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Starting at a young age, Ramsey Lewis really loved music and as he got older, he'd practice five or six hours a day. Lewis says he knew nothing about jazz until he met Wallace Burton at the age of 15. Burton hired Lewis on the spot to play in his band. Church music, Spanish music, Duke Ellington and the Beatles, says Lewis, were all great influences to him.
Jazz pianist Oscar Peterson sits down with Studs Terkel to discuss historical developments in jazz piano, his own personal development as a pianist, and his experience directing a youth jazz piano school. Includes Peterson playing short excerpts from "Chicago (that toddlin' town)," "Soon," Chopin's Nocturne in E flat Major to demonstrate musical concepts.
In a nightclub in Chicago, at two in the morning and after a performance, Louis Armstrong talks about his music stylings. Notes are good to learn the tune, says Armstrong, but it's all about the phrasing. Armstrong explained, it's up to you to express yourself. Armstrong shared the one piece of advice that had always stuck with him. King Oliver told Armstrong not to worry about the notes but rather to put some lead into the song.
The conversation continues with Belafonte talking about his album, "Belafonte Sings of the Caribbean". The songs, explained Belafonte, were both reflections of his childhood and things he was exposed to as an adult. Belafonte believed both Louis Armstrong and Jack Teagarden played important roles in jazz music.
Singer Harry Belafonte discusses Black music including spirituals and jazz and how it has contributed to American culture.