Louis Armstrong
The King of Jazz
Grace DeWolf
Junior Division
Individual Documentary
Word Count: 438
Choosing My Topic
When I was searching for a topic to research, I knew I wanted to focus on music because I am a singer and a musician. I wanted to know who had inspired some of my favorite artists. Personally, I have always had a great interest in music, so I wanted my topic to be something I could really relate to. After looking at musicians who had influenced todays’ artists, I knew that I wanted to focus on Louis Armstrong, not only because he was a brilliant musician, but because he broke racial barriers.
Conducting Research
I first went online and simply typed in “Louis Armstrong” to start off my research. I was amazed to see how many documentaries, videos, books, and web sites there were on Armstrong. I was able to find a museum dedicated to Louis Armstrong, located in Queens, New York. I contacted Ricky Riccardi, an archivist for the Louis Armstrong House Museum, to gain more insight and information. I discovered things about Louis Armstrong that I couldn’t find online, and the information became very valuable in the research for my documentary. I was able to find original footage of Louis Armstrong performing live, and I searched current artists and noticed the similar technics that Armstrong uses.
Choosing and Completing my Presentation
I chose to do a documentary because I thought it would be the best way to illustrate the musical genius of Louis Armstrong. I wanted to give the people that see this documentary a great opportunity to hear and see exactly how Armstrong impacted the musical world during his time, an at the same time, show how he influenced musicians that came after him. Since there is a great amount of original recordings available on the internet, there was plenty of opportunities to share what I was hoping people will learn from this project.
How My Project Related to the Theme
Louis Armstrong will forever be remembered as a brilliant musician, but he will also be known for helping to break down racial barriers and open doors not only for his own success, but for the musicians that came after him. As an African-American man, it was very hard to be taken seriously because of his skin color. It wasn’t enough to produce music that would become iconic – Louis Armstrong had to fight to be treated with respect and dignity. His race proved to be a barrier and Armstrong was a leader for all those who thought that they couldn’t do something because of their race.
Bibliography
Primary Sources
Videos and Recordings
“The Ultimate Black History Collection.” Goldenlane Records. Released September 1, 2009.
On this album was a recording of Louis Armstrong in an interview talking about his early days as a musician.
Newspapers
Leonard, Earl. “Armstrong To Appear for Stegeman Dance.” Red and Black Archive. 21 February 1957: D2
In this newspaper article, it mainly talks about Louis Armstrong touring around the world. This helped get a better feel from what it was like for Armstrong performing and what people thought about his performances.
Staff of the Times-Democrat. “Few Juveniles Arrested.” Times-Democrat. 2 January 1913: D1. Print.
This newspaper article talks about the difficulties of Louis Armstrong as a child, being an African American boy.
Secondary
Interviews (email)
Johnston, Kendy and DeWolf, Grace. “Louis Armstrong.” Message to Ricky D Riccardi. 6 January 2015. E-mail.
Ricky Riccardi is an Archivist for the Louis Armstrong House Museum, Queens, NY. Mr. Riccardi was able to answer my specific questions regarding Armstrong’s life and career.
Websites
Not Given. “Louis Armstrong Biography.” 2015. Web. 11 January 2015. http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles
This website helped to know more about Louis Armstrong and what he has done to influence the world.
Not Given. “Louis Armstrong.” 2000. Web. 13 October 2014. <http://www.pbs.org>
This website told me a lot about Louis Armstrong’s childhood—growing up in a poor family in a bad part of New Orleans.
Not Given. “Louis Armstrong.” 2014. Web. 16 October 2014. <http://www.biography.com
This website focused on Louis Armstrong’s challenges of being an African American man, and Louis Armstrong’s work to break down racial barriers.
St. Rosemary Education Institution. “Louis Armstrong: Biography and Musician.” 2014. Web. 20 October 2014. <http://www.schoolworkhelper.net>
This website talked a lot about Louis Armstrong’s role in the 20s.
Pictures
Killip, Larry. “Louis Armstrong.” Larry Killip Music. Larry Killip, July 2009. Web. 18 January 2015. <http://www.Ikmusic.co.nz.com>
This picture is a great picture of Louis Armstrong singing.
Not given. “Bing.” Louis Armstrong Singing. Publisher not given. Web. 10 January 2015.
This picture represents Louis Armstrong and his passion for music.
Akesson, Alex. “Black and Blue: Louis Armstrong Bio.” Hedge Fund Lounge. The Hedge Fund Community, 2011. Web. 9 January 2015.
This picture from this website demonstrates Louis Armstrong as a young boy starting off his musical career.
Chatman, Joshua. “Louis Armstrong by Josh.” Nccgreatdepression. Tangient LLC, 2011. Web. 30 December 2014. <http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=louis%20armstrong>
This photo is of Louis Armstrong smiling with his big, bright smile holding his trumpet.
Mac, Netty. “Louis Armstrong.” Netty Mac Train and Music News. Not given, 2011. Web. 12 January 2015. <http://www.nettymactrain.blogspot.com>
This is a picture of Louis Armstrong singing his heart out during one of his concerts.
Not given. “Louis Armstrong Remixes.” The Music Ninja. Not given, 2015. Web. 5 December 2014. <http://www.themusicninja.com>
Louis Armstrong is smiling, and has a very inspirational look.
Not Given. “Union Sons Hall.” Hurricane Brassband. Not given, 2010. Web. 3 January 2015. <http://www.hurricanebrassband.nl/encyclopedia_u.htm>
This was a photo of Funky Butt Hall, a local theatre in New Orleans, which Louis Armstrong was fascinated by the music being played.
Louis Armstrong House Museum. “Louis Armstrong House Museum.” Louis Armstrong House Museum. Mitre Agency, 2008. Web. 3 January 2015. <https://www.louisarmstronghouse.org/images/1900a.jpg>
This is a photo of Louis Armstrong and his mother and sister.
Pick, Margaret. “The Rise and Fall of Joe ‘King’ Oliver.” River Walk Jazz Collection. Stanford University, 2012. Web. 6 January 2015. <http://riverwalkjazz.stanford.edu>
This is a photo of King Oliver and Louis Armstrong.
Not given. “Louis Armstrong and his Hot Five.” Louis Armstrong. Jazz is Timeless Records. Web. <http://www.redhotjazz.com>
This is a picture of Louis Armstrong and a couple of his band members.
Not Given. “Louis Armstrong Biography.” The Famous People. Famous People. Web. <http://www.jazz.com>
This is a photo of Louis Armstrong playing the trumpet.
Milton, Keith. “Louis Armstrong.” Photographers Gallery. Photographers Gallery Inc., 2008. Web. <http://www.photographersgallery.com>
This is a photo of Louis Armstrong on tour.
Not given. “10 Things to Know About Louis Armstrong.” Legends and Legacies. Michael Ochs Archives, 2014. Web. <http://www.legacy.com>
This picture is of Louis Armstrong at an awards show.
Not given. “Satchmo flies Air Canada.” Air Canada. Not given, 2015. Web. <http://www.75.aircanada.com>
This a picture of Louis Armstrong coming off a plane while on tour.
Not Given. “Louis Armstrong.” Greater New Orleans. The Grand Theatre, 2009. Web. <http://www.nola.com>
This is a photo of Louis Armstrong and it says “Pops,” which is his nickname.
Not Given. “Freedom Riders.” PBS. PBS, 2010. Web. <http://www.pbs.org>
This is a picture that shows you the segregation difficulties.
Books
Collier, James Lincoln. Louis Armstrong: An American Success Story. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company, 1985. Print.
This book helped me to understand more about Louis Armstrong’s life and how he impacted the world.