Roaring 20s: Fletcher Henderson Orch. (The Dixie Stompers) - Ain't She Sweet, 1927 скачать в хорошем качестве

Roaring 20s: Fletcher Henderson Orch. (The Dixie Stompers) - Ain't She Sweet, 1927

Ain’t She Sweet?, Fox-Trot (Ager, Yellen) – The Dixie Stompers (Fletcher Henderson’s Orchestra), Velvet Tone 1927 (USA) NOTE: James Fletcher Hamilton HENDERSON (b. 1897 in Cuthbert, Georgia – d. 1952 in New York, aged 55) – Afro-American jazz pianist & bandleader considered one of the most influential & innovative musicians and arrangers in jazz history. Henderson was called “an architect of Swing” who helped bridge the gap between the Dixieland and the swing eras. He was from a middle-class family and held a degree in chemistry from Atlanta University. In his childhood, his mother taught him to play the piano, but he knew little about jazz until he was in his 20s. He moved to New York in 1920 scheduled to do postgraduate work there. However, at that time of the racial prejudices, he found there were limited work opportunities available to him. Fortunately, he knew W.C. Handy who offered him work demonstrating sheet music for Handy’s music publishing company. This paved the way for his future career. In 1922, he arranged a dance band which played at the Club Alabam, and later moved to the Roseland Ballroom (Broadway at 50th St.) where they played for a further decade. Fletcher had a good eye for selecting talented musicians for his band, so many later well-known musicians worked with Henderson, including saxophonist Coleman Hawkins, reed instrumentalist and arranger Don Redman, and trumpeter and alto saxophonist Benny Carter. In 1924, Henderson hired Louis Armstrong to play in his orchestra. Armstrong had been playing with ‘King’ Oliver’s Creole Jazz Band in Chicago and, on the wave of their success, went on to New York. When Armstrong left Henderson’s band the following year, he picked Rex Stewart to replace him. Henderson’s orchestra toured and recorded music for many years, producing classic recordings such as King Porter Stomp, Down South Camp Meeting and Wrappin’ It Up. The original Fletcher Henderson's Orchestra disbanded in 1939. Although known for his own compositions with his orchestra, Henderson was also the catalyst for the success of other bandleaders. John Hammond, a record producer, convinced Henderson to give his book of arrangements to the as-yet-unknown clarinetist Benny Goodman, which catapulted the Goodman’s rapid success. Henderson would later join Goodman’s band as a pianist and arranger to become the first black member of an all-white orchestra. In a Downbeat article in 1965, Rex Stewart, said about his friend and fellow musician: ‘Goodman is not the only musician who owes a debt of gratitude to Fletcher Henderson. Jazz would not exist in its form today were it not for the many innovations, creativity, and contributions of Fletcher Henderson.’ Fletcher Henderson continued playing and forming new bands throughout the 1940s, yet in 1950 he suffered a stroke which ended his musical career, 2 years later he died in NY.