By the end of his teens, Armstrong had grown up fast. Every time I close my eyes blowing that trumpet of mine, I look right into the heart of good old New Orleans. He was employed by a Jewish family who encouraged him to sing. 2012-02-22 18:06:07. In 16967, Armstrong recorded his most renowned tune, What a Wonderful Word that surprisingly featured no trumpet. WebWhy Is Louis Armstrong Important. Louis Armstrong As A Wonderful World Why was Louis Armstrong important to New Orleans? By February 1927, Armstrong was well-enough known to front his own group, Louis Armstrong & His Stompers, at the Sunset Caf in Chicago. Similarly, many of his most influential recordings, like 1928's "West End Blues" and 1955's "Mack the Knife," have been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Louis Armstrong in The Civil Rights Movement Each of the books on jazz music will mention his name. The book was titled Swing That Music. those works included Cotton Tail and Ko-Ko. Some of his most popular songs included "It Don 't Mean a Thing if It Ain 't Got That Swing," "Sophisticated Lady," "Prelude to a Kiss," "Solitude," and "Satin Doll (Duke Ellington Biography). The Hot Five and Hot Seven were strictly recording groups; Armstrong performed nightly during this period with Erskine Tate's orchestra at the Vendome Theater, often playing music for silent movies. His crucial contribution to American and world culture continues to reverberate into the 21 st century. However, Armstrong's southern background didn't mesh well with the more urban, Northern mentality of Henderson's other musicians, who sometimes gave Armstrong a hard time over his wardrobe and the way he talked. The first important trend in New York Jazz was Hot Jazz that was an incendiary style introduced by Louis Armstrong (Winfield 170). Why is Louis Armstrong important in the 20's? (1964), the latter knocking the Beatles off the top of the pop charts at the height of Beatlemania. At one point in Heebie Jeebiesa 1926 song released by Armstrong and his "Hot Five bandthe singer vocalizes a series of nonsensical, horn-like sounds. Show More. WebLouis Armstrong is arguably the most important musician that the United States has ever produced (Shipton 160). These records later went on to become the most influential in jazz history, as it was the first time Armstrong facilitated the evolution of jazz as a ensemble to a soloist art. By the mid-'40s, the Swing Era was winding down and the era of big bands was almost over. Career highlights, compiled by the Louis Armstrong House Museum: However, had his upbringing been different, his musical talents may never have been established to grow and thrive into one of the most internationally influential jazz musicians ever. It's also worth noting that even though he brought it into popularity, Armstrong in no way invented the technique, which dates back to at least 1906. In 1937, Louis Armstrong became the first African American entertainer to host a nationally sponsored radio show. This was the first time anyone had ever recorded this technique known as scat singing. Louis Armstrong. It won him a Grammy for best vocal performance. LOUIS ARMSTRONG When Armstrong returned to Chicago in 1935, he had no band, no engagements and no recording contract. An all-star virtuoso, he came to prominence in the 1920s, influencing countless musicians with both his daring trumpet style and unique vocals. His music was a happiness to individuals and they said he was a gift sent from heaven. His amazing technical abilities, the joy and spontaneity, and amazingly quick, inventive musical mind still dominate Jazz to this day. From 1925 to 1928, Armstrong made more than 60 records with the Hot Five and, later, the Hot Seven. He moved to the Fate Marable band in the spring of 1919, staying with Marable until the fall of 1921. As if it were not enough that Armstrong would rewire instrumental music for the rest of the century, his singing did the same for vocal music. The letters, dated as far back as 1968, prove that Armstrong had indeed always believed Sharon to be his daughter, and that he even paid for her education and home, among several other things, throughout his life. However, conditions changed when he was requested to record the title number of a broadway show that went on to become a hit. During this time, Armstrong adopted a three-year-old boy named Clarence. The year 1956 saw Louisiana prohibit integrated bands. In 1922, King Oliver sent for Armstrong to join his band in Chicago. Then along came a bare-knuckled comedy called Good