31 Facts About Fletcher Henderson

James Fletcher Hamilton Henderson was an American pianist, bandleader, arranger and composer, important in the development of big band jazz and swing music.

Fletcher Henderson 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.

Fletcher Henderson helped bridge the gap between the Dixieland and the swing eras.

Fletcher Henderson was often known as "Smack" Henderson.

Fletcher Henderson grew up in a middle-class African American family.

Fletcher Henderson's home, now known as the Fletcher Henderson House, is a historic site.

Fletcher Henderson pursued the studies with his mother and further engaged himself in lessons on European art.

At age 18, he moved to Atlanta, Georgia, and changed his name to Fletcher Henderson, giving up James, his grandfather's name.

Fletcher Henderson attended Atlanta University and graduated in 1920 with a bachelor's degree in chemistry and mathematics.

Fletcher Henderson did get a part-time job as a lab assistant in a downtown Manhattan chemistry firm, but this only lasted a year.

In New York City, Fletcher Henderson shared an apartment with a pianist who worked as a musician in a riverboat orchestra.

When his roommate was too sick to perform, Fletcher Henderson took his place, which soon gave him a job as a full-time replacement.

Fletcher Henderson now found that music would be more profitable than chemistry and left his job as a laboratory chemist to begin a life in music.

Fletcher Henderson toured with the Black Swan Troubadours featuring Ethel Waters from October 1921 to July 1922.

Fletcher Henderson called on Armstrong for a second time to join the band.

On October 13,1924, history was made when Fletcher Henderson's band began their re-engagement at Roseland, with Armstrong now in the orchestra.

Fletcher Henderson's band boasted the formidable arranging talents of Don Redman.

Fletcher Henderson developed his arranging skills from 1931 to the mid-1930s.

Fletcher Henderson recorded extensively in the 1920s for nearly every label, including Vocalion, Paramount, Columbia, Ajax, Pathe, Perfect, Edison, Emerson, Brunswick, and the dime-store labels Banner, Oriole, Regal, Cameo, and Romeo.

Besides playing at the Roseland, Fletcher Henderson played at the Savoy Ballroom in Harlem, playing until 3:30 in the morning.

Fletcher Henderson had a knack for finding talent, but he did not have much luck keeping it.

Fletcher Henderson's shoulder was injured in an auto accident in 1928.

Fletcher Henderson said that John Hammond and Goodman bought Henderson's arrangements to support him, that Goodman always gave Henderson credit for the arrangements and said that he played them better than his own.

The singer Helen Ward stated that Fletcher Henderson was delighted to hear the Goodman Orchestra realize his creations with such impeccable musicianship.

In 1939, Fletcher Henderson disbanded his band and joined Goodman's, first as pianist and arranger and then working full-time as staff arranger.

Fletcher Henderson re-formed bands of his own several times in the 1940s and toured with Ethel Waters again in 1948 and 1949.

Fletcher Henderson suffered a stroke in 1950, resulting in partial paralysis that ended his career as a pianist.

Fletcher Henderson died in New York City in 1952,11 days after his 55th birthday.

Fletcher Henderson was responsible for bringing Louis Armstrong from Chicago to New York in October 1924, thus flipping the focal point of jazz in the history of the United States.

Fletcher Henderson played a key role in bringing improvisatory jazz styles from New Orleans and other areas of the country to New York, where they merged with a dance-band tradition that relied heavily on arrangements written out in musical notation.

Fletcher Henderson created a band that was capable of playing dance music and complex arrangements.