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300 NEW ORLEANS TRICENTENNIAL 171 8 ~ 201 8 PHOTO BY MICHAEL P. SMITH ©THE HISTORIC N.O. COLLECTION JULES CAHN COLLECTION AT THE HISTORIC N.O. COLLECTION PHOTO BY MICHAEL P. SMITH ©THE HISTORIC N.O. COLLECTION THE NEW ORLEANS ADVOCATE THE NEW ORLEANS ADVOCATE THE NEW ORLEANS ADVOCATE Each player since has included their own flourishes that have made their sound distinctive, yet part of the New Or- leans piano genre. In the 1800s, Gottschalk, an internation- ally famous piano player from New Orleans, incorporated Latin rhythms and rolling right hand figures. Decades later, Jelly Roll Morton incorporated a “Spanish tinge” into his music but kept that rolling right hand. Jelly Roll was fol- lowed by “Tuts” Washington and Fats Domino. Domino added an element of boogie woogie; while Professor Long- hair laid down a funky piano style that is still imitated by pi- ano players in New Orleans and can be heard in the playing of Dr. John and Harry Connick Jr. Allen Toussaint distilled the New Orleans piano sound in his more refined record- ings and those he produced. James Booker added an energy to the tunes. And there are countless piano virtuosos in between including Art Neville, Eddie Bo, Henry Butler and David Torkanowsky — all playing funky from their New Orleans roots. The New Orleans’ piano sound is instantly recognizable by its funky and rhythmic syncopated sound, even back to the days of Louis Gottshalk and Jelly Roll Morton. In May 1938, Allen Lomax recorded music and interviews of Jelly Roll Morton for the Library of Congress. From Bienville to Bourbon Street to bounce. 300 moments that make New Orleans unique. WHAT HAPPENED Jelly Roll Morton Louis Moreau Gottschalk ‘Tuts’ Washington Dr. John Fats Domino Henry Butler Harry Connick Jr. Professor Longhair David Torkanowsky Allen Toussaint
