Renowned for his charming and incredibly charismatic stage presence and voice almost as much as for his trumpet and/or cornet playing, Armstrong 's influence extends far beyond jazz music, and by the end of his career in the early 1970s at his death, he was widely regarded as a deep and profound influence on popular music in general.
Louis Armstrong: A Cultural Legacy He returned to Broadway in the short-lived musical Swingin' the Dream in November 1939. It has given me something to live for. Louis Armstrong was an outstanding jazz musician during the Harlem Renaissance Era.
Louis Armstrong He was one of America's most significant artists by the late 1930s, and had created a sensation in Europe with live performances and records. He also played as a second trumpet for King Oliver. Pops had a special place in his heart for both Chinese and Italian food. Evidently, the show went well. He was taken under the wing of cornetist Joe "King" Oliver, and when Oliver moved to Chicago in June 1918, Armstrong replaced him in the Kid Ory Band. The most important and influential musician in jazz history, and one of the leading singers and entertainers from the 1920s through the '50s. Clarence, who had become mentally disabled from a head injury he had suffered at an early age, was taken care of by Armstrong his entire life. Louis Armstrong was born in New Orleans in 1901. (Hakim, 58) Although Jazz was very popular itself, a majority of the fans and listeners were younger people. The year is 1954. 232) Armstrong unlike other black jazz men and women, was one of the first to be welcomed in the upper echelons of white society. By the end of the decade, the popularity of the Hot Fives and Sevens was enough to send Armstrong back to New York, where he appeared in the popular Broadway revue, Hot Chocolates. He soon began touring and never really stopped until his death in 1971. The new style that he created gave a voice-like quality to his horn. What a Wonderful World struck a chord with moviegoers and was re-released that year, becoming an oft-requested radio hit. "Hotter Than That" was in the Top Ten in May 1928, followed in September by "West End Blues," which later became one of the first recordings named to the Grammy Hall of Fame. Contracted to OKeh Records, he began to make a series of recordings with studio-only groups called the Hot Fives or the Hot Sevens. Louis Armstrong is considered a hero for many reasons. He had a string of pop hits beginning in 1949 and started making regular overseas tours, where his popularity was so great, he was dubbed Ambassador Satch.. His rise to fame peaked in the 1920s, where he stunned the world with his bold trumpet style and idiosyncratic vocals. He was a master of the trumpet and a skilled improviser, and his style of playing influenced many other jazz musicians. To grasp how much the man adored this entre, consider that he often signed his personal letters with Red Beans and Ricely Yours.. 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. Though his popularity was hitting new highs in the 1950s, and despite breaking down so many barriers for his race and being a hero to the African American community for so many years, Armstrong began losing his standing with two segments of his audience: Modern jazz fans and young African Americans. His fame rose when he composed several masterworks in the 1940s. Glaser did just that; within a few months, Armstrong had a new big band and was recording for Decca Records. The tune did, however, become a No. WebDid You Know? 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). That's the secret. He was an extraordinary musician and he impacted jazz music immensely. Why Is Louis Armstrong Important.
Importance of Louis Armstrong Louis Armstrong is one of the most important jazz figures.
Why is Louis Armstrong How Did Louis Armstrong Contribute To The Harlem Renaissance (Armstrong did not function as a bandleader in the usual sense, but instead typically lent his name to established groups.) In fifth grade, while being taken care of by his maternal grandmother most of the time, he left school to work. The single's B-side, and also a chart entry, was "A Kiss to Build a Dream On," sung by Armstrong in the film The Strip. The book was titled Swing That Music. He was soon able to stop working manual labor jobs and began concentrating full-time on his cornet, playing parties, dances, funeral marches and at local "honky-tonks"a name for small bars that typically host musical acts. Its popularity brought many people together, even through the years of racial discrimination and the Great Depression. He has many nicknames in which some are Satchmo and Pops.
Why is Louis Armstrong important? - Answers In the summer of 1929, Armstrong headed to New York, where he had a role in a Broadway production of Connie's Hot Chocolates, featuring the music of Fats Waller and Andy Razaf.
