Beyond Chicago, once he reached New York, his circle expanded to include stints working with such jazz greats as Fletcher Henderson, Don Redman, Coleman Hawkins, Sidney Bechet and Bessie Smith.

Armstrong accepted an offer to join Fletcher Henderson’s orchestra in New York. Henderson had formed his first band in 1921 to accompany singer Ethel Waters on her national tour of black theatres.

Armstrong rejected him the first time cos there was no room in Henderson’s band for drummer and friend Zutty Singleton. Ny the time he joined, 2 other seminal figures were already aboard: Don Redman and Coleman Hawkins.

Alto sax Redman responsible for the band’s early arrangements and for the discrete use of the trumpet, trombone and reed sections that amplified the usual approach of a 3-horn New Orleans ensemble.

Tenor sax Hawkins was already nailed as a technical wizard specializing in an aggressive slap-tongue technique. Despite obvious technical strengths, early Henderson recordings sounded stiff and unauthentic, with a rote approach to dance tunes performed at the band’s regular Roseland Ballroom job and contrived effects on the occasional stomp or blues title. This changed quickly once Armstrong came in.

Armstrong’s impact:

• his impact was clearly audible in such recordings as “go”, “Long Mule”. “copenhagen” and “Everybody loves my Baby”.
• The herky-jerky, uninflected rhythms in Redman’s modifications of stock dance band arrangements and the blustery Hawkins approach to the sax gave way to flowing, vibrant tempos and melodically shapely and blues-drenched improvised lines-The very qualities that made Armstrong’s solos and lead lines so memorable.
• These discoveries were revelations to talented musicians like Redman and esp Hawkins, whose own advanced harmonic ideas and virtuoso execution provided the model for chord-based improvising (or “playing the changes”) that would blossom over the decade that Hawkings spent as Henderson’s star soloist.

The first Great Big Band

• Fletcher Henderson created the blueprint for the tightly-arranged and star-laden jazz orchestra-and for what would become known as the big band swing. He did it using many of Luois Armstrong’s techniques.

Armstrong and the blues singers

• During his time in New York, Armstrong found more extensive opportunities to expose his trumpet on a series of small-group recordings, many of which found him accompanying blues singers
• Blues singers played a key role in disseminating jazz
• Perhaps the only two performers capable of operating at Armstrong’s level is Sidney Bechet on recording under the name of Clarence William’s Blue Five and the Red Onion Jazz Babies. and Bessie Smith, acknowledged as the Empress of the Blues.