Morning, Vietnam (1987). The musician didn't let the incident stop him, however, and after taking a few weeks off to recover, he was back on the road, performing 300 nights a year into the 1960s. His career spanned many decades, from the 1920s to his death in 1971, and many different eras in jazz. In America, Armstrong had been a great Civil Rights pioneer, breaking down numerous barriers as a young man. Also in 1936, Louis Armstrong became the first African American to get featured billing in a major Hollywood movie with his turn in. Armstrongs improvised solos transformed jazz from an ensemble-based music into a soloists art, while his expressive vocals incorporated innovative bursts of scat singing and an underlying swing feel. WebAnswer (1 of 2): Armstrongs first brass instrument and initial training was on the cornet, which is generally easier for younger or beginning players to learn and slightly smaller in size. Back in Chicago, OKeh Records decided to let Armstrong make his first records with a band under his own name: Louis Armstrong and his Hot Five. Louis Armstrong was important in the 1920's because he put a whole new meaning to jazz. He was from a very poor family and was sent to reform school when he was twelve after firing a gun in the air on New Year's Eve. In a strange turn of events, it was during this tour that Armstrong's career fell apart: Years of blowing high notes had taken a toll on Armstrong's lips, and, following a fight with his manager Johnny Collins who already managed to get Armstrong into trouble with the Mafia he was left stranded overseas by Collins. By 1932, Armstrong, who was now known as Satchmo, had begun appearing in movies and made his first tour of England. Louis Armstrong (Aug 4th, 1901 - Jul 6th, 1971) was an American trumpeter, composer, singer and occasional actor who became one of the most influential figures in jazz. He would attend parades, funerals, churches and go to cheap cabarets to be able to hear some of the greats play, Little Louis sung in a vocal quartet in his early teens. He started as a soloist for Henderson after marrying Lil Hardin. Encyclopdia Britannica, and create and manage the relationships between them. While in New York, Armstrong cut dozens of records as a sideman, creating inspirational jazz with other greats such as Sidney Bechet, and backing numerous blues singers including Bessie Smith. Its popularity brought many people together, even through the years of racial discrimination and the Great Depression. Wiki User. Within a span of three years, Armstrong recorded over sixty records. Although the ballad topped the 1968 charts in Great Britain, American sales were abysmal. Louis began playing at a young age when he was growing up in New Orleans. Louis Armstrong Facts | Britannica WebBy the '50s, Armstrong was an established international celebrity--an icon to musicians and lovers of jazz--and a genial, infectiously optimistic presence wherever he appeared. Born in 1901 in New Orleans, Louisiana, Armstrong had a difficult childhood. With her encouragement, he left Oliver and joined Fletcher Henderson's band in New York, staying for a year and then going back to Chicago in November 1925 to join the Dreamland Syncopators, his wife's group. Armstrong's home in Corona, Queens was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1977; today, the house is home to the Louis Armstrong House Museum, which annually receives thousands of visitors from all over the world. To grasp how much the man adored this entre, consider that he often signed his personal letters with Red Beans and Ricely Yours.. Not a single jazz musician who had previously criticized him took his side but today, this is seen as one of the bravest, most definitive moments of Armstrong's life. On New Years Eve 1912, he was arrested and sent to the Colored Waifs Home for Boys. Louis Armstrong was the greatest of all Jazz musicians. Louis Armstrong In December of that year, he was called into the studio to record the title number for a Broadway show that hadn't opened yet: Hello, Dolly! He was especially known for his spectacular trumpet playing, unmistakable voice, and exceptionally recognizable, broad smile., In three years they recorded over 60 records, which now are considered the most influential recordings in jazz history. He was known for both his joyous ways with the trumpet and his peculiarly touching and funny vocal style. Louis Armstrong was an outstanding jazz musician during the Harlem Renaissance Era. WebLouis Armstrong remains an icon of American history and 