Presentation to highlight jazz greats
Eddie South, Stuff Smith to be saluted by Music Institute of Chicago
James Sanders will shed some light on two late great violinists when he presents “Dark Angels of the Violin: Jazz Legends Eddie South and Stuff Smith” on March 15. The free virtual presentation by the violinist and jazz violin faculty member at the Music Institute of Chicago is part of the Music Institute’s Jazz Lecture Fall Series as well as its Beyond the Stage: Musicians on Music series.
Sanders noted that Eddie South was known as the Dark Angel of the Violin. The lecturer wanted to also speak about Smith, another Black violinist who had to deal with racism.
“Eddie South was born in 1904. Stuff Smith was born in 1909. They lived 57 and 58 years respectively and they both had more to do than anyone else as far as the evolution of the violin in jazz,” Sanders said. “Every jazz violinist has been influenced by both of these men.”
Eddie South, who was born in Louisiana, was a child prodigy on the violin. His family moved to Chicago in order to get their son training, Sanders related.
“He studied at the Chicago Musical College with a great Russian teacher,” Sanders said. “But it became clear that, although he was a top violinist classically, he would not be able to work as a classical violinist since he was Black, but he could become accepted in the jazz community. He could also be accepted in Europe because Europe was a lot more open-minded about Black musicians than America was. He was able to have a career and a life in music, and make a great contribution, and was especially active in Europe and highly regarded in France.”
Sanders believes that South’s story is especially relevant during these times when racial issues are prominent. “I feel this is part of the story that we’re in the midst of now,” he explained. “It’s nice to reflect on where we’ve come and the progress we’ve made and what’s yet to be done.”
Stuff Smith, who came from Ohio, did not have the level of training that South had. “He was a little bit more of a self-taught violinist. His father gave him violin lessons,” Sanders said. “He greatly admired Dizzy Gillespie so he decided early on, ‘I want to be a jazz musician.’”
Smith was also a singer. “He had some early commercial success with a couple of hits,” Sanders reported.
Because he didn’t have formal training on the violin, Sanders said, Smith approached playing in a manner that was “completely unique. He wanted to swing on the violin and found a way to do it that was novel and completely unorthodox. Stuff Smith was the first one to amplify the violin.”
Although the two musicians had different training and different styles, Sanders believes that it makes sense to combine them in one lecture. “They existed about the same time. It shows the richness of what was happening musically in the United States,” he explained.
Audience members will hear recordings of the two violinists performing during the lecture.
Audrey Morrison, Director of the Jazz Studies Program at the Music Institute of Chicago, created the ongoing Jazz Lecture Series and hosts each program.
Morrison admitted that she was not familiar with Eddie South and Stuff Smith when Sanders proposed lecturing about them. “I think they were two violinists that a lot of people have not heard of. They were recorded but they never made the history books,” she said. “They were obviously very prolific in their careers.” Morrison praised their “very diverse styles.”
The director indicated that Sanders is the right person to lecture on South and Smith.
“He’s very diverse in the styles that he plays on the violin so I can see how he would be interested in these two,” Morrison said.