You’ve probably heard the terms 'New Orleans Jazz', 'Chicago Jazz', 'West Coast Jazz' thrown around to distinguish different flavors of America's signature music.
But we’ve had some fans ask “what does 'Louis Armstrong Jazz' mean?” The answer is simply music played in the style of Louis. Part of his incredible musical talent has been that he knew how to fit in with other musicians.
There’s a part of each performance when the band plays as an ensemble with the clarinet, trumpet and trombone intertwining the melody and harmonies of the song so that each imagines (makes up) his part as he goes along but it blends with what the other musicians are making up because they follow the forms and rules of jazz music.
Ensemble playing of this type is not to be missed.
But what about solos? It was Louis Armstrong who’s strong lip and great ear lead him to improvise solos above and beyond anyone of his time. And to top that off, he knew when to do it, and when not to do it. That’s a talent unto itself.
So the next time you here a band playing swing ensemble jazz and then one of the musicians takes a solo, think of Louis Armstrong. He started that style of Louis Armstrong Jazz' over 100 years ago, and it's still one of the most popular forms today!