20 th century popular culture. He dropped out of school at 11 to join an informal group, but on December 31, 1912, he fired a gun during a New Year's Eve celebration, and was sent to reform school. He performed all over the world in the 1950s and '60s, including throughout Europe, Africa and Asia. WebLouis Armstrong was the protean genius that made African American classical music mislabeled as jazz the most important music event of the 20th century. If the gun was not so easily accessible, his firing it and being arrested could have been prevented. Together with his mom, they moved to a better area of New Orleans. The joyous tune perfectly and ironically clashed with the wartime horrors depicted in one montage, so director Barry Levinson added it to his films soundtrack. However, controversy regarding Armstrong's fatherhood struck in 1954, when a girlfriend that the musician had dated on the side, Lucille "Sweets" Preston, claimed she was pregnant with his child. He interprets and contributes to the genre of jazz, creates great form through his performance in the Hot Chocolates, and his work represents a whole for equality and the civil rights movement. Louis was born in New Orleans where he grew up and learned to play the trumpet. Life & Legacy Louis Armstrong Society Jazz Band Armstrong could make an audience cheer, but Roy Eldridge, made those top and bottom notes feel like a natural part of what the horn should do (Friedwald 21). Armstrong continued a grueling touring schedule into the late '50s, and it caught up with him in 1959, when he had a heart attack while traveling in Spoleto, Italy. He was a master of the trumpet and cornet, and his style of playing was unique and instantly recognizable. Armstrong began to sing on the records, creating a new form of singing, scat singing. Mozart had written over 600 pieces of works, many acknowledged his pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, operatic, and choral music. Contracted to OKeh Records, he began to make a series of recordings with studio-only groups called the Hot Fives or the Hot Sevens. According to this document, the performers actual birth date was August 4, 1901. Why is Louis Armstrong important His distinctive sound and style have had a lasting impact on the genre, and he was a major influence on subsequent generations of jazz musicians. Why Louis Armstrong's "West End Blues" is Important Louis Armstrong: Genius and Drugs WebLouis Armstrong was the protege of King Oliver and one of the best loved musicians of the Twenties. Louis Armstrong was born in New Orleans, Louisiana on August 4, 1901. When Louis Armstrong was placed in a boys home as a young boy, he was presented with the opportunity to play the cornet. See answer (1) Best Answer. (She was the second of his four wives.) Armstrong had gained sufficient individual notice to make his recording debut as a leader on November 12, 1925. Armstrong moved to Chicago to join Oliver's band in August 1922 and made his first recordings as a member of the group in the spring of 1923. Louis gave jazz music a purpose. Hes a professional jazz performer who played with Oliver and Henderson. One of the first soloists on record, Louis was at the forefront of changing jazz from ensemble-oriented folk music into an art form that emphasized inventive solo improvisations. In 1914, the home released him, and he immediately began dreaming of a life making music. He married Lillian Harden, the pianist in the Oliver band, on February 5, 1924. He 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 gravelly voice. Known for his improvisation, Armstrong could induce dramatic effects with his music. Why was Louis Armstrong important to the Harlem Renaissance? Importance of Louis Armstrong While performing with Tate in 1926, Armstrong finally switched from the cornet to the trumpet. Pillars of Life 3 y Related Why was jazz so important? Armstrong sang his heart out on the number, thinking of his home in Queens as he did so, but "What a Wonderful World" received little promotion in the United States. Because of his long improvised solos, he inspired jazz so that long solos became an important part of jazz pieces and performances. .css-m6thd4{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;display:block;margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;font-family:Gilroy,Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif;font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.2;font-weight:bold;color:#323232;text-transform:capitalize;}@media (any-hover: