“76 trombones led the big parade! With 110 cornets close at hand!” Wow, isn’t that a great song? It can get annoying, but yes, it is a fun, upbeat song, created by Mason City’s Meredith Willson. Who is Meredith Willson? How did someone from Mason City get so famous? These questions, and more unanswered questions will be revealed in this essay. All famous people had humble beginnings, Meredith’s just happened to start in Mason City. A simple, quick overview of his life goes a little something like this. Meredith Wilson was born on May 18, 1902, In Mason City, IA. In high school, he learned how to play the piccolo and flute. In 1919, when he was 17, he enrolled at New York’s Institute of Musical Art, where he studied flute. Between 1921-1923, he toured Cuba, Mexico and the US in the John Phillip Sousa’s Band. After that, he worked briefly in New York’s Rialto theater orchestra in 1924. In late 1924-1929, he played flute for yet another orchestra, the New …show more content…
Not a famous date. Not an unknown one. This was Robert Meredith Willson’s birthday. He weighed 14 pounds and 6 ounces, the largest baby in Iowa. That is insanely large, not even joking! Some people might say that growing up, his main goal in life was to be the best at everything he did. In other words, he was a perfectionist. It makes sense though, his mom was a school teacher, and his dad was a lawyer. Both of his parents were musically inclined, so performing was in Meredith’s blood. As the book Meredith Willson The Unsinkable Music Man by John C. Skipper says, “The young Meredith was born full of dreams and inspirations.” By high school, Meredith could play a pretty great flute and was ready and rarin’ to go perform in the John Philip Sousa band. That’s how he was different from other boys, he didn’t want to grow to be a professional baseball player, he wanted to grow up and play in an orchestra. His childhood mainly consisted of music and acting, which makes sense. After all, he is the Music
Ives, a concert pianist. His mother was the child of a wealthy family. She had
Next came the co-genius of this phenomenon, Paul McCartney. Born on June 18, 1942 to Jim and Mary Patricia Monin, Paul was the eldest of two boys in a very close-knit family. He first attended Stockton Wood Road Primary School but was soon switched to Joseph Williams Primary School at Gateacre because their mother insisted on the best education for her boys. Paul used to love to listen to the radio and was very influenced by his dad who played in a little band but eventually had to give it up because he "got false teeth and couldn't play the trumpet properly anymore." John's mother died of breast cancer when he was only fourteen, which devastated the family and launched John into spending some of his time writing songs, which would later be the pay off of his life.
As a kid Elvis Presley attended the Assembly of God Church with his parents, where gospel music became an important influence in his life. On his eleventh birthday he received his first guitar from his mom in 1946, he had his first taste of musical success a few years later when he won a talent show at Humes High School in Memphis. He graduated from High school in 1953, he worked a number of jobs while pursuing his musical dream. “That’s
Armstrong was born in New Orleans on August 4, 1901. He attended school until he was in the 5th grade, he stopped going to help support his family. To earn money, Armstrong sang on street corners, sold newspapers, and delivered coal. When Armstrong was eleven years old, he got in trouble for shooting a gun on New Year’s Eve to ring in the new year, 1912. He attended Colored Waifs Home in 1913 for eighteen months. During his time there, he learned how to play the bugle cornet, an instrument that is similar to the trumpet. After his time in Colored Waifs Home, he wanted to become a musician. At the start of Armstrong’s career, he married Daisy Parker. Armstrong’s mentor, King Oliver, had Armstrong move to Chicago to be in his band; in Oliver’s
The year of 1912 Armstrong was arrested for firing his step fathers gun at a new years eve celebration. He was sent to Colored Waif’s Home for Boys. While he was there he received musical instruction on the Cornet and fell in love with music. Two years later in 1914 he was released and that’s when his dream of making music into a career really started.
