Herman "Ivory" Chittison (October 15, 1908 – March 8, 1967) was an American

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 ...

pianist.

Biography

Born in Flemingsburg, Kentucky, he began his career in 1928 as a member of Zack Whyte's territory band in Ohio. Chittison moved to New York in the early 1930s and found work as an accompanist to

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, and Clarence Williams. He also visited Boston for the first time with a traveling show headlined by comic actor Stepin Fetchit. In late 1933, he toured Europe with the Willie Lewis Orchestra; the following year, he recorded with

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 ...

in Paris. He and trumpeter Bill Coleman led the Harlem Rhythm Makers. Chittison and Coleman left Lewis' group in 1938 and formed a band that worked extensively in

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

, Egypt, and traveled as far east as India. In October 1959, Chittison arrived in Boston and was employed as the resident pianist at the Red Garter bar in the Lenox Hotel. He then moved to the Mayfair Lounge in Bay Village. His stay in Boston lasted two years in total. He also had a reoccurring role as the piano player in the Blue Note Bar on the radio series, ''Casey, Crime Photographer''. Chittison died in Cleveland in March 1967, at the age of 58.

References

American jazz pianists American male jazz pianists People from Flemingsburg, Kentucky 1908 births 1967 deaths Jazz musicians from Kentucky 20th-century American pianists 20th-century American male musicians {{US-jazz-pianist-stub