Chapter 6: The Birth of Jazz
Louis Armstrong (1901 to 1971) is widely regarded as one of the most important and transformative figures in the history of jazz. A virtuoso trumpeter, an expressive vocalist, and a charismatic performer, Armstrong helped define the sound of early jazz and laid the groundwork for its evolution throughout the 20th century. Born in New Orleans in 1901, Armstrong grew up in poverty but was exposed to the city's rich musical culture from a young age. After a brief stint in reform school where he first learned to play the cornet, he began working with local brass bands and street ensembles. His first major break came when he was invited to join Joe "King" Oliver’s Creole Jazz Band in Chicago, a move that introduced him to a broader audience and set his professional career in motion.
From there, Armstrong moved to New York City to join the orchestra of Fletcher Henderson, one of the most influential big band leaders of the time. On February 4, 1924, Armstrong married Lil Hardin Armstrong, King Oliver's pianist and a classically trained musician. Lil played a crucial role in shaping Armstrong’s early career. Recognizing his immense potential, she encouraged him to develop his musical skills beyond performance. She taught him music theory and harmony and pushed him to adopt a more polished professional image. However, it was Armstrong’s return to Chicago in 1925 that would cement his legacy. That year, he began a series of groundbreaking recordings under his own name with a studio group known as the Hot Five (later the Hot Seven, depending on the session personnel). These recordings, made between 1925 and 1928, showcased Armstrong’s extraordinary talent as a soloist. His trumpet playing, marked by a wide range and brilliant tone, set a new standard for jazz improvisation.
Armstrong was equally influential as a vocalist. His warm, gravelly voice, use of expressive rhythm, and his pioneering of scat singing (the use of improvised, nonsensical syllables in place of lyrics) redefined what jazz singing could be. His vocal phrasing often mirrored his trumpet improvisations, emphasizing playfulness, emotion, and spontaneity. One of his most enduring vocal recordings, “What a Wonderful World” (1967), continues to resonate with audiences today and has been prominently featured in films such as Good Morning, Vietnam (1987) and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (1981).
A quintessential example of Armstrong's impact on New Orleans jazz is his 1928 recording of "West End Blues" with his Hot Five. The piece begins with a now famous unaccompanied trumpet introduction that immediately establishes Armstrong’s technical prowess and expressive power. The recording unfolds in multiple choruses, each a 12-bar repetition of the blues form, featuring different soloists from the ensemble. One of these choruses highlights Armstrong’s scat singing in a duet with the clarinet, a brilliant example of call and response in action. Throughout the track, timbre plays a central role. Armstrong’s gritty vocal tone, the use of woodblocks, expressive trombone slides, and wide vibrato on sustained notes create a rich palette of sonic textures.
In Louis Armstrong’s recordings, timbre is a defining feature. His gritty, textured voice, expressive scatted syllables, and the varied sounds of the ensemble, such as the woodblocks, long trombone slides, and wide vibrato on sustained notes, all contribute to a vibrant and colorful soundscape. Each instrument brings its own tonal identity, and Armstrong's arrangements often highlighted this variety deliberately.
Jazz musicians of this era also made creative use of mutes to alter the timbre of brass instruments. One common type is the plunger mute, which is literally the rubber end of a toilet plunger used to cover and uncover the bell of a trumpet or trombone. This technique produces a sound that mimics wordless vocalizations, often described as a “wah-wah” effect, famously heard in the "voice" of the teacher in Charlie Brown cartoons. Mutes like this allowed performers to make their instruments speak, adding another expressive layer to the music. In Armstrong’s performances and in early New Orleans jazz more broadly, special passages for soloists, innovative mute effects, and attention to tone color became essential components of the music’s personality and emotional range.
