One of the most significant and important musicians of all the times, Louis Daniel Armstrong was an American singer, composer and trumpeter. His talent has been accepted by the masses and has made him one of the most influential personalities among all the representatives of the American jazz scene. Having a variety of nicknames from his colleagues (Pops or Satchmo), Armstrong has had a career of almost five decades, in the period of 1920 – 1960s remaining one of the most important musicians and composers in different representations of jazz actual for each period within these decades.
He has become famous first for his trumpet playing technique, as his contemporaries identified his playing skill as inventive and fresh. Thus, Armstrong created significant impact within the jazz scene; in particular, he was one of the pioneers in jazz to transfer his performances from orienting to ensemble improvisation towards the performance on a solo instrument (Bergreen). Furthermore, his singing style and his unique voice has brought him even wider recognition among the lovers of jazz music, as his gravelly voice has become one of the trademarks of jazz. In addition, being a talented and skilled singer, he managed to demonstrate his dexterity and improvisation blending complex melodies with interesting and appealing lyrics. What is more important, he has also become famous of his scat singing technique, which has also added freshness to his songs and compositions.
Correspondingly, having achieved such fame among the audiences with his compositions, playing skills and voice, the influence of his songs and compositions has become significantly wider and grown beyond the jazz scene of America. In this regard it should also be stated that his music has lost its sole mark of “jazz music”, as it has become the popular music for he widest audiences in America and through the rest of the globe, eventually. Therefore, it is worth stating that Armstrong has become one of the first to become the most successful jazzmen commercially.
Further, adding to his commercial results, Armstrong has achieved significantly higher social status compared to any other African American jazzman and certainly even higher significance compared to the rest of the black population of America in the second half of the 20th century. In other words, Louis Armstrong has become the first African American musician and entertainer to break the racial limits for accessing the highest social levels. In this regard, it is worth reminding that the African Americans during those times have been highly discriminated and prejudiced. As a result, the representatives of this race have always been unwanted guests among the social and cultural elite in both America and Europe (Bergreen).
Thus, it appears more than obvious that Armstrong did not have any intention to lose his status among the cultural and social elite; consequently, he has never been found radically supporting the equality for all races and protecting the representatives of his race. He has never been found as one of the social activists, still, he always tried to express his attitude towards life and express his thoughts and values through his songs, compositions and acting roles in the movies, in which he had been playing.
In particular, the privileges of being accepted by the white elite of America included dining in elite restaurants and staying in hotels, which were literally prohibited to access by the black people, even the famous one. What is more important, along with his fame as a musician been growing, the closer access to the benefits of white elite life has been established. Certainly, this has been one of the rarest privileges for the black men to enjoy, still he tried not to overuse them, constantly attempting to share these privileges with his colleagues and friends. The popularity among the whites has been constantly growing to an extent that the representatives of his own race appeared angry on him simply stating that he has traded his pride and values as a black man for the benefits he has been having.
In particular, in the period of late 1950s and till the early 1970s, the representatives of African American community labeled Armstrong as Uncle Tom. It was believed by them that he has simply received his benefits of luxurious life not because of his talent, musical and composing skills combined with personality, but due to the fact that he has traded his racial identity to the whites in exchange for everything he had and enjoyed. Despite the fact that he was protected by the famous people of those times simply stating that “Of course Pops toms, but he toms from the heart” (MobileReference).
Further, he has been strictly criticized for accepting the “King of The Zulus” title for Mardi Gras in 1949. It should be stated in this regard that Afro-American community in New Orleans identified this title as having the honoring role of the Carnival Krewe leader (NOLA.com). However, the same role has always been offensive and bewildering for the representatives of the white population simply due to the fact that the costume and makeup of this carnival hero directly and explicitly satirized the attitudes of the southern whites. Additionally, the representatives of the musical scene of those times radically criticized him for performing in front of segregated audiences and not participating in the movement protecting civil rights and the rights of the African Americans, in particular. Still, it is not completely true due to the fact that he never supported the official policy of contemporary government and criticized the policy of President Eisenhower. He called him “gutless” and “two-faced” because of the inability of the last to solve the conflict of Little Rock in 1957. Therefore, he refused to take part in tour to the Soviet Union funded by the government. He simply stated that “The way they're treating my people in the South, the government can go to hell” (Nytimes.com). In other words, he chose not to represent the American Government abroad, expressing his respect to both the white population of America and to his listeners in the territories of the Soviet Union. He stated that he would love to perform there, but he would never do this with the federal funding.
Correspondingly, having summarized everything that has been stated above, it is necessary to conclude that the personality of Louis Armstrong definitely appears to be one of the most interesting among the influential people of the 20th century and musicians, in particular. His talent and skill is simply undeniable and his unique trumpet playing style and style of singing are definitely marvelous. However, it seems unfair that he has been treated by the audiences so differently despite the fact that a person simply expressed his talent and love for music and managed to become a truly master of it.
Works Cited
Bergreen, Laurence. Louis Armstrong. New York: Broadway Books, 1997. Print.
MobileReference,. 100 Most Influential People Of All Times. Boston: MobileReference.com, 2007. Print.
NOLA.com,. "Vintage Zulu: Louis Armstrong As King And Other Archival Photos". N.p., 2016. Web. 28 Feb. 2016.
Nytimes.com,. "Louis Armstrong, Barring Soviet Tour, Denounces Eisenhower And Gov. Faubus". N.p., 1956. Web. 27 Feb. 2016.
