[Dixielandjazz] Re: The loudest trumpet

[D and R Hardie]

Hi Bill and Steve,
                  Thank you for your kind words about =91The Loudest=20
Trumpet=92. The title is, of course, an allusion to what my wife Robyn=20=

called the honeyed words of one Ferdinand La Mothe, who said that Buddy=20=

Bolden was =91the most powerful trumpet player that...ever was known=92. =
It=20
should probably  have been be =91The Loudest Cornet=92, because Buddy =
did=20
not play the trumpet.
There were many other witnesses who said Buddy played loud, but there=20
is evidence he did play softly too. Brian Towers correctly pointed out=20=

that he needed to let the other members of the band be heard.
Privately I have always wondered about how loudly he could have played=20=

on the cornet which is not inherently as loud as the trumpet. (List=20
members might care to comment on that). My view is that they were=20
comparing him with other more conventional cornet players of his time=20
but I can=92t support that with any evidence.
Louis Armstrong once wrote that Buddy played loud but didn=92t know how=20=

to blow the instrument properly. That suggests he might have=20
consistently overblown. However Louis could only have been 5 when he=20
said he heard Bolden so I did not feel that evidence was strong enough=20=

to publish.
The King Oliver question is a great puzzle and the various contributors=20=

from the list about that are probably better informed about that than I=20=

am. I have always guessed that Oliver had tooth problems and I wonder=20
how much better Bunk Johnson would have played with his own teeth.=20
Interviews with early musicians suggest he played like Bobby Hackett in=20=

1908. Oliver=92s Dippermouth Blues solo does not sound like a player =
over=20
the hill to me, but his solos with Jelly Roll Mouton appear like those=20=

of a man having trouble playing the instrument. I have not seen in the=20=

literature any information about  tooth problems. Does anyone know=20
about that?
Bill, the money is on the fridge.
Regards
Dan Hardie
Check out the website:
http://members.ozemail.com.au/~darnhard/EarlyJazzHistory.html


On Tuesday, July 22, 2003, at 09:46  AM, Bill Haesler wrote:

> Dear Bill and friends,
> Regarding the new 'subject' heading for this Louis/Oliver thread and=20=

> the other
> posts re 'copyright'.
> I hope my mate Dan Hardie is not tuned in, or he may sue.
> 'The Loudest Trumpet' is the title of his scholarly book on Buddy=20
> Bolden and the
> Early History of Jazz.
> Go get 'em, Dan.
> Or at least sell them a copy of your book and its sequel "Exploring=20
> Early Jazz".
> I have no connection with Dan or his publisher, but 10% commission=20
> would be
> nice.
> 8>)
> Kind regards,
> Bill.
>
>
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>
 =20=