Fletcher Henderson Extremely Rare Very Early Original Autographed Page '36

Description

Here is an extremely rare very early vintage original autographed page signed by Fletcher Henderson, from 1936. James Fletcher Hamilton Henderson (1897 – 1952) was an American pianist, bandleader, arranger and composer, important in the development of big band jazz and swing music. He was one of the most prolific black musical arrangers and, along with Duke Ellington, is considered one of the most influential arrangers and bandleaders in jazz history. Henderson's influence was vast. He helped bridge the gap between the Dixieland and the swing eras. He was often known as "Smack" Henderson (because of smacking sounds he made with his lips). Legendary composer ("Down South Camp Meeting"), pianist, conductor, accompanist and arranger, educated at Atlanta University. He came to New York in 1920, was pianist with the W.C. Handy orchestra, and then joined Black Swan Records. He toured as accompanist to Ethel Waters, and led his own band in night clubs and theaters and made many records. His arranging duties included the orchestras of Isham Jones, the Dorsey Brothers, and Benny Goodman. He joined the Goodman band as pianist in 1939 and re-formed the orchestra in 1944, then began arranging in 1946. He composed the stage score for "The Jazz Train" (Bop City, New York), and also led the orchestra, and later his own sextet (from 1950). Joining ASCAP in 1948, his other popular-song and instrumental compositions include "Stampede", "It's Wearing Me Down", "No, Baby, No", "Wrapping It Up'', and "Bumble Bee Stomp". Bandleader, arranger and pianist Fletcher Henderson is one of the most influential — and yet least-known — jazz masters. During his orchestra's peak years in the 1920s and '30s, he helped define the sound of big-band jazz, pioneering musical ideas which today are taken for granted.
Henderson was born in Cuthbert, Ga., on Dec. 18, 1897, and started learning piano at the age of 6. His brother Horace, also a bandleader and arranger, described how his parents stressed practicing. "My mother and father used to lock him up to practice when he was 6 or 7, and they'd hear noise, then there would be silence and they'd open the door and there would be Fletcher curled up on the floor asleep," Horace Henderson says.
By the time Henderson was in high school, he was an accomplished pianist. He attended college in Atlanta, then moved to New York City to attend graduate school at Columbia University. Once in New York, Henderson abandoned school and took a job playing songs in a music store. From there, he moved to Black Swan, one of the first black-owned record companies, as a session musician with singers such as Ethyl Waters.
Fletcher Henderson must have sold an awful lot of records, because everyone in the whole damn neighborhood was playing Fletcher Henderson's records.
Henderson then met his musical partner, saxophonist and arranger Don Redman. Together, the two created an innovative and dynamic new concept for big bands. "What Don Redman did was invent a much larger orchestra by taking a woodwind instrument, clarinet, and two brass instruments, trumpet and trombone, and just expanded that," historian Gunther Schuller says. "They wanted to make the sound bigger and fuller and richer with more colors."
Henderson's orchestra included a brilliant array of musicians, from trumpeters Louis Armstrong and Roy Eldridge to saxophonists Coleman Hawkins and Benny Carter. The band reached new heights of popularity and could be heard everywhere — on radio and touring coast to coast. "Fletcher Henderson must have sold an awful lot of records," said Russell Procope, a clarinetist in the orchestra, "because everyone in the whole damn neighborhood was playing Fletcher Henderson's records."
Unfortunately, the laid-back Henderson was never a good businessman: His band lost a number of gigs and eventually disbanded. Henderson went on to compose and arrange music for Benny Goodman and, with Henderson's help, Goodman's career took off; he became known as the "King of Swing." Henderson put together another band during the 1940s, but work was scarce, and that band also folded. W
hile on tour accompanying Ethyl Waters, Henderson fell ill. He returned to New York and later collapsed from a stroke. He never worked again and died two years later, in 1952, at the age of 55.
With his arrangements, Fletcher Henderson helped give birth to the Swing Era, and his orchestra became a touchstone for all big bands to follow. Today, jazz ensembles around the world still follow his lead. Extremely rare.
Will ship worldwide. I always combine shipping on multiple orders.
Filmography:
1948A Song Is Born (music arranger - uncredited)
1946The Razor's Edge (music arranger - uncredited)
1946Margie (music arranger - uncredited)
1946Make Mine Music (music arranger - uncredited)
1945The Dolly Sisters (arranger - uncredited)
1945Ziegfeld Follies (music arranger - uncredited)
1945Keep Your Powder Dry (music arranger - uncredited)
1944Hollywood Canteen (arranger - uncredited)
1943A Guy Named Joe (music arranger - uncredited)
1943The Gang's All Here (music arranger - uncredited)
1943Girl Crazy (music arranger - uncredited)
1943Stage Door Canteen (music arranger - uncredited)
1942The Pride of the Yankees (music arranger - uncredited)
1940Kitty Foyle (music arranger - uncredited)
1940Tin Pan Alley (music arranger: songs - uncredited)
1940Too Many Girls (music arranger - uncredited)
1940Broadway Melody of 1940 (music arranger - uncredited)
1939Gulliver's Travels (music arranger - uncredited)
1939Honolulu (music arranger - uncredited)
1938Alexander's Ragtime Band (music arranger - uncredited)
1937Rosalie (arranger - uncredited)
1937Hollywood Hotel (music arranger - uncredited)
1936Swing Time (arranger - uncredited)