Today is the birthday of Leon Bix Beiderbecke (March 10, 1903 – August 6, 1931), composer, jazz and classical musician. Bix Beiderbecke was one of the great jazz musicians of the 1920s."In his short life, Bix Beiderbecke left a legacy of recordings of his beautiful cornet sound, his impressionistic piano playing, and the most influential alternative to Louis Armstrong's approach to jazz cornet. His solo playing was supremely melodic, phrased slightly after the beat, and with such clarity of sound that one contemporary described it as 'like shooting bullets at a bell', while guitarist Eddie Condon likened his tone to 'a girl saying 'yes'. " quote source (1)
As a docent at the New Orleans Jazz Club Collection LSM under curator Donald Marquis, I had the opportunity to meet many Bix Beiderbecke fans. The museum has on display a cornet that Bix Beiderbecke used (probably as a student) and a piano that he used while living in Room 605, 44th Street hotel, New York City, in 1930-31. I was always pleasantly surprised by the enthusiasm of his fans and it was a pleasure escorting them thru the collection.
Happy Birthday Bix Beiderbecke!
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