Lesson 6: Jazz Composers/Musicians

Jazz Composers/Musicians

As with classical music, there are certain composers/musicians who greatly impacted the development and evolution of jazz. While we cannot cover all of these musicians, we will focus on several individuals who left large imprints on the world of jazz and music in general.

Louis Armstrong

Perhaps one of King Oliver's greatest contributions to jazz was his mentorship of Louis Armstrong (1901-1971). Armstrong is perhaps the best-known jazz musician of the early jazz periods, and the recordings made with his bands Hot Five and Hot Seven are widely regarded as jazz classics. Armstrong and his bands revolutionized jazz. Armstrong's charisma and 'distinctive, gravelly' voice also brought to jazz the practice of the virtuoso singer. He was particularly adept at scat singing, which is the use of syllables and sounds instead of lyrics.

Armstrong was born in New Orleans to a poor family. After dropping out of school at the age of eleven, Armstrong joined a group of boys who sang on the street for money. He also began working for a Jewish Russian immigrant family doing odd jobs for them. The family took Armstrong in and treated him like one of the family. He learned to play the cornet and several other instruments through some of the local jazz musicians, including King Oliver. When Oliver left New Orleans, Armstrong took over as the second trumpet in the Tuxedo Brass Band.

The time and practice that Armstrong put into music began to pay off. He learned to read music and his skills as a musician increased dramatically. Whereas Oliver was more of a co-equal in the band that he played with, Armstrong stood out as the star. In 1922, Armstrong left New Orleans to move to Chicago to join Oliver's new band there. Chicago was the center of hot jazz at this time and Oliver's band was one of the most popular. Armstrong recorded his first records and left Oliver's band to seek other opportunities. He went to New York for a year, before returning to Chicago, playing in larger orchestras. For a few years, Armstrong went back and forth between Chicago and New York to play in bands, recording music on the side as well. In the 1940s, he settled permanently in New York, forming a group called Louis Armstrong and his All Stars. He continued to record, and his record 'Hello, Dolly' rose to number one on the charts in 1964, making Armstrong the oldest individual (at sixty-three) to have a number one record. This also dislodged The Beatles from the number one spot that they had held for fourteen weeks before that. Armstrong died in 1971 after a heart attack.

Armstrong is widely regarded as one of the best jazz musicians of all time and probably the best jazz musician of the early jazz years. The records that he created with his bands Hot Five and Hot Seven in the 1920s are regarded as some of the finest jazz recordings in history. Musically, Armstrong was talented at improvising and he was one of the major figures in creating the trumpet as a solo instrument. Armstrong was also an important figure in the transition from New Orleans as the center of jazz to its spread to cities like Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles. Some of his best-known songs include 'Muskrat Ramble,' 'Lazy River,' 'When the Saints Go Marching In,' 'Stardust,' and 'What a Wonderful World.' Yet, Armstrong's influence did not end at the music itself. His larger than life personality and charisma made Armstrong a popular figure outside of the realm of jazz. He appeared in numerous films as himself, and he brought jazz to individuals who might not have otherwise been exposed to this musical genre.