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On August 4, 1901, Louis Armstrong was born in New Orleans. Until the age of five, Armstrong's grandmother was his caregiver. At the age of six, he attended the Fisk School for Boys, an all black school in New Orleans. While performing odd…

Eleanora Fagan was born on April 7, 1915 in Philadelphia. As a child, she started going by Billie Holiday, Billie from Billie Dove and Holiday from her dad. She began listening to records by Louis Armstrong and Bessie Smith. Her mother…

On May 21, 1904, Thomas Wright "Fats" Waller was born to Adeline Locket Waller, a musician and Rev. Edward Martin Waller, a trucker and pastor in New York City. He began playing piano at the age of six and began playing organ at his…

On April 15, 1894, Bessie Smith was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Her parents and brother had died by the time Smith was nine, leaving her sister Viola as the caretaker. Therefore, Smith had a "wretched childhood" and never received an…

William James "Count" Basie was born in Red Bank, New Jersey in August 1904. Both of his parents played instruments: his dad on mellophone, his mom on piano. He dreamt of traveling, heavily inspired by touring carnivals. However, he spent…

On April 29, 1899, Edward Kennedy Ellington was born in Washington D.C.. Both of his parents were musicians, and so Ellington began his piano studies at the age of seven. Due to his easygoing nature, his friends began calling him "Duke." …

Cabell "Cab" Calloway III was born on Christmas Day, 1907 in Rochester, living on Sycamore Street. His mother was a teacher and church organist and his father was a lawyer. When Calloway was 11, they moved to Baltimore. After he was caught…

At the start of the twentieth century, many Black Americans, facing racism and discrimination across the country, moved to a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan: Harlem. This neighborhood became a cultural center in the early 1900's, fully…

The Chautauqua Institution announced the upcoming season for the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra (CSO). Under Principal Conductor Rossen Milanov, the CSO will offer 14 performances between July 10 and August 14. Plans for the CSO’s…

The Chautauqua Institution announced a new agreement with resident Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra musicians. The agreement extends the current Collective Bargaining Agreement through September 2021, but makes some important adjustments that…