The Original Dixieland Jass Band
Original Dixieland Jazz Band
The Original Dixieland Jass Band was a Dixieland jazz band that made the first jazz recordings in early 1917. Their "Livery Stable Blues" became the first jazz record ever issued. The group composed and recorded many jazz standards, the most famous being "Tiger Rag". In late 1917 the spellin…
African American
African Americans are an ethnic group of Americans with total or partial ancestry from any of the black racial groups of Africa. The term typically refers to descendants of enslaved black people who are from the United States.
What is the difference between Dixieland jazz and ragtime jazz?
To illustrate: I’ve heard it said that ragtime is supposed to be played as written while Dixieland is supposed to be improvised. While it may be true that ragtime often is played as written while Dixieland often is improvised, this rule of thumb is not sufficient to distinguish the two.
What are the different types of Dixieland jazz band?
- Ragtime.
- Patriotic big-band marches like “Stars and Stripes Forever” and “Sound Off.”
- Early blues, such as Wabash Blues and Basin Street Blues.
- Gospel music.
Which instruments were dominant in the Dixieland jazz style?
- Trumpet.
- Trombone.
- Cornet or other compact brass instruments.
What is the history of Dixieland jazz?
Quotations from Jazz Pioneers on the Early History of Jazz
- Sidney Bechet, "Treat It Gentle"
- Baby Dodds, "The Baby Dodds Story"
- Pops Foster, "Pops Foster: The Autobiography of a New Orleans Jazzman"
What is unique about Dixieland jazz?
The primary feature of Dixieland jazz is “collective improvisation,” that is, rather than each musician taking a solo in turn (as in most styles of jazz today), Dixieland jazz musicians all improvise at the same time.
Was Original Dixieland Jazz Band all white?
The Original Dixieland Jazz Band (ODJB) was a Dixieland Jazz band composed of white musicians in the early 1900s. Founded by Nick La Rocca in 1916, the group played their version of the New Orleans-style jazz made by Black combos, such as those led by Freddie Keppard and Joe “King” Oliver.
How is Dixieland different from jazz?
The biggest difference between what many consider traditional jazz and Dixieland jazz is Dixieland's use of “collective improvisation.” Instead of segmenting each musician with individual solos, Dixieland draws on the specificity of each instrument to create one unique and harmonious sound.
What was the instrumentation of the Original Dixieland Jazz Band?
DixielandStylistic originsJazzCultural originsNew Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.Typical instrumentscornet trumpet trombone clarinet tuba banjo piano keyboard double bass drums guitar vocalsRegional scenes3 more rows
What is the origin of Dixieland music?
Dixieland, in music, a style of jazz, often ascribed to jazz pioneers in New Orleans, but also descriptive of styles honed by slightly later Chicago-area musicians. The term also refers to the traditional jazz that underwent a popular revival during the 1940s and that continued to be played into the 21st century.
Where did Dixieland bands begin to play when their music became popular?
However, the catchy tunes that the musicians played as they returned led to requests for them to play elsewhere. Soon, the Dixieland bands began playing dance music in the new and extremely popular dance halls.
What are the characteristics of Dixieland music?
The Dixieland sound is similar to that of a military marching band, with driving rhythms and powerful brass sections. The melody is typically played by a solo high brass sound, the rhythm section keeps the harmony going, and the other front line instruments improvise melodic material around the soloist.
What is the significance of the Original Dixieland Jazz Band as it relates to jazz development?
The Original Dixieland Jass Band (ODJB) was a Dixieland jazz band that made the first jazz recordings in early 1917. Their "Livery Stable Blues" became the first jazz record ever issued. The group composed and recorded many jazz standards, the most famous being "Tiger Rag".
What is the meaning of Dixieland?
Dixie, also known as Dixieland or Dixie's Land, is a nickname for the Southern United States that garnered popularity in the years during and after the American Civil War.
What was the instrumentation of the Original Dixieland Jazz Band quizlet?
The Dixieland jazz band often had a front line (of trumpet or cornet, trombone, and clarinet) accompanied by a rhythm section (of piano, guitar or banjo, bass, and drums).
What are the melodic instruments in a Dixieland ensemble called?
Important Styles Dixieland jazz is typically performed by a small ensemble consisting of clarinet, trumpet, and trombone, accompanied by a rhythm section of drum set, banjo (or piano), and string bass or tuba. The next distinctive style was Swing.
What instrument is used in Dixieland Jazz?