hover){.css-m6thd4:hover{color:link-hover;}}Rock Icon KISS Is Saying Goodbye (For Real), Rihanna and 10 Other Great Pregnant Performances, Burt Bacharachs Legacy: 5 Notable Collaborations, 2023 Grammy Awards: Six Winners Who Made History. As swing and jazz was dominant as the pop music of the early 20th century, his influence is also evident in the transition from swing and jump blues into rock and roll. Copy. ", Louis Armstrong was born on August 4, 1901, in New Orleans, Louisiana, in a neighborhood so poor that it was nicknamed "The Battlefield.". Dancers loved Hendersons music making Louis Armstrong a celebrity so when he left his old band, this would be a step up. Turns out, he was 13 months off. Why I ain't never heard a horse sing a song. Louis Armstrong was the most important and influential musician in jazz history. One of the first soloists on record, Louis was at the forefront of changing jazz from ensemble-oriented folk music into an art form that emphasized inventive solo improvisations. Between 1952 and 1955, Armstrong shed 100 pounds. It was also for Columbia that Armstrong scored one of the biggest hits of his career: His jazz transformation of Kurt Weill's "Mack the Knife. Blessed with, Armstrong was born in New Orleans on August 4, 1901. Armstrong continued touring the world and making records with songs like Blueberry Hill (1949), Mack the Knife (1955) and Hello, Dolly! Although he is often thought of by the general public as a lovable, clowning personality, a gravel-voiced singer who played simple but dramatic trumpet in a New Orleans-styled Dixieland setting, Armstrong himself was so much more. Armstrong was arrested at eleven years old for disturbing the peace. He began to grow artistically and perfected his improvisational method (Jazz Stars 2). WebHe overcame poverty to become one of the most important people in the history of music. An early job working for the Jewish Karnofsky family allowed Armstrong to make enough money to purchase his first cornet. Perhaps most importantly, the letters also detail Armstrong's fatherly love for Sharon. Best Known For: Louis Armstrong was a jazz trumpeter, bandleader and singer known for songs like "What a Wonderful World, Hello, Dolly, Star Dust and "La Vie En Rose.. Louis Armstrong is one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. Armstrong's words made front-page news around the world. There, under the tutelage of Peter Davis, he learned how to properly play the cornet, eventually becoming the leader of the Waifs Home Brass Band. Born, August 4, 1901 he started off in a harder life than most people usually do. There are two kinds of music, the good and the bad. Armstrong's new manager, Joe Glaser, organized a big band for him that had its premiere in Indianapolis on July 1, 1935; for the next several years, he toured regularly. ", During the mid-'50s, Armstrong's popularity overseas skyrocketed. Some even theorize that it was Armstrongs difficult upbringing that made his music so wise, so unique, and so revolutionary. Louis Armstrong Louis Armstrong Armstrong continued to appear in major films with the likes of Mae West, Martha Raye and Dick Powell. Why Is Louis Armstrong Important. Bebop, a new form of jazz, had blossomed in the 1940s. He is also the first African American celebrity to appear in a major Hollywood movie. Armstrong soon began dating the female pianist in the band, Lillian Hardin. The story behind the jazz legends final hit and, quite simply, one of the most beautiful songs ever written. The movie he appeared in was Pennies from Heaven (1936). But, as a Bayou State native, Armstrongs favorite dish was always rice and beans. 1 slot in May 1964, and knocking the Beatles off the top at the height of Beatlemania. You feel butterflies in your stomach as you take your seat. The song for which Pops is most widely remembered, What a Wonderful World, was almost never his song at all. Louis Armstrong was the first black man in the U.S. to host a radio show. Louis Armstrong is famous for his stunning jazz performance, unique vocals, and amazing styles with the trumpet/cornet. He was an extraordinary musician and he impacted jazz music immensely. While he still had to work odd jobs selling newspapers and hauling coal to the city's famed red-light district, Armstrong began earning a reputation as a fine blues player. 