Vaughn De Leath was born Leonore Vonderlieth in Mount Pulaski, Illinois, on September 26, 1894. At age 12, Leonore relocated to Los Angeles with her
If anything is musically analogous to this historical fermata, it must be the chorus-length note held by Carmen Lombardo on the Royal Canadians’ classic (and
Abe Lyman was born Abraham Simon on August 4, 1897, in Chicago, Illinois. He and his brother Mike changed their last name to Lyman because
If San Francisco jazz had its own Mount Rushmore, Pat Yankee would be on it. Born in Lodi, California, Pat saw a medicine show at
Noble Sissle was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, on July 10, 1889. While still a teenager, he toured in vaudeville in the Midwest with a male
Each month, it seems, represents a newer normal. Normal wants to update itself relentlessly, much like my Windows operating system—usually at no small inconvenience and
With the avalanche of festival cancellations and postponements that have occurred due to the coronavirus crisis this year, festival organizers are looking for possible ways
Ernest “Punch” Miller was born in Raceland, Louisiana, on June 10, 1894. Since his twin sister was named Ernestine Judy, it was natural that he
There’s a very good reason that you’ve most likely never heard of violinist and bandleader Nat Brusiloff. Brusiloff, born Naucham Brusilovsky in Russia in 1904,
For the first 52 issues of this paper, page three has contained a column of my mental regurgitations which many readers, unaccountably, look forward to
Sidney Joseph Bechet was born in New Orleans on May 14, 1897. Sidney grew up in a middle-class Creole household, and learned several musical instruments
In the second month of our siege against an implacable and impersonal enemy, I am a bundle of conflicting and untidy emotions. It really is
Edward Elzear “Zez” Confrey was born in Peru, Illinois, on April 3, 1895. Zez grew up in a musical household in which his older brother,
Leslie Carole Johnson was the founder and editor of The Mississippi Rag from 1973 until shortly before her death in 2009. In January 2007, she attended the IAJE
This is the Festival Roundup as it was way way back in the sad days of quarantines and face masks. To see our current and
To the Editor: Enjoyed the March issue of Syncopated Times (as usual). Just want to point out a misidentification in New Orleans Music Observed: The
There is no point in attempting my usual meandering approach to the topic that preoccupies all of us at the moment. Just as unnecessary travel
I wasn’t going to write the column I’m about to write. It’s going to cause me more of the trouble I’ve lately been experiencing, but
Irving Kaufman was born on February 8, 1890, in Syracuse, New York. At an early age he entered vaudeville with his brothers Philip and Jack.
Last December, after wrapping up the layout of my January issue and launching it into the world, I was privileged to revisit what had been
For the latest Roundup click “Events” on the menu or find the newest one HERE EAGLES & IVORIES WEEKEND (Muscatine, IA) – Jan. 26-28 The
Sophie Tucker was born Sofya Kalish on January 13, 1886, in what is now Vinnytsia Oblast, Ukraine. She arrived with her family in Boston in
I was deeply moved—and somewhat embarrassed—to read Larry Melton’s encomium for The Syncopated Times (and its hapless publisher). I do acknowledge that the survival of
Recently, Canadian vocalist Alex Pangman received two precious gifts from Kyla Titus, a grandniece of Connee Boswell. One was a pair of red gloves that