Jazz – especially Dixieland Jazz – has certain staple elements. One instrument, mostly the trumpet, is used to make a melody, which the other instruments in the front line improvise around. Other instruments can be added to the ensemble, but that might move the music into another genre.
What was the first jazz band?
The ‘Original Dixieland Jazz Band’ was the first band to make a commercial jazz recording in 1917. It was their unique style that eventually became known as a musical genre. Jazz wasn’t always a title given to a style of music. In 1912, jazz was a slang word, used to denote excitement or energy.
What was jazz used for?
In 1912, jazz was a slang word, used to denote excitement or energy. In 1913, it started being used to denote babble or nonsense. People eventually lost interest in Jazz for some time. It was only around the 1940s and 50s that the Jazz Revival Movement helped develop Dixieland Jazz, and gave way for certain subgenres.
When did jazz start?
Having been a style of music since the 1920s, Jazz went from being an unusual tune to being a whole genre in itself, a technique that gave birth to multiple sub-genres and made way for numerous talented musicians across the world.
Is hot jazz the same as dixieland jazz?
Contrary to popular belief, hot jazz isn’t the same as Dixieland jazz. It’s a blend of blues, brass band marches and ragtime jazz. Dixieland Jazz Bands in the 1900s – aside from dances and parties – would also play for funerals, marching alongside the procession.
Who was the original Dixieland Jazz Band?
The Original Dixieland Jazz Band (ODJB) was a Dixieland Jazz band composed of white musicians in the early 1900s. Founded by Nick La Rocca in 1916, the group played their version of the New Orleans-style jazz made by Black combos, such as those led by Freddie Keppard and Joe “King” Oliver. The five young white players were amateurs who hailed ...
How many sides did the original Dixieland Five have?
Victor invited the band back into the recording studio, and over the next two years, they recorded 25 sides for Victor as “The Original Dixieland Five.”. The group toured briefly before disbanding again.
What episode of Journey to Jazz and Human Rights does Alana Bridgewater talk about the music?
As Alana Bridgewater narrates in the second episode of The Journey to Jazz and Human Rights, music made popular in nightclubs and ballrooms by African-American musicians became a big business, but only when that music was sanitized for a white audience, with white players. “That’s where the money was. The Original Dixieland Jazz Band is pure ...
Why was the Minstrel song advertised with black caricatures?
According to Dinerstein, as mentioned in the episode, “it was advertised with Black caricatures sort of in the minstrel tradition” in order to portray the fact that it was “Black” music performed by white musicians.
When did the ODJB break up?
After losing and replacing some band members after the First World War, the band broke up in the late 1920s, and its originators went their separate ways.
What is the song "Livery Stable Blues" about?
The song marked the beginning of the growing explosion of interest in jazz.
What is the original Dixieland band?
Red Hot Bands. Jazz Films. Jazz Essays. The Original Dixieland Jazz Band, who billed themselves “The Creators of Jazz”, have long been been dismissed as the White guys who copied African-American music, and called it their own. There is a lot of truth to that statement, but on the other hand, The Original Dixieland Jazz Band’s recordings still hold ...
Where did the Dixieland Jazz Band play?
The Original Dixieland Jazz Band went on to record and play in London, producing 20 tracks for Columbia, including another big hit, Soudan. They returned to America in July of 1920.
Where did the Dixie Jass band move to?
At the beginning of the following year the band ditched Stein and moved to New York where, ...
When did the Dixieland Jazz Band record for Columbia?
The Original Dixieland Jazz Band had recorded for Columbia in January 1917, but the session was unsuccessful and the band had to come back and re-record the songs, thus the release of the Columbia sides did not come about until after the amazing success of the Victor records.
When was the first jazz record released?
However unfair and indicative of the racism of the era, the record “Livery Stable Blues”, coupled with “Dixie Jass Band One Step” became the first Jazz record ever released on February 26, 1917 for the Victor Talking Machine Company. It was wildly successful.
Where did the band Stein go to?
At the beginning of the following year the band ditched Stein and moved to New York where, on the recommendation of Al Jolson, they landed a gig at Reisenweber’s Café on Columbus Circle and 58th Street, a fashionable restaurant and night-spot.
Who was the original member of the band that recorded a V disc during World War II?
Eddie Edwards formed a version of the band that recorded a V-Disc during World War II and for Commodore Records in 1945 and 1946. Tony Sbarbaro was the only other original member to perform on those sessions. Thanks to Verne Buland and James Gallup for their help with the recordings on this page. Title. Director.
What is the original name of the Dixieland Jass Band?
