(Vocals, dancer, 1906–75) Born Freda Josephine McDonald, the St. Louis-born entertainer danced in the 1921 Sissle/Blake musical Shuffle Along before gaining a bigger role in their Chocolate Dandies in 1924, leading to appearances at the Cotton Club. The following year, she introduced ‘le jazz hot’ to Paris in La Revue Négre (also featuring Sidney Bechet) with ...
(Trumpet, 1929–88) Chet Baker was an icon of cool at the height of his fame in the 1950s. His recording of ‘My Funny Valentine’ with Gerry Mulligan in 1952 established him as a star of the emerging cool jazz genre; his boyish, film-star looks (later ravaged by drug abuse) and a light, seductively lyrical trumpet style assured his ...
(Guitar, b. 1925) McHouston Baker was born in Louisville, Kentucky. Originally a jazz player, he switched to blues after seeing guitarist Pee Wee Crayton. He began his recording career at Savoy in 1952 and became the first-call guitarist for R&B session work in New York. He teamed with vocalist Sylvia Vanderpool and, as Mickey & Sylvia, ...
(Fiddle, b. 1926) Bill Monroe often introduced Kenny Baker onstage as ‘the greatest fiddler in bluegrass music’. It was no exaggeration, for Baker, a third-generation fiddler from Kentucky, was capable of blistering breaks, elegant, long-bow phrases and swinging syncopation. He joined Monroe in 1956 and played with him off and on for more than 30 ...
b. 1933, English Known for her rich, expressive and intensely personal performances, Baker’s voice is equally at home with Handel, Mozart, Donizetti, Berlioz and Walton. Britten wrote the role of Kate Julian for her in Owen Wingrave, while William Walton (1902–83) adjusted the part of Cressida in Troilus and Cressida to suit her voice. ...
b. 1933 English mezzo-soprano Baker studied in London, and made her debut in Smetana’s The Secret in Oxford in 1956. She sang Handel roles early in her career, and made a particular impression as Purcell’s Dido, a role she recorded several times. At Covent Garden, where she first appeared as Hermia in Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream ...
(Vocals, b. 1929) Chicago-born Delores Williams sang in church choirs, but after bandleader Fletcher Henderson discovered her, she became the first black torch singer of the rock era, and in 1953, was one of the early artists signed to Atlantic Records. Many of her 20 US R&B hits were novelty items, including her 1957 No. ...
(Vocals, harmonica, guitar, 1899–1982) DeFord Bailey was a member of the original Grand Ole Opry and was its first big star, until he was dismissed from the troupe in 1941 because allegedly he either could not or would not learn new material. His ‘Pan American Blues’, a harmonica train imitation, was one of the early Opry’s ...
Cabaret thrived on sensuality, wit and an intimacy between performer and audience. Its essence lies in intimate, escapist venues, where charismatic artists perform with ad-hoc backing from piano, brass and bass. Unlike the popularist music hall, cabaret was born from experimentation and a desire to explore the space between mass entertainment and the avant-garde. A French ...
During its golden years, music hall rivalled European cabaret and American vaudeville. But music hall performers were bawdier than their cabaret counterparts, indulging in more boisterous banter with audiences than their American cousins. It was singalong fun, sprinkled with lewd humour. The term first entered common usage in 1848, when the Surrey Music Hall opened in London. ...
The 1920s was, without doubt, the Jazz Age. Workers and the newly burgeoning middle class turned into consumers due to relatively higher wages. The international political advantages that came from having just won a major war buttressed a ‘lost generation’ of artistic types, who took up residence in Europe. New moral codes, sophistication and cynicism abounded. Some ...
At the start of the Romantic era, French and Italian opera were fighting it out for possession of the opera stage in Paris. However, in attempting to turn back the tide of Italian taste and vocal technique, which had ‘invaded’ the opera in France, the French were at a severe disadvantage. As one contemporary English guidebook to ...
When Vassar Clements formed a band called Hillbilly Jazz in 1975, Bill Monroe’s former fiddler pulled the cover off the hidden connection between country music and jazz. The two genres had more in common than most people thought. After all, Jimmie Rodgers recorded with Louis Armstrong early in their careers; jazz legend Charlie Christian debuted on Bob Wills’ radio ...
Bass Drum The dominant feature of every military band is its big bass drum. Throughout the history of percussion instruments, this drum has been the mainstay of time-keeping, whether it is used for a marching army or in a late-twentieth century heavy metal band. Early versions of the bass drum (it was certainly known in Asia around 3500 BC) ...
The spinet is known by many names and has several definitions. Perhaps the most misleading is the American usage of the term to denote a small upright piano. The most confusing is the use of the word to describe a square piano, and a more ancient confusion arises from its use as a synonym for the virginals or, indeed ...
AUTHORITATIVE
An extensive music information resource, bringing together the talents and expertise of a wide range of editors and musicologists, including Stanley Sadie, Charles Wilson, Paul Du Noyer, Tony Byworth, Bob Allen, Howard Mandel, Cliff Douse, William Schafer, John Wilson...
CURATED
Classical, Rock, Blues, Jazz, Country and more. Flame Tree has been making encyclopaedias and guides about music for over 20 years. Now Flame Tree Pro brings together a huge canon of carefully curated information on genres, styles, artists and instruments. It's a perfect tool for study, and entertaining too, a great companion to our music books.
David Bowie
Fantastic new, unofficial biography covers
his life, music, art and movies, with a
sweep of incredible photographs.