Louis Armstrong Essay -- Jazz Player Music Musician Biography Essays

Louis Armstrong Heroes are needed in the world to give people something to look up to, someone to be like. Louis Armstrong over came such adversities as poverty, a lack of good education, and racism to become one of the greatest jazz player not just of the 1920s but of the 20th century. Armstrong was one of the creators of Jazz and was one of the most popular entertainers from the 1920s. Starting out at a young age he never knew that one day he would be such a popular jazz player and also not knowing that one day he might even be called a hero. Armstrong was born on July 4, 1900 in the Storyville section of New Orleans. At the age of 12 his life changed. When he was parting for New Years Eve, he shot a gun into the air. He was soon arrested and taken to a center for juvenile offenders. He hated being there, but loved going to see the band at the center play everyday. When he got the chance to go play in the band, he quickly did. He first started out playing the Alto Horn then moved to the drums and finally ending up with the trumpet. Two years later at the age of fourteen he was released from the center. He went out and got jobs to help get him to be able to afford an instrument. His jobs included, selling papers, unloading boats, and selling coal from a cart. On his off times he would go around to clubs like the Funky Butt Hall to listen to bands play. A jazz musician named King Oliver saw him and was impressed at his attendance at so many of the local clubs that he inquired of him as to if he wanted to learn to play the cornet. Armstrong said yes. He picked it up very quickly and soon was playing in bands for people that were absent. This soon lead to him starting his own band. This was all at the age of seventeen. Armstrong played with his band, known as Louis Armstrong Hot 5 or Hot 7, for two years and then King Oliver went to Chicago. Armstrong took a spot in Kid Ory’s orchestra one of the biggest known bands in the town. He played on the riverboats on the Mississippi River and got better at playing. All this without even knowing how to read music. While on the riverboat he was taught to read music which would help him out greatly later, when he became a band conductor. In 1922 he was called to Chicago by King Oliver. After arriving he made a change t... ... modern classical music. Contemporary classical composers like Darius Milhaud and Igor Stravinsky emulated much of Armstrong's work. In addition, Armstrong left his mark on other aspects of American culture as his fascinating personality truly influenced a nation. Armstrong's legacy can be traced into "dance, theater, the visual arts, fashion, poetry, and literature." Nobody has done more for jazz than Louis Armstrong. His contributions, influence, and legacy are immeasurable. Louis Armstrong truly is the jazz legend. As fellow trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie points out, "If it weren't for him, there wouldn't be any of us." When there is someone who beats all the odds to come out on top and shows you that you can do anything if you really want to. You probably will call them a hero. Hero doesn’t just mean saving lives and helping people that are in danger of dying, it can also be someone who makes you believe that you can do anything that you can imagine. Louie Armstrong helped lots of black people know that just because of their color, it didn’t mean that they couldn’t be one of the most famous people in the world.