Isidore John Barbarin was an American jazz

Jazz

Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...

 cornet and alto horn player. He was a mainstay of the New Orleans jazz

New Orleans Jazz

New Orleans Jazz may refer to:*Dixieland, a style of jazz music*New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park*Utah Jazz, a professional National Basketball Association franchise that was previously based in New Orleans and known as the New Orleans Jazz, in recognition of the jazz music of New Orleans*A...

 scene in the decades around the turn of the 20th century.

Barbarin began on cornet

Cornet

The cornet is a brass instrument very similar to the trumpet, distinguished by its conical bore, compact shape, and mellower tone quality. The most common cornet is a transposing instrument in B. It is not related to the renaissance and early baroque cornett or cornetto.-History:The cornet was...

 at age 14, then played in various New Orleans brass band

Brass band

A brass band is a musical ensemble generally consisting entirely of brass instruments, most often with a percussion section. Ensembles that include brass and woodwind instruments can in certain traditions also be termed brass bands , but are usually more correctly termed military bands, concert...

s, such as the Onward Brass Band

Onward Brass Band

The Onward Brass Band was the name of two brass bands active in New Orleans for extended periods of time.-Onward Brass Band :This incarnation of the Onward Brass Band played often in its early history at picnics, festivals, parades, and baseball games...

, the Excelsior Brass Band

Excelsior Brass Band

The Excelsior Brass Band was a brass band from New Orleans. It was one of the earliest recognized brass bands on the New Orleans jazz scene.The Excelsior was founded in 1879 by Théogène Baquet, who led it until 1904; following this it was led by George Moret and then Peter Bocage, who led it from...

, and Papa Celestin

Papa Celestin

Oscar "Papa" Celestin was an American jazz bandleader, trumpeter, cornetist and vocalist.-Life and career:...

's Tuxedo Brass Band

Tuxedo Brass Band

The Tuxedo Brass Band, sometimes called the Original Tuxedo Brass Band, was one of the most highly regarded brass bands of New Orleans, Louisiana in the 1910s and 1920s....

. He did not make it on to record until 1945, when he recorded with Bunk Johnson

Bunk Johnson

Willie Gary "Bunk" Johnson was a prominent early New Orleans jazz trumpet player in the early years of the 20th century who enjoyed a revived career in the 1940s....

; in 1946 he recorded with the Original Zenith Brass Band.

Isidore's sons Paul Barbarin

Paul Barbarin

Adolphe Paul Barbarin was a New Orleans jazz drummer, usually regarded as one of the very best of the pre-Big Band era jazz drummers...

 and Louis Barbarin

Louis Barbarin

Louis Barbarin was a New Orleans jazz drummer. He studied under the famed drummer, Louis Cottrell, Sr.Louis was the younger brother of Paul Barbarin...

 became noted musicians in their own right. His two other sons both became professional musicians as well; Lucien Barbarin (1905-1960) was a drummer, and William Barbarin (1907-1973) played cornet. His grandson, Danny Barker

Danny Barker

Danny Barker , born Daniel Moses Barker, was a jazz banjoist, singer, guitarist, songwriter, ukelele player and author from New Orleans, founder of the locally famous Fairview Baptist Church Marching Band...

, is also a famous musician.