Artist of the day Jelly Roll Morton Ferdinand Joseph LaMothe (October 20, 1890 – July 10, 1941), known professionally as Jelly Roll Morton, was an American ragtime and early jazz pianist, bandleader and composer who started his career in New Orleans, Louisiana. Widely recognized as a pivotal figure in early jazz, Morton is perhaps most notable as jazzs first arranger, proving that a genre rooted in improvisation could retain its essential spirit and characteristics when notated. His composition Jelly Roll Blues was the first published jazz composition, in 1915. Morton is also notable for naming and popularizing the Spanish Tinge (habanera rhythm and tresillo), and for writing such standards as King Porter Stomp, Wolverine Blues, Black Bottom Stomp, and I Thought I Heard Buddy Bolden Say, the latter a tribute to New Orleans musicians from the turn of the 19th century to 20th century. Reputed for his arrogance and self-promotion as often as recognized in his day for his musical talents, Morton claimed to have invented jazz outright in 1902—much to the derision of later musicians and critics. The jazz historian, musician, and composer Gunther Schuller says of Mortons hyperbolic assertions that there is no proof to the contrary and that Mortons considerable accomplishments in themselves provide reasonable substantiation. However, the scholar Katy Martin has argued that Mortons bragging was exaggerated by Alan Lomax in the book Mister Jelly Roll, and this portrayal has influenced public opinion and scholarship on Morton since. Morton was born into a creole of color family in the Faubourg Marigny neighborhood of downtown New Orleans, Louisiana. Sources differ as to his birth date: a baptismal certificate issued in 1894 lists his date of birth as October 20, 1890; Morton and his half-sisters claimed he was born on September 20, 1885. His World War I draft registration card showed September 13, 1884, but his California death certificate listed his birth as September 20, 1889. He was born to F. P. Lamothe and Louise Monette (written as Lemott and Monett on his baptismal certificate). Eulalie Hécaud was the godparent. Hécaud helped choose his christening name of Ferdinand. His parents lived in a common-law marriage and were not legally married. No birth certificate has been found to date. Ferdinand started playing music as a child, showing early talent. After his parents separated, his mother married a man named Mouton. Ferdinand took his stepfathers name and anglicized it as Morton. At the age of fourteen, Morton began working as a piano player in a brothel (or, as it was referred to then, a sporting house). While working there, he was living with his religious, church-going great-grandmother; he had her convinced that he worked as a night watchman in a barrel factory. In that atmosphere, he often sang smutty lyrics; he took the nickname Jelly Roll, which was black slang for female genitalia. After Mortons grandmother found out that he was playing jazz in a local brothel, she kicked him out of her house. He said: When my grandmother found out that I was playing jazz in one of the sporting houses in the District, she told me that I had disgraced the family and forbade me to live at the house... She told me that devil music would surely bring about my downfall, but I just couldnt put it behind me. Tony Jackson, also a pianist at brothels and an accomplished guitar player, was a major influence on Mortons music. Jelly Roll said that Jackson was the only pianist better than he was. Mortons piano style was formed from early secondary ragtime and shout, which also evolved separately into the New York school of stride piano. Mortons playing was also close to barrel house, which produced boogie woogie. Morton often played the melody of a tune with his right thumb, while sounding a harmony above these notes with other fingers of the right hand. This added a rustic or out-of-tune sound (due to the playing of a diminished 5th above the melody). This may still be recognized as belonging to New Orleans. Morton also walked in major and minor sixths in the bass, instead of tenths or octaves. He played basic swing rhythms in both the left and right hand. youtube/watch?v=MkGjDbKauVo
Posted on: Fri, 12 Dec 2014 20:48:46 +0000
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