How Did Louis Armstrong Influence Jazz

Louis Armstrong is one of the most influential jazz musicians to ever live. His trumpet defined the role of the jazz soloist and revolutionized jazz itself, and his way of singing was every bit as influential as the instrument he played. His daring trumpet style and unique vocals paved his way to fame. Armstrong style of singing was not always as well liked as it is today. In the beginning, he struggled to make his voice heard. For example, in 1924, Armstrong was dismissed by his bandleader Fletcher Henderson when he asked to sing on a record, and this negative reaction was seen through most of his early career. He had an untrained voice, one with a limited range and a gravelly quality, and was not recognized as a singer until long after establishing himself as an instrumentalist; ironically, today, he is one of the central singers in pop and jazz history with many well-known singers molding their style after his.

Armstrong, himself, was a comedian, and would push the boundaries of the accepted forms of jazz and pop music. At one time, he invented “scat” while singing in the song “Heebie Jeebies”; Armstrong claimed that he dropped the lyric sheet, and when the time came for him to sing, he sang horn-like nonsense syllables instead. Armstrong was also a deft interpreter of lyrics and was a masterful singer, and always wanted to his entertain his audience; in the end, he found great success with his pop hits despite the opinions of critics who at that time believed that he should play music with a more serious