Originally called the Original Dixieland Jass Band, the ODJB later changed the antiquated (and arguably derogatory) “Jass” in their name to the more modern “Jazz”, helping to popularise the word.
When was the song "The Dixieland" recorded?
It may have been recorded in 1957, long after the heyday of the Dixieland style, but the three veterans roll back the years on this rip-roaring live live album from the Newport Jazz Festival.
What was the first jazz recording?
The Original Dixieland Jazz Band. The 1917 version of “Livery Stable Blues” by the Original Dixieland Jazz Band is generally considered to be the first ever jazz recording. This has been the subject of much discussion: it is worth noting that a group of white New Orleans natives were given the opportunity to document their music before a number ...
What is the style of jazz played in the 1920s?
The style that was played during this period is now known as Dixieland jazz, or sometimes New Orleans music, traditional jazz or vintage jazz. The heyday of this idiom occurred during the 1920s, first in New Orleans and then Chicago, although there have been various revivals of the style since then and it retains a dedicated following.
What instruments are used in Dixieland?
The exact lineup of Dixieland jazz bands will vary, but they typically include a frontline of trumpet (or cornet), clarinet and trombone, plus a rhythm section. Unlike in later styles of jazz, the instrumentation is likely to be entirely acoustic.
Who is the key player in Dixieland Jazz?
Whilst Louis Armstrong may be the key artist connected to this joyous music, there are many more legendary names to learn about….
Who was the most influential composer of the 1920s?
Cornetist Bix Beiderbecke was another hugely influential stylist of the 1920s, with an approach that makes for an interesting comparison with that of Louis Armstrong. While Armstrong’s playing was bold and bluesy, Bix was lyrical and somewhat introspective, largely sticking to the horn’s middle register.
What is the difference between Dixieland and jazz?
The biggest difference between what many consider traditional jazz and Dixieland jazz is Dixieland’s use of “collective improvisation.”. Instead of segmenting each musician with individual solos, Dixieland draws on the specificity of each instrument to create one unique and harmonious sound .
Is New Orleans a jazz city?
Similar to traditional jazz, but with added flair and influence. New Orleans is well-known as the birthplace of American jazz but lesser-known is the Crescent City’s connection to Dixieland Jazz - a uniquely NOLA mashup between traditional jazz and ragtime.
A Brief Look at History
The Original Dixieland Jazz Band (hereafter mentioned as ODJB) was the first to declare their band as strictly jazz or jass as it was known back then.
Style of Music
Many experts say that LaRocca and Sbarbaro’s Sicilian background and musical preference contributed to their unique style of jazz. Combined with regional African-American music, the music gained a life of its own, and was unlike the common styles of music that people were used to, back in the day.
Later History
After their first recordings for the Victor Talking Machine Company, ODJB recorded for Aeolian-Vocalion as well as Columbia records before they came back to Victor in 1917. During this time, Trombonist Edwin Edwards was recruited for the First World War and was thus replaced.
Reunion
The band came back together in 1936 for a reunion performance as “The Original Dixieland Five”, performing for over two years and providing the Victor Company with 25 sides. It was after they had toured a bit that the band disbanded once more.
Influence
The Original Dixieland Jazz Band used their station in the industry to make jazz a recognized genre of music, influencing such artists as Louis Armstrong among others.
What is Dixieland jazz?
Dixieland, sometimes referred to as traditional jazz, is a style of jazz based on the music that developed in New Orleans at the start of the 20th century.
What style of music did Dixieland use?
For example, in the 1950s a style called "Progressive Dixieland" sought to blend polyphonic improvisation with bebop -style rhythm.
Why did the Dixieland revival happen?
The Dixieland revival renewed the audience for musicians who had continued to play in traditional jazz styles and revived the careers of New Orleans musicians who had become lost in the shuffle of musical styles that had occurred over the preceding years. Younger black musicians largely shunned the revival, largely because of a distaste for tailoring their music to what they saw as nostalgia entertainment for white audiences with whom they did not share such nostalgia. The Jim Crow associations of the name "Dixieland" also did little to attract younger black musicians to the revival.
What is Chicago style music?