1. He spent the next several years in Europe, his American career maintained by a series of archival recordings, including the Top Ten hits "Sweethearts on Parade" (August 1932; recorded December 1930) and "Body and Soul" (October 1932; recorded October 1930). Armstrong's four marriages never produced any children, and because he and wife Lucille Wilson had actively tried for years to no avail, many believed him to be sterile, incapable of having children. In addition, his mother did not have a stable job and with his father long out of the picture, life was hard for young Armstrong. All music is folk music. ", Armstrong signed with Columbia Records in the mid-'50s, and soon cut some of the finest albums of his career for producer George Avakian, including Louis Armstrong Plays W.C. He made his first recordings with Oliver on April 5, 1923; that day, he earned his first recorded solo on "Chimes Blues.". The man was Louis Armstrong. Sources: Even the scepter of Uncle Tom that shadowed the outsized Satchmo during his career, and that Ellington essentially concurred with in an interview with Carter Harman in 1964, has faded. Fletcher Henderson also influenced jazz music. Louis Armstrong: History & Major Accomplishments His rise to fame peaked in the 1920s, where he stunned the world with his bold trumpet style and idiosyncratic vocals. He subsequently passed, so the duo contacted Armstrong in August 1967. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. With his infectious smile and raspy voice, Louis Armstrong (who actually pronounced his own name "Lewis") won over fans worldwide. In 1972, a year after his death, he received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. That didnt stop him from living his life like a regular boy. His amazing technical abilities, the joy and spontaneity, and amazingly quick, inventive musical mind still dominate Jazz to this day. Members of the group, at one time or another, included Jack Teagarden, Earl Hines, Sid Catlett, Barney Bigard, Trummy Young, Edmond Hall, Billy Kyle and Tyree Glenn, among other jazz legends. Glaser did just that; within a few months, Armstrong had a new big band and was recording for Decca Records. It has given me something to live for. Louis Armstrong is considered a hero for many reasons. After trying it, he said that defecation sounded like Applause. Enamored, the musician began handing out packets to admirers, loved ones, and band members. .css-47aoac{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-thickness:0.0625rem;text-decoration-color:inherit;text-underline-offset:0.25rem;color:#A00000;-webkit-transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;}.css-47aoac:hover{color:#595959;text-decoration-color:border-link-body-hover;}DOWNLOAD BIOGRAPHY'S LOUIS ARMSTRONG FACT CARD. Armstrong fronted the Luis Russell Orchestra for a tour of the South in February 1930, and in May went to Los Angeles, where he led a band at Sebastian's Cotton Club for the next ten months. Making money ain't nothing exciting to me. Related. By the start of 1932, he had switched from the "race"-oriented OKeh label to its pop-oriented big sister Columbia, for which he recorded two Top Five hits, "Chinatown, My Chinatown" and "You Can Depend on Me" before scoring a number one hit with "All of Me" in March 1932; another Top Five hit, "Love, You Funny Thing," hit the charts the same month. Changing jazz into what was once known as a ensemble music to soloist art. Biography - Louis Armstrong Home Museum He was also a gifted singer, and his Heebie Jeebies and Hotter Than That, was some of the earliest recordings of Armstrongs scat singing., He was a major piece in the history of jazz music and his career lasted for more than 50 years. Since his death, Armstrong's stature has only continued to grow. The colors of the rainbow, so pretty in the sky are also on the faces of people going by. Armstrong had a great influence on Henderson and his arranger, Don Redman, both of whom began integrating Armstrong's swinging vocabulary into their arrangementstransforming Henderson's band into what is generally regarded as the first jazz big band. He sang much as he played, but with a playfulness and a rasp, that would forever be part of American culture (Winfield 167). He was raised by his mother Mayann in a neighborhood so dangerous it was called The Battlefield. He only had a fifth-grade education, dropping out of school early to go to work. A local Jewish family, the Karnofskys, gave young Armstrong a job collecting junk and delivering coal. For live dates, he appeared with the orchestras led by Erskine Tate and Carroll Dickerson. While he was beloved by musicians, he was too wild for most critics, who gave him some of the most racist and harsh reviews of his career. These views changed in 