George Gershwin was born September 26, 1898 in Brooklyn, New York. Gershwin, whose name at birth was Jacob Gershwine, had a typically rough-and-tumble childhood, roughhousing
Weldon Leo “Jack” Teagarden was born in Vernon, Texas on August 20, 1905. Jack grew up in a musical household; his mother taught piano and
Charles Henry “Charlie” Christian was born in Bonham, Texas on July 29, 1916. After moving the family to Oklahoma City while Charlie was still a
Lena Mary Calhoun Horne was born in Brooklyn, NY on June 30, 1917. Lena’s background was solidly middle-class, and her paternal grandparents, Edwin and Cora
Thomas Wright Waller, forever known to us as “Fats,” was born in New York City on May 21, 1904. The youngest child of a clergyman,
Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington was born April 29, 1899 in Washington, D.C. “Duke” was a natural sobriquet for Ellington, whose dignified, easy grace reflected his
This month we celebrate cornetist, pianist, and composer Leon Bix Beiderbecke, born March 10, 1903. Reams of biographical prose, criticism, hearsay, and speculation have been
This month we salute composer, teacher, arranger, and master of stride piano James Price Johnson, born February 1, 1894 in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Johnson
Ella Jane Fitzgerald was born on April 25, 1917 in Newport News, Virginia. Ella moved with her mother and stepfather to Yonkers, New York in
Bessie Smith was born April 15, 1894, in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Her father died shortly after Bessie was born, and her mother, who worked as a
