Professor
Music Appreciation
September 27,2014
Louis Armstrong: Life and Contribution to Jazz Music
Jazz is considered to be one of the most influential music genres of the world. It is said to have developed out the unique experiences of the black man in America (Levert). Jazz was born in the city of Storyville, New Orleans . For many years during the post American Civil War period, Storyville was acknowledged as corrupt and as a sanctuary for every form of low life (Shadwick). It is said by many legends and folklores that jazz developed in the in the Storyville whorehouses and honky-tonks in the long evenings of entertainment that was offered by the musicians and the paying guest. On August 4, 1901 in New Orleans one of the world’s first great jazz musicians was born, Louis Daniel Armstrong (Martin). Louis Armstrong would become the most famous and influential performers in the history of jazz. With his wonderful voice and powerful trumpet, he changed jazz music forever. Louis Armstrong brought a new appreciation for music to America and to the world. …show more content…
From birth he had to face many obstacles on life’s path. He grew up destitute in a shack in the ghetto of New Orleans. His parents separated before he was five years old; Armstrong grew up without a father (Levert). His mother frequently turned to prostitution, leaving him with his maternal grandmother. Louis never received a formal education and spent most of his time in the streets of New Orleans. He lived all around saloons, halls and brothels(Shadrick). By the time Louis was seven, he was singing in the streets to pay for food (Levert). In the fifth grade Armstrong had to drop out of school to start working and help support the family. He was “adopted” by a jewish family who put him to work on their junk wagon (Martin). However, the first money that he earned from music was from singing in the