Columbia Interactive - "Pops," Out Here in the Cause of Happiness: The Story of Louis Armstrong

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"Pops," Out Here in the Cause of Happiness: The Story of Louis Armstrong
Taught by: Robert O'Meally

Description

E-Seminar Description

In this e-seminar, Professor Robert O'Meally (pictured left) leads a journey through the life of Pops. Along the way, you will discover the connections between his life experiences and his artistic sensibilities and the sound and feel of his music. You will also learn about his role and status in the history of jazz—this unique American art form. It is also hoped that you will gain a greater understanding of jazz and its relationship to the sociopolitical environment of twentieth-century America.

E-Seminar Length:	3-5 hours
Start Date:	Anytime
Credits:	Not-for-Credit
Prerequisites:	Other users only
Moderator:	None
Columbia Students, Faculty, Staff, and Alumni:	FREE


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E-Seminar Objectives | Outline | Lessons | Instructor's Background | Technical Requirements

E-Seminar Objectives

•	Find out about Louis Armstrong's beginnings in New Orleans.
•	Learn about his rise as a virtuoso cornetist, trumpeter and singer—the preeminent figure in the history of jazz music.
•	Explore his role as a black male entertainer in a scene that was rife with demeaning stereotypes.
•	Examine his activities as "Ambassador Satch," a beloved world traveler representing a United States of which, at times, he could be sharply critical.
•	Trace his significance as an icon who still, thirty years after his death, is recognized and celebrated all over the Earth.

Outline
1. The Early Years (1900-1923)
     Conversation Starter
     Content
          Life in New Orleans
          Childhood Years
          Funeral Marches

2. The Great Louis Armstrong (1923-1946)
     Conversation Starter
     Content
          Sideman Gigs
          Hot Five and Hot Seven
          Cultural Icon

3. Pops Goes the World (1946-1971)
     Conversation Starter
     Content
          International Persona
          Inner Life
          Joe Glaser
          Life with Lucille
          Pops and His Music
          Pops on Screen
          State of Culture and Race
          Insults and Modern Malice
          Later Recordings and Life

Lessons
This e-seminar is divided into three sections and contains a number of interactive elements to engage you as a participant in the course. Each section begins with a "Conversation Starter," which is a series of questions that provide a preview of the section's content. Forum questions will be provided to guide your exploration as you move through the rich resources we have provided. Once inside, you will find several clusters of information—text, video and audio footage—for you to consider.

In several sections, Forum questions will ask for your reflections on the resources you have perused. You can then post your response to the Discussion Forum where you can interact with your peers.

There are no required outside reading assignments. At the end of the seminar, Professor O'Meally has listed additional web resources and a reading list of books for those students interested in further study of Louis Armstrong.

Instructor's Background

Robert O'Meally is the Zora Neale Hurston Professor of English and Director of the Center for Jazz Studies at Columbia University. He received his B.A. from Stanford (1970) and his Ph.D. from Harvard (1975). His major interests are African American literature, music, and painting. He has written extensively on Ralph Ellison, including The Craft of Ralph Ellison (Harvard, 1980), and a collection of papers for which he served as editor, New Essays on Invisible Man (Cambridge, 1989). Prof. O'Meally has written a biography of Billie Holiday entitled Lady Day: The Many Faces of Billie Holiday and a documentary of the same name (which has been shown on public TV). He edited Tales of the Congaree (University of North Carolina, 1990), a collection of black folk tales, and coedited a volume entitled History and Memory in African American Culture (Oxford, 1994). He is a coeditor of the Norton Anthology of African American Literature. His new projects include a monograph on painting, literature, and jazz, Seeing Jazz (Smithsonian, 1997); a five-CD set with booklet, Jazz Singers (Smithsonian, 1997); and a collection of essays, The Jazz Cadence of American Culture (Columbia, 1998).

Technical Requirements
You will need to use a computer with Internet access to complete this course. We recommend the following minimum configurations:

IBM-COMPATIBLE PC
Windows 95, 98, 2000, XP, or NT
64 MB of RAM (128 recommended)
Monitor: 800x600 resolution recommended
Connection: Internet service and 56K modem minimum
Browser: Internet Explorer 4 or above (Internet Explorer 5 strongly recommended) or Netscape 4.7 or above
Sound Card (if you can hear audio you have a sound card)
Plug-ins: RealPlayer 7 or later; Flash Player 5 or later; Acrobat Reader 5 or later
(all plug-ins are free)

MACINTOSH
MAC OS 8.6 or higher
64 MB of RAM (128 recommended)
Monitor: 800x600 resolution recommended
Connection: Internet service and 56K modem minimum
Browser: Internet Explorer 5 or above or Netscape 4.7 or above
Sound Card (if you can hear audio you have a sound card)
Plug-ins: RealPlayer 7 or later; Flash Player 5 or later; Acrobat Reader 5 or later
(all plug-ins are free)

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