Hotter than That: The Trumpet, Jazz and American Culture

In a pleasing celebration of the “most difficult of instruments,” Gabbard, a professor of comparative literature and English at Stony Brook University in New York, sheds light on the history of the trumpet. He takes the instrument through the ages from ancient Egypt to the European royal courts, the American battlefield and the “cutting” contests by bebop jazz musicians. The astonishing stories of Buddy Bolden, Louis Armstrong, Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis and Wynton Marsalis—all American originals on the horn—merge with history, art, style and humor as this amateur trumpeter weaves into the colorful narrative large spoonfuls of film and literary references as well as personal observations. Gabbard also lists the long tally of serious physical ailments that dog trumpeters in classical and jazz music. Although this slightly eccentric book meanders a bit, it's never less than engaging and thought provoking in its insights and random chatter. (Nov.)