1917—New Orleans, Louisiana: Trombonist Eddy Edwards, performing as a member of the Original Dixieland Jazz Band, participates in the first commercial recordings of what is advertised as jazz. Edwards is considered by some to be the first jazz trombonist to gain national fame (Dietrich 17).

1920s—Kid Ory (1890-1973), one of the first bonafide jazz trombonists, is a member of Louis Armstrong’s famous Hot Five and helps define the role of trombone in Dixieland playing. In the words of Leonard Feather, “Ory is the most famous of the original ‘tailgate’ trombone men, using the instrument for rhythm effect, fills and glissandi, but also playing solos in a rough, forceful style” (Feather 373).

1923—A photo shows valve trombone player Juan Tizol with Duke Ellington’s orchestra (see facing image; public domain; source: wikipedia commons). A Puerto Rican native, Tizol becomes a longstanding member of Ellington’s orchestra, performing with the group from 1929 to 1944. He also evolves into a well-respected composer, writing such Ellington standards as “Perdido” and “Caravan.”

1926—“Tricky Sam” (Joe) Nanton joins Duke Ellington band. Specializing in use of plunger mute and “wa-wa” solos, he remains with Ellington until his death in 1948 (Feather 347). In the clip below from 1943, Nanton’s solo starts at :54.

1928—Jazz trombonist Jack Teagarden (1905-64) becomes the first white musician to record with a black band (Louis Armstrong, “Knockin’ a Jug”). On Teagarden’s influence at this time, Leonard Feather later says, “The advent of Jack Teagarden on the jazz scene in the late 1920s brought a new style to the annals of both jazz singing and trombone: a style that defies classification and has moved musicians of every school to the expression of unqualified enthusiasm” (Feather 438). The clip below from 1951 shows Teagarden’s famous technique of substituting a glass for the instrument’s bell section.

1954—J. J. Johnson and Kai Winding team up to tour and record as a quintet. The duo continues to play together off and on for decades; the clip below is from 1982.

Recommended Jazz Trombonists

Jazz is a quintessentially aural art form, and listening to recordings is among the most important things you can do to really understand the style(s). I frequently get requests from students for recommended jazz trombonists. Here is my non-comprehensive, admittedly-biased list:

J.J. Johnson

Bill Watrous (especially ballads)

Conrad Herwig

Ray Anderson

Andy Martin

Steve Turré

Wycliff Gordon

Carl Fontana

Frank Rosolino

Urbie Green

Curtis Fuller

Bob Brookmeyer (valve)

Kid Ory (Dixieland)

Al Grey (plunger)

Slide Hampton

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