He began playing music when he was eight. His career started when he played trumpet, leading a dance band in downtown Chicago when he was barely in his teens. At hull house, he
Cathy Barnett, a 50 year old mother with 3 kids, didn't have many issues getting from high school to college. She felt she had more responsibility at 16 having a car, bank account, and job. Her goal in high school and college was to try and get the highest GPA. That lead her to college with a 3.6 GPA and finishing college with a 3.2 GPA. She went to the community college of the Air Force. She joined the air force because she a got the travel bug when visiting a friend in England and Spain. When she got in the community college of the Air Force she took airway science and some nursing. Her transition from the Air Force to working at a Fred Meyers and starbucks years later. It was a big difference telling planes where to go than working in a deli and Starbucks but, she was still the happiest mom at home while staying busy at work.
Clark Terry was born in St. Louis, Missouri on December 14th, 1920; he was the seventh out of eleven children. He was a classic freelance musician, his career spans more than 70 years. During this time he created a name for himself that will forever cement him along with the legends like Duke Ellington and Miles Davis. Mr. Clark was a man of many talents and during his time on this earth he was became a world-class trumpeter, flugelhornist, educator, composer, writer, trumpet/flugelhorn designer, teacher and even an NEA Jazz Master; He made flugelhorn what it is today he is responsible for its popularity. Another thing that Clark Terry is noted for is his association with relationship with Duke Ellington’s orchestra and Count Basie; he is
American jazz trumpeter and singer Chet Baker became a star because of songs as "My Funny Valentine" before his career was taken over by drug use. Chet Baker was born in Yale, Oklahoma, in 1929. Stardom (his band) in the 1950s with Gerry Mulligan's quartet and then as a bandleader, but encountered difficulties after developing a heroin addiction. In 1988 Chet was in the resurgence when he fell from an Amsterdam hotel window to his death.
Born November 2nd, 1868 in Texarkana, Texas, was the king of ragtime: Scott Joplin. He was born in just the right time frame to experience the uprising of African-American music. He saw the cakewalk and heard the "coon songs" (Waldo 21). But it was not until the age of 16 that he discovered his passion for music (Berlin 6). Joplin started out in a choir group with his siblings, but after meeting German teacher Julius Weiss, he learned the piano (Berlin 7). It is said that at the age of 19, Joplin left home and traveled extensively before ending up in St. Louis, Missouri (Berlin
Michael Story was born on April 27, 1956 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Michael Story was a graduate from University of Houston. Where he earned his bachelor and master degrees in Music Education. He was the assistant director of the UH’s marching band under the guidance of the director Dr. William Moffit. Mr.Story is a full time writer for Alfred Music Publishing. He also has more than 1,200 compositions and 1,200 arrangements for concert band, marching band, jazz ensemble and orchestra.
Hello. My name is Rebecca McKenney. I am currently going to the Licking Valley Campus of Maysville Community and Technical College and have the goal of completing my degree of the Associates for the Arts this semester. I’m a lifelong science fiction fan, and excited that I can finally take an Astronomy class before I continuing my academic career at a four year university.
Benny Emerson is an African American Male who was born in Stephens Arkansas in 1939 to mother Virginia Emerson and father Simmie Emerson. With his parents being musicians, Benny was introduced to the world of music very early on. Growing up Benny participated in the church choir with his parents which is where he obtained his vocal experience. Singing wasn’t enough for Benny though, he needed something he could play. By the time Mr. Emerson was fifteen years old, he had purchased his first musical instrument- a trumpet. Benny would spend hours on end playing his trumpet, playing any sheet music he could get his hands on.
In the early 1880’s, Scott Joplin traveled as a teen musician and played in many bars. Throughout this time, Joplin spent many days Sedalia’s Lincoln High School. After a few years, Joplin traveled to Chicago for the World Fair. While there, Joplin fronted a band as a cornet player and met Otis Saunders. Saunders begun to inspire the idea of Joplin’s works being publicized. In 1894, Joplin moved back to Sedalia, Missouri and joined the Queen City Cornet Band. With this, and many other groups, Joplin traveled the country and played at various clubs.
When one talks or thinks of architecture, or the architects, there is a great gender gap, and due to these gaps, some women do not acquire the acknowledgement that is rightfully theirs. As one of the finest architects, designers, and artist of the 20th century, Eileen Gray was and still has not been given any attention as a serious designer/architect, unlike her counter parts, Le Corbusier, De Stijl, Mies van der Rohe, or Frank Lloyd Wright.