was a Japanese

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

trumpeter nicknamed the "Satchmo of Japan" by

Louis Armstrong Louis Daniel Armstrong (August 4, 1901 – July 6, 1971), nicknamed "Satchmo", "Satch", and "Pops", was an American trumpeter and vocalist. He was among the most influential figures in jazz. His career spanned five decades and several era ...

. He was one of

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

's first jazz musicians to become known outside his native country. A long-standing prestigious music award, "The Fumio Nanri Award", was named after him.

Life

Fumio Nanri was born at Minamikyuhoji-machi,

Osaka City is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third-most populous city in Japan, following the special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population ...

Osaka Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Osaka Prefecture has a population of 8,778,035 () and has a geographic area of . Osaka Prefecture borders Hyōgo Prefecture to the northwest, Kyoto Prefecture to the north, Nara ...

. He was the youngest child in the six brothers/sisters and his father died four days after his birth. For that reason he often changed his address; Hiroshima Prefecture where his mother's family home were in,

Kyoto Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Kyoto Prefecture has a population of 2,561,358 () and has a geographic area of . Kyoto Prefecture borders Fukui Prefecture to the northeast, Shiga Prefecture ...

where the family his elder sister married into,

Kobe Kobe ( ; , ), officially , is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. With a population of around 1.5 million, Kobe is Japan's List of Japanese cities by population, seventh-largest city and the third-largest port city after Port of Toky ...

where his elder brother lived in, and various locations. He entered , the boys' band of

Takashimaya is a Japanese multinational corporation operating a department store chain selling a wide array of products, ranging from wedding dresses and other apparel to electronics and flatware. It has more than 12 branches in Japan located in 2 region ...

, in 1925 after he graduated from a senior high school in Kobe. He played at a

dance hall Dance hall in its general meaning is a hall for Dance, dancing, but usually refers to a specific type of twentieth-century venue, with dance clubs (nightclubs) becoming more popular towards the end of the century. The palais de danse was a term ap ...

in Kobe after the boys' band disbanded. Then he moved to

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

in 1928 and entered 's band (the second term of ), but mere two months after he ran away from the band. Nanri moved to

Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...

in 1929, and studied the piano with

Teddy Weatherford Teddy Weatherford (October 11, 1903 − April 25, 1945) was an American jazz pianist and an accomplished stride pianist. Biography Weatherford was born in Pocahontas, Virginia and was raised in neighboring Bluefield, West Virginia. From 191 ...

. He went to

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

in 1932, and that year he entered 's band which was playing at

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

in ,

Akasaka, Tokyo is a residential and commercial district of Minato, Tokyo, Japan, located west of the government center in Nagatachō and north of the Roppongi district. Akasaka (including the neighboring area of Aoyama) was a ward of Tokyo City from 1878 t ...

. In 1934 he formed his own band, Fumio Nanri and Hot Peppers, which accompanied singer when Mine recorded. Nanri lived in

Dalian Dalian ( ) is a major sub-provincial port city in Liaoning province, People's Republic of China, and is Liaoning's second largest city (after the provincial capital Shenyang) and the third-most populous city of Northeast China (after Shenyang ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

from 1937 to 1940, he played at in 1937. He often came back to Japan and recorded in these years. He was called up and went into the service of as a

combat medic A combat medic is responsible for providing emergency medicine, emergency medical treatment at a point of wounding in a combat or training environment, as well as primary care and health protection and evacuation from a point of injury or illnes ...

in February, 1944. Nanri formed the first term of Hot Peppers in 1946. He then formed the second term of Hot Peppers with , and some musicians in 1948. Nanri suffered a sudden onset of

optic atrophy Optic neuropathy is damage to the optic nerve from any cause. The optic nerve is a bundle of millions of fibers in the retina that sends visual signals to the brain. Damage and death of these nerve cells, or neurons, leads to characteristic featu ...

in 1953 and nearly lost his sight. He nevertheless came back in August and he played with Louis Armstrong in December in that year when Armstrong came to Japan. Nanri played with

Bobby Hackett Robert Leo Hackett (January 31, 1915 – June 7, 1976) was a versatile American jazz musician who played swing music, Dixieland jazz and mood music, now called easy listening, on trumpet, cornet, and guitar. He played Swing with the bands ...

Clark Terry Clark Virgil Terry Jr. (December 14, 1920 – February 21, 2015) was an American Swing music, swing and bebop trumpeter, a pioneer of the flugelhorn in jazz, and a composer and educator. He played with Charlie Barnet (1947), Count Basie (1948� ...

and some musicians at Trumpet Workshop to the memory of the late Louis Armstrong in 1971. Nanri always played

Dixieland jazz Dixieland jazz, also referred to as traditional jazz, hot jazz, or simply Dixieland, is a style of jazz based on the music that developed in New Orleans at the start of the 20th century. The 1917 recordings by the Original Dixieland Jass Band ( ...

in a straight line, however he was engaged upon

bebop Bebop or bop is a style of jazz developed in the early to mid-1940s in the United States. The style features compositions characterized by a fast tempo (usually exceeding 200 bpm), complex chord progressions with rapid chord changes and numerou ...

for a period of postwar time. Nanri had the commemorative recital of his jazz life 48th anniversary in 1973. He held a jazz concert to support

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

ese people in 1974. Nanri died on August 4, 1975, at the age of 64.

References

External links

THE POP LIFE; JAZZ ARTISTS PROMINENT IN U.S. - JAPANESE TRADE
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nanri, Fumio Japanese jazz trumpeters Japanese jazz bandleaders 1975 deaths 1910 births Musicians from Osaka People from Chūō, Osaka 20th-century Japanese musicians 20th-century trumpeters