Louis Armstrong's Influence Of Jazz And The Swing Age

My appreciation for jazz began when I was just seven, listening to an old record player at my great grandfather's house. My great grandfather would always have me get a Louis Armstrong record and put it gently on the record player. He told me stories every time a song ended. After "What a Wonderful World", he told me that he had never heard singing brought to jazz until Louis Armstrong came around. He said that the way Louis sang was revolutionary, at the time. Then he had me go put on another record, this time it only had musical instruments playing. Once that one was over he told me "Satchmo was just the best trumpet player I have ever heard. There is no one who could have beaten Louis when it comes to the trumpet." After we were done listening

"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.

Armstrong's influence was clear on the next generation of singers. Louis' singing, particularly his phrasing, was imitated by several musicians including Bing Cosby, Billie Holiday, and Frank Sinatra ("Life"), three of music's biggest icons. The impact was perpetuated as generations of musicians were influenced more musicians and so on, until today. This chain is all traced back to Louis, meaning that Louis put music on the path that it is on today. Armstrong, using both his voice and trumpet playing, set the future of music on a very bright and promising path, affecting almost all musicians to