Clora Bryant
Encyclopedia
Clora Bryant is a jazz "Trumpetiste".
She started in music as a singer in her Baptist church, but took up the trumpet after her brother, Frederick Bryant, born March 21, 1918 who currently resides in Lawton, Oklahoma, left it on going to the Army in 1941. She studied improvisation using a wire recorder to record her own soloing along with jazz records, and studying the results. She became adept at a variety of genres, from jazz to classical, and performing versions of famous jazz solos of the day. In addition, she honed her own unique improvisational skills in jam sessions along Central Avenue in Los Angeles, the center of the mid-forties West Coast African American jazz scene.
Clora Bryant performed in high school bands, and in the early 1940s toured Texas with an all-female band, the Prairie View Co-Eds. The Prairie View Co-Eds went to New York in 1944 for a successful gig at the Apollo Theater
, where Clora Bryant scored a hit with the song "I had the craziest dream" on with her version of a solo by trumpeter Harry James
.
Clora Bryant also spent a week at the Million Dollar Theatre in Downtown Los Angeles with the legendary all-female orchestra International Sweethearts of Rhythm
, and in 1948 she toured with the all-female, all Black Queens of Swing. In 1948 Clora married, Joe Stone, who was a Bassist, who played with a lot of R&B Bands, and they started a family, and Clora continue to perform while pregnant and as a young mother. Later she attended UCLA where she became influenced by bebop
and gained the attention of Dizzy Gillespie
. She was the only female musician to perform with Charlie Parker
, at the Lighthouse Cafe in Hermosa Beach, California
. Later she toured with singers Billy Daniels
and Billy Williams
.
Her album Gal with a Horn was released in 1957 and in the mid-1960s she briefly did duo work with her brother, who was a vocalist. She took time off to raise her four children.
She also appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show
and later became the first American female jazz musician to play in the Soviet Union
on a request from Mikhail Gorbachev
.
After a heart attack in 1996 she was unable to play, but still sings and lectures on jazz.
She started in music as a singer in her Baptist church, but took up the trumpet after her brother, Frederick Bryant, born March 21, 1918 who currently resides in Lawton, Oklahoma, left it on going to the Army in 1941. She studied improvisation using a wire recorder to record her own soloing along with jazz records, and studying the results. She became adept at a variety of genres, from jazz to classical, and performing versions of famous jazz solos of the day. In addition, she honed her own unique improvisational skills in jam sessions along Central Avenue in Los Angeles, the center of the mid-forties West Coast African American jazz scene.
Clora Bryant performed in high school bands, and in the early 1940s toured Texas with an all-female band, the Prairie View Co-Eds. The Prairie View Co-Eds went to New York in 1944 for a successful gig at the Apollo Theater
Apollo Theater
The Apollo Theater in New York City is one of the most famous, and older, music halls in the United States, and the most famous club associated almost exclusively with Black performers...
, where Clora Bryant scored a hit with the song "I had the craziest dream" on with her version of a solo by trumpeter Harry James
Harry James
Henry Haag “Harry” James was a trumpeter who led a jazz swing band during the Big Band Era of the 1930s and 1940s. He was especially known among musicians for his astonishing technical proficiency as well as his superior tone.-Biography:He was born in Albany, Georgia, the son of a bandleader of a...
.
Clora Bryant also spent a week at the Million Dollar Theatre in Downtown Los Angeles with the legendary all-female orchestra International Sweethearts of Rhythm
International Sweethearts of Rhythm
The International Sweethearts of Rhythm was the first integrated all women's band in the United States. During the 1940s the band featured some of the best female musicians of the day...
, and in 1948 she toured with the all-female, all Black Queens of Swing. In 1948 Clora married, Joe Stone, who was a Bassist, who played with a lot of R&B Bands, and they started a family, and Clora continue to perform while pregnant and as a young mother. Later she attended UCLA where she became influenced by bebop
Bebop
Bebop differed drastically from the straightforward compositions of the swing era, and was instead characterized by fast tempos, asymmetrical phrasing, intricate melodies, and rhythm sections that expanded on their role as tempo-keepers...
and gained the attention of Dizzy Gillespie
Dizzy Gillespie
John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie was an American jazz trumpet player, bandleader, singer, and composer dubbed "the sound of surprise".Together with Charlie Parker, he was a major figure in the development of bebop and modern jazz...
. She was the only female musician to perform with Charlie Parker
Charlie Parker
Charles Parker, Jr. , famously called Bird or Yardbird, was an American jazz saxophonist and composer....
, at the Lighthouse Cafe in Hermosa Beach, California
Hermosa Beach, California
Hermosa Beach is a beachfront city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Its population was 19,506 at the 2010 census, up from 18,566 at the 2000 census....
. Later she toured with singers Billy Daniels
Billy Daniels
William Boone Daniels , better known as Billy Daniels, was a singer active in the United States and Europe from the mid-1930s to 1988, notable for his hit recording of "That Old Black Magic" and his pioneering performances on early 1950s television.Daniels was born in Jacksonville, Florida, where...
and Billy Williams
Billy Williams (singer)
Billy Williams was an African-American singer, who had a successful cover recording of Fats Waller's "I'm Gonna Sit Right Down And Write Myself A Letter" in 1957. The record sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc...
.
Her album Gal with a Horn was released in 1957 and in the mid-1960s she briefly did duo work with her brother, who was a vocalist. She took time off to raise her four children.
She also appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show
The Ed Sullivan Show
The Ed Sullivan Show is an American TV variety show that originally ran on CBS from Sunday June 20, 1948 to Sunday June 6, 1971, and was hosted by New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan....
and later became the first American female jazz musician to play in the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
on a request from Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev is a former Soviet statesman, having served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1985 until 1991, and as the last head of state of the USSR, having served from 1988 until its dissolution in 1991...
.
After a heart attack in 1996 she was unable to play, but still sings and lectures on jazz.
Further reading
- Central Avenue Sounds: Clora Bryant. Interviewed by Stephen L. Isoardi, Department of Special Collections, University of California, Los Angeles.
- Tucker, Sherrie. Swing Shift: "All-Girl" Bands of the 1940s. Durham, N.C.: Duke University Press, 2000. ISBN 0-8223-2485-7