WHAT A WONDERFUL WORLD

Hunter College’s American Voices series salutes
the musician who changed the sound of America

Matt Doyle

When it comes to American music few artists are as iconic and representative as Louis Armstrong, the famous trumpeter and vocalist whose career spanned five decades and influenced many genres including jazz, rhythm and blues, and rock and roll. So it is entirely fitting that Hunter College’s American Voices series celebrated the father of jazz with a star-studded cast and welcoming words by Ricky Riccardi, whose biography of Armstrong, Stomp Off, Let’s Go, was recently published.

Bettye LaVette

The performers included Tony Award winner Matt Doyle, Grammy Award winner Catherine Russell and Tony and Grammy Award winner Brandon Victor Dixon, as well as Birdland regular Champian Fulton and acclaimed soul singer Bettye LaVette. They were backed by a fantastic band that pulled out all the swinging stops for “When the Saints Go Marching In” and sizzled with “I’m in the Mood for Love.”

Brandon Victor Dixon

The evening leaned heavily on songs Armstrong recorded rather than wrote. Certainly we have all heard “Hello, Dolly!” and “What a Wonderful World,” but there was also “Stardust,” “La Vie En Rose” and “The Bare Necessities.” In an evening of such thrilling performances it is hard to single out any individual moments. Nevertheless, LaVette’s gravelly “St. James Infirmary,” Dixon’s smooth “Mack the Knife” and the rousing group finale “When the Saints Go Marching In” were unforgettable.

Catherine Russell

Paul Alexander, who founded and directs the series, says his goal is to speak to the American experience in a unique and enduring way. Armstrong did that and much more. He created a path that led to the future of American music. He invented the jazz soloist concept. He pioneered the art of phrasing notes ahead of or behind the basic beat. He expanded the range of the horn. He set a new standard for vocalists that emphasized conversational singing, scat and variation. In a nation built by pioneers, he was certainly one in his own right.

Louis Armstrong, A Celebration of the Father of Jazz was both a tribute and an inspiration.

The Finale

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Louis Armstrong, A Celebration of the Father of Jazz
Hunter College, American Voices Series
Kaye Playhouse at Hunter College
695 Park Ave. in New York City
played May 12, 2026
for more events, visit Kaye Playhouse

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Champian Fulton