(September 6, 1877 – November 4, 1931)
King Bolden's real name was Charles Joseph "Buddy" Bolden. He was a cornettist and band leader. He became renowned for his huge sound and his outstanding ability to improvise. He rose to fame with his band between the years of 1900-1907.
His playing style and band sound had a huge impact on other musicians in New Orleans. He is said to have played a style of ragtime music that involved a lot of improvisation, especially elements of The Blues. In fact, it was said that his band was the first to have brass instruments play The Blues.
Marching band music was also a big influence on Buddy's band sound. He took the standard march and added syncopations and accents on different parts of the beat, which later became a signature style of New Orleans music. He also adapted ideas from Gospel music, which could be heard in the streets, flooding out of church windows all across New Orleans and The South.
This 'New Orleans' style of ragtime music he created with his band would later come to be known as Jazz Music. No recordings are known to exist of his band, but Buddy Bolden directly inspired and influenced the next generation of 'jazz' musicians with his playing, including Joe "King" Oliver and Bunk Johnson. Louis Armstrong, the most famous jazz musician never directly heard Buddy Bolden play.
In 1907, at age 30, Buddy Bolden was committed to a mental institution, where he spent the rest of his life. His enormous contribution to the development of music in the 20th century was long-overlooked in popular history.
