FLETCHER HENDERSON
1897 -1952
Fletcher
Henderson led the most commercially successful of the African-American Jazz
bands of the 1920s. The smooth sound of his orchestra some say gave birth to
the Swing style of the next decade. Some historians have attributed the
Invention of 'Swing' to Fletcher. This is not  completely accurate. Fletcher (or
what may be more probable, -"Don Redman", his arranger) invented
the concept of "Block Passages". This is where a section, say the
reeds, play the same line together. Later, this came to be commonplace with
the big Swing bands.
Henderson
started piano at the age of six his parents stressed practicing. His mother
and father used to lock him up to practice, they'd hear noise, then there
would be silence and when they opened the door there would be Fletcher curled
up on the floor asleep.
Fletcher had
a degree in chemistry and mathematics, but when he came to New York in 1920
with hopes of becoming a chemist, the only job he could find (due to the
racism of the times) was demonstrating sheet music for Pace-Handy music
publishing company. Harry Pace soon founded the Black Swan label, and
Henderson became a manager at the Black Swan Recording Company, a versatile
but fairly basic pianist, became an important contributor behind the scenes,
organized a band to support Blues singer Ethel Waters.
Although he
started recording as a leader in 1921, it was not until January 1924 that he
put together his first permanent big band. Fletcher led the band at the Club
Alabam, which later moved to the Roseland Ballroom (Broadway at 50th St.)
where they stayed for the next ten years. Coleman Hawkins played saxophone in
the band and is generally considered to be the first great saxophonist in
Jazz. In 1924 he hired the up-and-coming trumpet player Louis Armstrong
importing him from Chicago, where he had been playing with King Oliver's
Creole Jazz Band.
In 1939 The
Orchestra disbanded, and he joined Benny Goodman Orchestra as the pianist and
arranger. This was the first time that a "White" band hired a
"Black" musician to appear on stage with an orchestra. Goodman
even used the same arrangements as the Fletcher  Henderson Orchestra had used. The
band went on to become one of the most popular of the Swing bands.
In 1943
Henderson left Goodman's band but rejoined them in 1947 as an arranger. He toured as an accompanist for Ethel
Waters between 1948 and 1949.
Basically Henderson struggled through the 1940s, leading occasional
bands (including one in the mid-'40s that utilized some arrangements by the
young Sun Ra). In 1950, Henderson had a fine sextet with Lucky Thompson, but
a stroke ended his career and led to his death in 1952.
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