“I see trees of green, red roses too I see them bloom for me and you And I think to myself what a wonderful world.”

Born on August 4, 1901, Louis Daniel Armstrong grew up in New Orleans, Louisiana at a time when jazz itself was quite young. He learned to play the cornet early & it became a passion. He found his way through music by listening to pioneering jazz artists such as King Oliver. It wouldn't be before long that Armstrong replaced Oliver in the Kid Ory band in 1918. In 1922, Oliver invited Armstrong to play in his Creole Jazz Band. A few years later and with his wife's encouragement, Armstrong quit this band to seek new heights. With the release of The Armstrong Hot Five and Hot Seven in 1925-28, he had mad his mark as the first great jazz soloist. Over the next decade he experienced hardship owed to the Great Depression, and in the 1940s there was a revived interest in traditional jazz. By this time, particularly in the 1950s onward, Armstrong was seen as a beloved American icon & cultural ambassador. Many are familiar with his travels to Ghana and Nigeria, as well as his sponsorship by the US State Department, but he also traveled to Turkey!

Many concert managers in Istanbul attempted to bring Louis Armstrong and his band, but his fee was 2.500 dollars. But, with the efforts of an amateur manager and the Istanbul Defterdarlık (Istanbul Revenue Office), Istanbulites' dreams were set in motion. But there was a catch! The Office would have to pay Armstrong and his band 150 thousand lira and the salaries of the Defterdarlık Memurları Yardım Derneği. To cover this fee, the highest ticket was 25 lira, but would not be sold unless a 75 lira donation was made to the Aid Association. There was also one MORE catch: tickets could only be purchased at the Revenue Office or at tax offices. This a hefty price tag, but the attendees of Armstrong's concert at the famous Saray Sineması was well worth it. He played songs such as "Mack the Knife" and "High Society". According to local reporting, this concert was a wild success - so much so, that it was deemed better than Dave Brubeck's and Dizzy Gillespie's concerts. In this moment, he proved that he was once again the best jazz player.