply did not have the same
His “hot bop” style was heard in places like the Cotton Club and the Apollo Theatre. Everyone from all over the country would come to see him. Armstrong recorded such works as I’m in the Mood for Love, and You Rascal You (http://library.thinkquest.org/26656/english/music.html). Another famous person during this era was Coleman Hawkins, a saxophone player. Hawkins is recognized as the first great saxophonist of jazz.
Louis Armstrong changed jazz into a solo art. He infused blues feelings, changed the rhythms and made it swing. He did all this by making music so beautiful and it brought tears to the eyes of other musicians. Talking about Louis Armstrong, he was an American jazz trumpeter and singer from New Orleans, Louisiana, the stage name Satchmo. He fame from the 1920s, he had a great ability to use cornet and virtuoso trumpet. He laid the foundation for the large and influential jazz movement. Beside the impressive pressing trumpet, he has a very special voice hoarse and has the ability to sing Scat ingeniously. According to music critic Steve Leggett, “Armstrong is probably the most influential person in American music in the background 20th century”. He played a very important role in the development of jazz music, so many people called him the "father of jazz" or "Pops" as the respec...
New Orleans has always been a big music town, for there has always been brass bands that played in the streets for parades, or for families to give comfort during a funeral.... ... middle of paper ... ... (The Influence of Jazz & Blues on Modern Music.”).
The history of jazz has many innovative and outstanding musicians that it is difficult to find somebody with as much influence on the genre as Louis Armstrong had on jazz. His legacy is much more than just his phenomenal trumpet playing, but also for his amazing innovations he contributed to the genre of music. Armstrong committed countless hours to putting on jaw dropping performances that will always be remembered and has made Armstrong into a jazz icon. Armstrong’s contributions to the jazz genre has created and entire culture of the 20th century
From the beginnings of jazz music in America in the early 20th century, jazz was a purely American form of music. It began with marches, led by John Philip Sousa, an American composer. This transformed into the collective improvisation period of the Twenties, which produced greats such as Louis Armstrong, born in New Orleans. Around the same time as Armstrong’s fame was Duke Ellington’s, who was born and raised in Washington, D.C. This pattern of jazz evolution originating in America was the standard for nearly sixty years; however, everything changed in the late 1950s, when an explosion of music from South America occurred. This Brazilian music, which had itself been evolving for years in its home country, combined with American jazz music and forms created one of the most unique and interesting styles of jazz music that America had seen: bossa nova. Bossa nova (“new style” or “new trend”), one of the first jazz styles without direct American origin, influenced music in America to use its ideas and sounds, but also to stray away from the new Brazilian style.