1957, when Armstrong saw the Little Rock Central High School integration crisis on television. Louis's Father left him around childbirth, and his mother often used prostitution for money. Jelly Roll Morton was a great pianist and arranger from New Orleans., He not only produce one impressive improvised solo after another, but he also raised the bar for jazz vocals. He was born into poverty on August 4, 1901 in the streets of Back o Town (Meckna). Love, baby - love. WebLouis Armstrongas a musician, as a man, as an icon. (Biography.com), Many people knew Louis Armstrong as the first real genius of jazz(Shipton 26). Back in America in 1935, Armstrong hired Joe Glaser as his manager and began fronting a big band, recording pop songs for Decca, and appearing regularly in movies. In 1938, Armstrong finally divorced Lil Hardin and married Alpha Smith, whom he had been dating for more than a decade. He returned to performing in 1970 but it was too much, too soon and he passed away in his sleep on July 6, 1971, a few months after his final engagement at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City. If Armstrong never bought the cornet he would have never become famous. Armstrong felt that being subservient to white people, was an unfortunately necessary evil in order for him to live successfully and happily. His notoriety for being the best jazz player of his time was secured as Armstrong's arrangement of swing and melodic development opened out and changed Henderson's band and in addition jazz overall. Jazz was born there and I remember when it was no crime for cats of any color to get together and blow. Nine years later, after this ban had finally lifted, he again took the stage in New Orleans on October 31, 1965. Finding Yourself, Dropping, Halfway. Show More. 34-56 107th Street, Queens, NY 11368 718-478-8274 2023 Louis Armstrong House Museum, 34-56 107th Street, Queens, NY 11368 718-478-8274, The Louis Armstrong House Museum is a constituent of the. Eldridge is the obvious link between Louis Armstrong and Dizzy Gillespie. The boy's mother, Armstrong's cousin, had died in childbirth. He turned to Joe Glaser for help; Glaser had mob ties of his own, having been close with Al Capone, but he had loved Armstrong from the time he met him at the Sunset Caf (Glaser had owned and managed the club). Heart and kidney problems forced him to stop performing in 1969. Why Louis Armstrong is one of the first great soloists in the 1920s musicians. He first came to prominence in the 1920s as a trumpeter and cornet player with no technique as well as being very skilled in scat singing, Armstrong was a foundational influence in jazz, influencing many later jazz artists as well as shifting the focus of the music from collective improvisation to solo performance.With his very well-known and recognizable gravelly voice, a technique that was later named crooning, Armstrong was an incredibly influential singer, demonstrating great dexterity as an improviser by bending the lyrics and melody of a song for expressive purposes on demand. In 1924, Armstrong married Hardin, who urged Armstrong to leave Oliver and try to make it on his own. According to Armstrong, that nights biggest laugh came right before his group started playing You Rascal, You. Without warning, he looked straight up at the monarch and hollered, This ones for you, Rex!, Fresh off the wild success of his Hello, Dolly! cover, Armstrong made a trip to communist East Berlin in 1965, where he gave a two-hour concert that earned a standing ovation. Armstrong put his career in Glaser's hands and asked him to make his troubles disappear. This pop success was repeated internationally four years later with "What a Wonderful World," which hit number one in the U.K. in April 1968. He embarked on his first European tour since 1935 in February 1948, and thereafter toured regularly around the world. Without the jazz musicians, jazz music would not have been possible. He began following him and eventually Oliver became Armstrongs mentor. WebRather than appealing simply to the crowd of already established jazz lovers, Louis Armstrong was effective at bridging the gap and reaching out to those that may not have been as familiar with the genre and effectively serving as one of the best ambassadors that the jazz world has ever known. Armstrong returned home in May 1971, and though he soon resumed playing again and promised to perform in public once more, he died in his sleep on July 6, 1971, at his home in Queens, New York.

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