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Louis Armstrong
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In 1922 Louis Armstrong was invited by his mentor Joe Oliver and joined his band named Creole Jazz Band. The above mentioned band was the prominent figure in Chicago for Jazz music. During his stay in Chicago he made his first recordings including some solos. On the consistent pressure by his wife Lil Hardin he left Oliver's Band in 1924 and moved to New York to play with the Fletcher Henderson Orchestra. In 1925 he returned back to Chicago and began recording under his own name. Armstrong's trumpet introduction to "West End Blues" remains one of the most famous and momentous improvisations in jazz history.
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Louis Armstrong was the most important and influential musician in jazz history. 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 was much much more. One of the first soloists on record (although he was preceded by Sidney Bechet), Louis was more responsible than anyone else for jazz changing from an 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 ''20s (helping set the stage for the swing era) and Armstrong demonstrated that it was possible to have both impressive technique and a strong feeling for the blues. One of jazz''s first true virtuosos, his influence over his contemporaries was so powerful that nearly every trumpeter to record between 1927 and 1940 sounded to an extent like one of his followers!
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Louis Armstrong's large size has its advantages: the school has equipment and labs that would be too expensive for a small school to provide, including a woodworking shop, a ceramics lab, an extensive music program, and an incredible library. However, the school was ... one of the first in the city to recognize that children in early adolescence often need more individual attention than a traditional junior high school provides. Accordingly, IS 227 is divided into three "houses" of about 500 pupils -- each with its own assistant principal. Each house is divided into "clusters" of four or five classes. Teachers in each cluster work as a team, plan lessons together, and talk about each child's progress.
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Louis Armstrong has two birthdays. The traditional one that Louis himself celebrated was July 4, 1900. August 4, 1901 is the date on a baptismal birth certificate found in New Orleans. To mark the Centennial of Louis' birth, Riverwalk offers three special programs in July.
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Louis Armstrong, nicknamed "Satchmo" (short for satchelmouth), was possibly the most influential jazz musician of the 1920's. Born and raised in the New Orleans battleground neighborhood he learned to play cornet during a stay at "The Colored Waif's Home for Boys" where he was soon hired to play for parades and picnics. He replaced King Oliver in Kid Ory's New Orleans band in 1919, and went to work on riverboats. He joined Oliver in Chicago in 1922, and they began recording in 1923. After playing with King Oliver, Fletcher Henderson, and Bessie Smith he formed the Hot Five, who recorded from 1926 to 1928. The Hot Five included pianist Earl Hines.
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Louis Armstrong grew up in abject poverty in the Storyville section of New Orleans. His mother, Mayann, was the granddaughter of slaves. His father, Willie, abandoned the family when Louis was very young. At about age seven Louis started singing on the streets for spare change. He bought his first horn at age 11. One year later, after firing a gun during the New Year celebration, he was sent to the city's Colored Waifs' home.
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Louis Armstrong