Why Louis Armstrong's "West End Blues" is Important That same year, his longtime manager, Joe Glaser, passed away. Born, August 4, 1901 he started off in a harder life than most people usually do. While not officially government-sponsored, there are some who believe the concert was arranged by the CIA, which would make this just one of the many taxpayer-funded appearances hed make abroad during the Cold War in an effort to strengthen diplomatic relations overseas.
Biography - Louis Armstrong Home Museum Finding Yourself, Dropping, Halfway. Copy. he is important because he was the first black singer. WebLouis Armstrong was a key asset to the Harlem Renaissance due to his inspiring music and playing his instruments for African Americans people during this period. With his amazing voice trumpet he created a band and made some records. There are two kinds of music, the good and the bad. When Pops (who adored Thiele and Weiss masterwork) passed away on July 6, 1971, What a Wonderful World seemed destined for stateside obscurity. 1 hit around the world, including in England and South Africa, and eventually became one of Armstrong's most-beloved songs after it was used in the 1986 Robin Williams film Good Morning, Vietnam. 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. Since New Orleans style jazz known to man, it was one of the broadest genres of jazz. Armstrong's daring vocal transformations of these songs completely changed the concept of popular singing in American popular music, and had lasting effects on all singers who came after him, including Bing Crosby, Billie Holiday, Frank Sinatra and Ella Fitzgerald. 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.. The records by Louis Armstrong and His Fiveand later, Hot Sevenare the most influential in jazz.
", During the mid-'50s, Armstrong's popularity overseas skyrocketed. Sure enough, he explained, they [published] Heebie Jeebies the same way it was mistakenly recorded. However, most biographers believe that Armstrong made up this anecdote and had planned on scatting all along. Armstrong was still a popular attraction around the world in 1963, but hadn't made a record in two years. Copy.
Louis Armstrong: A Cultural Legacy | National Portrait Gallery Here is one paragraph from the post: From the very first note of West End Blues, a tune composed by Joe King Oliver, one can immediately sense the shift that His resurgence in the '60s with hit recordings like 1965's Grammy-winning "Hello Dolly" and 1968's classic "What a Wonderful World" solidified his legacy as a musical and cultural icon. In June 1951 he reached the Top Ten of the LP charts with Satchmo at Symphony Hall ("Satchmo" being his nickname), and he scored his first Top Ten single in five years with "(When We Are Dancing) I Get Ideas" later in the year. 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. From 1925 to 1928, Armstrong made more than 60 records with the Hot Five and, later, the Hot Seven. 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. You feel butterflies in your stomach as you take your seat. Louis Armstrong was the first black man in the U.S. to host a radio show. He performed all over the world in the 1950s and '60s, including throughout Europe, Africa and Asia. Louis was the illegitimate son of William Armstrong and Mary Est Mayann Albert. Armstrong felt that being subservient to white people, was an unfortunately necessary evil in order for him to live successfully and happily. 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. Released from the Waifs Home in 1914, Armstrong set his sights on becoming a professional musician. ", Louis Armstrong was born on August 4, 1901, in New Orleans, Louisiana, in a neighborhood so poor that it was nicknamed "The Battlefield.". In 1922, his mentor, King Oliver, invited him to work his Creole Jazz Band in Chicago. 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. 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 civil rights movement was growing stronger with each passing year, with more protests, marches and speeches from African Americans wanting equal rights. WebLouis Armstrong was the protean genius that made African American classical music mislabeled as jazz the most important music event of the 20th century. In the 1980s and '90s, younger African American jazz musicians like Wynton Marsalis, Jon Faddis and Nicholas Payton began speaking about Armstrong's importance, both as a musician and a human being. Hes a professional jazz performer who played with Oliver and Henderson. A young pianist from Pittsburgh, Earl Hines, assimilated Armstrong's ideas into his piano playing. Given his popularity, his long career, and the extensive label-jumping he did in his later years, as well as the differing jazz and pop sides of his work, his recordings are extensive and diverse, with parts of his catalog owned by numerous companies. 