"Chicago style" is often applied to the sound of Chicagoans such as Jimmy McPartland, Eddie Condon, Muggsy Spanier, and Bud Freeman. The rhythm sections of these bands substitute the string bass for the tuba and the guitar for the banjo. Musically, the Chicagoans play in more of a swing-style 4-to-the-bar manner. The New Orleanian preference for an ensemble sound is deemphasized in favor of solos. Chicago-style Dixieland also differs from its southern origin by being faster paced, resembling the hustle-bustle of city life. Chicago-style bands play a wide variety of tunes, including most of those of the more traditional bands plus many of the Great American Songbook selections from the 1930s by George Gershwin, Jerome Kern, Cole Porter, and Irving Berlin. Non-Chicagoans such as Pee Wee Russell and Bobby Hackett are often thought of as playing in this style. This modernized style came to be called Nicksieland, after Nick's Greenwich Village night club, where it was popular, though the term was not limited to that club.
What is the happiest music?
Arguably the happiest of all music is Dixieland jazz. The sound of several horns all improvising together on fairly simple chord changes with definite roles for each instrument but a large amount of freedom, cannot help but sound consistently joyful.
What is the name of the magazine that covers jazz?
There are several active periodicals devoted to traditional jazz: the Jazz Rambler, a quarterly newsletter distributed by San Diego's America's Finest City Dixieland Jazz Society, The Syncopated Times, which covers traditional jazz, ragtime, and swing; "Just Jazz" and "The Jazz Rag" in the UK, and, to an extent, Jazz Journal, an online-only publication based in Europe covering a variety of jazz styles.
What is jazz based on?
List of jazz venues. jazz standards. jazz (word) Dixieland, sometimes referred to as traditional jazz, is a style of jazz based on the music that developed in New Orleans at the start of the 20th century. The 1917 recordings by the Original Dixieland Jass Band (which shortly thereafter changed the spelling ...

Overview
The Original Dixieland Jass Band (ODJB) was a Dixieland jazz band that made the first jazz recordings in early 1917. Their "Livery Stable Blues" became the first jazz record ever issued. The group composed and recorded many jazz standards, the most famous being "Tiger Rag". In late 1917, the spelling of the band's name was changed to Original Dixieland Jazz Band.
Origins
In early 1916, a promoter from Chicago approached clarinetist Alcide Nunez and drummer Johnny Stein about bringing a New Orleans-style band to Chicago, where the similar Brown's Band From Dixieland, led by trombonist Tom Brown, was enjoying success. They then assembled trombonist Eddie Edwards, pianist Henry Ragas, and cornetist Frank Christian. Shortly before they were to leave, C…
First recordings
While a couple of other New Orleans bands had passed through New York City slightly earlier, they were part of vaudeville acts. ODJB, on the other hand, played for dancing and hence, were the first "jass" band to get a following of fans in New York and then record at a time when the American recording industry was essentially centered in the northeastern United States, primarily in New York City
Original New Orleans Jazz Band
When the New Orleans Jazz style swept New York by storm in 1917 with the arrival of the Original Dixieland Jazz Band, Jimmy Durante was part of the audience at Reisenweber's Cafe on Columbus Circle when ODJB played that venue. Durante was very impressed with the band and invited them to play at a club called the Alamo in Harlem where Jimmy played piano.
Durante had his friend, Johnny Stein (the previous drummer and leader of the group), assemble …
Sicilian influence
Both LaRocca and Sbarbaro were children of immigrants from the Italian region of Sicily. The Sicilian capital of Palermo had long held cotton and citrus fruit trade with New Orleans. This resulted in the establishment of a direct shipping line between the two port cities which enabled a vast number of Sicilians to migrate to New Orleans, and other American cities, between the late 1800s and early 1900s. With this migration, Sicilian sound was brought to New Orleans and inte…
Later history of the band
After their initial recording for the Victor Company, the ODJB recorded for Columbia Records (after the first Victor session, not before as has sometimes been reported) and Aeolian-Vocalion in 1917, then returned to Victor the following year, while enjoying continued popularity in New York. Trombonist Edwards was drafted for World War I in 1918 and replaced by Emile Christian, a…
London tour
Other New Orleans musicians, including Nunez, Tom Brown, and Frank Christian, followed ODJB's example and went to New York to play jazz as well, giving the band competition. LaRocca decided to take the band to London, where they would once again enjoy being the only authentic New Orleans jazz band in the metropolis, and again present themselves as the Originators of Jazz because t…
Break-up
The band broke up in the late 1920s and its originators scattered. During the Depression, trombonist Eddie Edwards was discovered operating a newsstand in New York City. Newspaper publicity resulted in Edwards fronting a local nightclub band.
In 1936, the musicians played a reunion performance on network radio. Victor invited them back into the recording studio, and over the next two years the band recorded 25 sides for Victor as "T…