SEARCH RESULTS FOR: Lil Hardin
1 of 2 Pages     Next ›

(Piano, vocals, arranger, 1898–1971) Memphis-born pianist Lillian Hardin joined King Oliver’s Creole Jazz Band in Chicago during the summer of 1921 and married fellow band member Louis Armstrong in 1924. She played on Armstrong’s Hot Five and Hot Seven recordings and also received some composer credits. The couple separated in 1931 and were divorced in 1938. Lil subsequently ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Jazz & Blues, founding editor Howard Mandel

(Vin-chant’-zo Ga-le-la’-e) c. 1520–91 Italian theorist and musician The father of Galileo Galilei, Vincenzo, also had a scientific mind. His experience as a lutenist and composer formed the practical basis for a significant body of music theory. His later works, especially, are heavily influenced by contemporary humanist enquiry into the nature of ancient music and, in particular ...

Source: Classical Music Encyclopedia, founding editor Stanley Sadie

(Vocal/instrumental group, 1975–present) Chicago native Ed Williams learned slide guitar from his uncle, renowned bluesman J.B. Hutto. During the early years of the Blues Imperials, flamboyant frontman Ed continued working at his day job in a local car wash, but by the early 1980s the band had established a substantial regional following. Their 1986 Alligator Records ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Jazz & Blues, founding editor Howard Mandel

(Vocal/instrumental duo, 1938–80) Boston became an unlikely hotbed of bluegrass and old-time music, thanks in large part to The Lilly Brothers – West Virginia’s Mitchell Burt ‘Bea’ Lilly (vocals, guitar, 1921–2005) and Charles Everett Lilly (vocals, mandolin, b. 1924). They moved there in 1952 and played at a city bar called the Hillbilly Ranch for ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Country Music, consultant editor Bob Allen

Composed: 1867–68; 1873–77 Premiered: 1877, Weimar Libretto by Ferdinand Lemaire Act I Outside the temple of Dagon, the Hebrews fear that God has deserted them. The Philistine satrap, Abimélech, mocks them, saying that they should worship Dagon. When Samson speaks out Abimélech attacks him and is slain. The gates of the temple open, revealing the ...

Source: Definitive Opera Encyclopedia, founding editor Stanley Sadie

(Le-le’ Boo-lan-zha’) 1893–1918 French composer Despite being an invalid for most of her short life, Lili Boulanger composed some outstanding works, in particular her gripping setting of Psalm 130, Du fond de l’abïme (‘Out of the Depths’, 1910–17) for soloists, choir and orchestra. Her talent was widely acknowledged, especially when, in 1913, she became ...

Source: Classical Music Encyclopedia, founding editor Stanley Sadie

(Guitar, vocals, 1940–80) He is most renowned for other artists’ interpretations of his compositions from the mid-1960s. While Rod Stewart took ‘Reason To Believe’ to No. 1 on both sides of the Atlantic in 1971, the most ‘covered’ Hardin opus is ‘If I Were A Carpenter’, which provided hits for both Bobby Darin and The Four Tops. 1969 ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley

(Vocals, b. 1985) Daughter of comedy actor Keith Allen, Lily has gone on to surpass her father’s success with two platinum-selling albums in the Noughties. Allen blends British pop with elements of ska and R&B. That, coupled with acerbic observational lyrics brought her to prominence with her 2006 debut Alright, Still and UK chart-topping single ‘Smile’. The ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley

(Vocals, b. 1982) Lil Wayne, real name Dwayne Michael Carter Jr., earned the title of one of the hardest-working stars in the US during the Noughties. He collaborated with a who’s-who of hip hop artists from Eminem to Usher, while still releasing five studio albums during the decade. The New Orleans native secured a US No. 1 ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley

(Clarinet, 1901–67) Raised in a musical family (his father Edward also played clarinet), Hall played around New Orleans during the early 1920s before departing to New York in 1928 to work with Alonzo Ross. He worked with Claude Hopkins, Lucky Millinder, Joe Sullivan and Zutty Singleton in the 1930s; with Teddy Wilson and Eddie Condon through the 1940s; ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Jazz & Blues, founding editor Howard Mandel

One of the cornet kings of early New Orleans – along with Buddy Bolden, Freddie Keppard and Bunk Johnson – Joseph ‘King’ Oliver helped to define the bravura spirit of hot jazz through his work in Chicago during the 1920s with his Creole Jazz Band. He is said to have earned the sobriquet ‘King’ by besting Keppard in a cutting ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Jazz & Blues, founding editor Howard Mandel

An incomparable figure in the history of jazz, Armstrong played with an unprecedented virtuosity and bravura, while retaining an individual tone and a deceptively laid-back style. In the early 1920s, he shifted the emphasis of jazz from ensemble playing to a soloist’s art form, while setting new standards for trumpeters worldwide. The sheer brilliance of his playing ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Jazz & Blues, founding editor Howard Mandel

Jazz was the by-product of cultures coming together in New Orleans at the turn of the twentieth century. The music, along with some of its greatest practitioners, moved north by 1917. That year Storyville, the red-light district, was forced to close and jazz musicians headed north to Chicago, where jazz matured into a fine art form. ...

Source: The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Music, general editor Paul Du Noyer

The parents of William Lee Conley Broonzy were born into slavery. He was born in June 1893 in Scott, Mississippi, one of 17 children. Raised on a farm in Arkansas, Broonzy’s first musical instrument was a home-made violin, which he played at church and social functions. In the early teens he was an itinerant preacher, while ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Jazz & Blues, founding editor Howard Mandel

(Singer-songwriter, 1936–73) Aged 20, New York-born Walden Robert Cassotto’s chart career started with the novelty million-seller, ‘Splish Splash’. Leading The Rinky Dinks, he next charted with ‘Early In The Morning’ (later a hit for Buddy Holly), and in 1957 ‘Queen Of The Hop’ also sold a million. His major breakthrough was 1959’s million-selling ‘Dream Lover’, followed by ...

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley
1 of 2 Pages     Next ›

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.

Rock, A Life Story

Rock, A Life Story

The ultimate story of a life of rock music, from the 1950s to the present day.

David Bowie

David Bowie

Fantastic new, unofficial biography covers his life, music, art and movies, with a sweep of incredible photographs.