Louis Armstrong

Object Details

Artist

Herman Leonard, 1923 - 2010

Sitter

Louis Armstrong, 4 Aug 1901 - 6 Jul 1971

Exhibition Label

A trumpet virtuoso and innovative vocalist, jazz pioneer Louis Armstrong helped to transform jazz into an international phenomenon. Raised in New Orleans, where he first learned to play the cornet, Armstrong was recruited for “King” Oliver’s Chicago-based Creole Jazz Band in 1922. When the opportunity to perform with Fletcher Henderson’s orchestra took Armstrong to New York City in 1924, his technical prowess and rhythmic ingenuity played a critical role in the development of the new musical style known as “swing.” After forming his own band––the Hot Five––in 1925, Armstrong made a series of memorable recordings that secured his reputation as both the first great jazz soloist and a vocalist as skilled at “scat” singing as he was at melody. Armstrong’s career flourished throughout the swing era. When swing gave way to bebop following World War II, Armstrong rode the wave of the Dixieland jazz revival, becoming its most popular performer.

Virtuoso de la trompeta y vocalista original, Louis Armstrong fue un pionero del jazz que ayudó a transformar el género en un fenómeno internacional. Armstrong creció en New Orleans, donde aprendió a tocar la corneta, y en 1922 fue reclutado por “King” Oliver para su Creole Jazz Band, radicada en Chicago. En 1924 se le presentó la oportunidad de tocar con la orquesta de Fletcher Henderson en New York, donde su maestría técnica y su genio rítmico fueron factores cruciales en el desarrollo del nuevo estilo conocido como swing. Después de fundar su propia banda, Hot Five, en 1925, Armstrong grabó una serie de memorables discos que consolidaron su reputación como primer gran solista de jazz y vocalista tan diestro en el scat como en la melodía. Su carrera floreció durante la era del swing. Cuando éste cedió el paso al bebop, luego de la Segunda Guerra Mundial, Armstrong aprovechó el resurgimiento del dixieland, convirtiéndose en su más popular exponente.

Credit Line

National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution

1960 (printed 1998)

Object number

NPG.2014.111.1

Restrictions & Rights

Usage conditions apply

Copyright

© Herman Leonard Photography LLC

Type

Photograph

Medium

Selenium-toned gelatin silver print

Dimensions

Image: 30.7 × 40cm (12 1/16 × 15 3/4")

Sheet: 40.5 × 50.5cm (15 15/16 × 19 7/8")

Frame: 56.5 × 71.8 × 3.8 cm (22 1/4 × 28 1/4 × 1 1/2")

Place

France\Île-de-France\Ville de Paris, Départment de\Paris

See more items in

National Portrait Gallery Collection

National Portrait Gallery

Topic

Interior

Home Furnishings\Drinking vessel\Glass

Music\Musical instrument\Trumpet

Container\Pitcher

Louis Armstrong: Male

Louis Armstrong: Performing Arts\Performer\Actor\Movie

Louis Armstrong: Performing Arts\Performer\Comedian

Louis Armstrong: Performing Arts\Performer\Musician\Singer\Jazz

Louis Armstrong: Performing Arts\Performer\Musician\Jazz

Louis Armstrong: Performing Arts\Performer\Musician\Horn\Trumpet

Portrait

Record ID

npg_NPG.2014.111.1

Usage of Metadata (Object Detail Text)

Usage conditions apply

GUID (Link to Original Record)

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm4eaf9899e-ea00-4137-acc1-a1c71077675c