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. Despite failing to make a new record for two years, Armstrong remained a fan favorite. Louis Armstrong was a pivotal musician in the twentieth century, but it was his contributions and his role he made during the Harlem Renaissance movement that is most substantial. That same year, he became the first African American to get featured billing in a major Hollywood movie with his turn in Pennies from Heaven, starring Bing Crosby. WebHe had a string of pop hits beginning in 1949 and started making regular overseas tours, where his popularity was so great, he was dubbed Ambassador Satch. In America, Armstrong had been a great Civil Rights pioneer, breaking down An early job working for the Jewish Karnofsky family allowed Armstrong to make enough money to purchase his first cornet. Armstrong spent the last decade of his life similarly that he had spent the four past enthralling groups of onlookers all through the world., Louis Blues, Overall Armstrong wrote and performed some of the most popular and well known jazz songs of all time. He was often left with his grandmother, and left school in fifth grade to start working. WebToday, Louis Armstrong holds the title as the worlds greatest jazz player. Louis Armstrong was important in the 1920's because he put a whole new meaning to jazz. Armstrong began to sing on the records, creating a new form of singing, scat singing. That same year, Armstrong married for the fourth and final time; he wed Lucille Wilson, a Cotton Club dancer. One of the most important figures in 20th century music, Armstrong's innovations as a trumpeter and vocalist are widely recognized today, and will continue to be for decades to come. While only a DNA test could officially prove whether a blood relationship does exist between Armstrong and Sharon and one has never been conducted between the two believers and skeptics can at least agree on one thing: Sharon's uncanny resemblance to the jazz legend. However, a heart attack two days after the Waldorf gig sidelined him for two months. He adds, "He was also more than a jazz musician he was an enormously popular entertainer"(pp. Related. What are some facts about Louis Armstrong?A Jewish immigrant family helped him buy his first horn. Armstrong first received musical training during a stint in juvenile detention. His wife helped jumpstart his solo career. Armstrong was one of the first celebrities to be arrested for drug possession. By signing up for this email, you are agreeing to news, offers, and information from Encyclopaedia Britannica. See answer (1) Best Answer. Here are 10 facts about the life of one of the 20th century's most important jazz musicians. Though he was the product's biggest cheerleader, Armstrong neither requested nor received any payment from its manufacturers. Perhaps most importantly, the letters also detail Armstrong's fatherly love for Sharon. He influenced countless other musicians and helped to shape the course of jazz. He influenced other jazz musicians by his fearless trumpet styles and distinctive vocals. 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. Satch Plays Fats, a tribute to Fats Waller, became a Top Ten LP for Columbia in October 1955, and Verve Records contracted Armstrong for a series of recordings with Ella Fitzgerald, beginning with the chart LP Ella and Louis in 1956. Eldridge is the obvious link between Louis Armstrong and Dizzy Gillespie. At the school he learned to play cornet. In April, he reached the charts with his first vocal recording, "Big Butter and Egg Man," a duet with May Alix. His lips were still sore, and there were still remnants of his mob troubles and with Lil, who, following the couple's split, was suing Armstrong. Mozart, in his own traditional ways, the right away he did the first three of his 22 performances at that opera. Armstrongs mentor, King Oliver, had Armstrong move to Chicago to be in his band; in Olivers, Aside from the typical cultural, social, and political factors influencing any musicians style, an early life filled with poverty and hardship also shaped Louis Armstrongs musical development. 2023 Minute Media - All Rights Reserved. Armstrong returned to New York with his band for an engagement at Connie's Inn in Harlem in May 1929. 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. This is where Armstrong first fell in love with music; he would listen to people playing any chance that he would get(Tirro). WebThrough the internet and books we find out why Louis Armstrong is such a great person to learn about.
Why Louis Armstrong was important? Stwnews.org The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica, Dig Deeper: More Articles That Discuss This Topic, American actress, singer, director, producer.