Manuel "Fess" Manetta (October 3, 1889 – October 10, 1969) 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, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

multi-instrumentalist.

Early life

Manetta was born in New Orleans (district of Algiers) on October 3, 1889. He was of African and Italian descent."Subversive Sounds: Race and the Birth of Jazz in New Orleans", by Charles B. Hersch, p.21. He came from a family of brass players, and could play at least six instruments capably: violin, guitar, piano, cornet, saxophone, and trombone.

Later life and career

He was able to play two brass instruments at the same time, including very late in his life. He played early in the 20th century with the Eagle Brass Band and the

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. It was led by Papa Celestin starting about 1910. Many noted jazz greats play ...

, and was a veteran of some of

Buddy Bolden Charles Joseph "Buddy" Bolden (September 6, 1877 – November 4, 1931) was an African American cornetist who was regarded by contemporaries as a key figure in the development of a New Orleans style of ragtime music, or "jass", which later c ...

's bands. He played in New Orleans for much of his career, but toured with

Kid Ory Edward "Kid" Ory (December 25, 1886 – January 23, 1973) was an American jazz composer, trombonist and bandleader. One of the early users of the glissando technique, he helped establish it as a central element of New Orleans jazz. He was ...

in 1919 and with the Martels Family Band as a pianist in the 1920s. He played on

riverboat A riverboat is a watercraft designed for inland navigation on lakes, rivers, and artificial waterways. They are generally equipped and outfitted as work boats in one of the carrying trades, for freight or people transport, including luxury un ...

s with Ed Allen in that decade as well. He continued working up until his death, playing in the bands of

Papa Celestin Oscar Phillip Celestin (January 1, 1884 – December 15, 1954) better known by stage name Papa Celestin was an American jazz trumpeter and bandleader. Life and career Celestin was born in Napoleonville, Louisiana, to a Creole family, son of a s ...

, Arnold Du Pas, Manuel Perez, and others. The final four decades of his life were spent mostly on teaching, but he also recorded in 1957, laying down tracks that were first released on ''Whorehouse Piano''. He died in New Orleans on October 10, 1969.

References

External links

William Russell Jazz Collection
a
The Historic New Orleans Collection
{{DEFAULTSORT:Manetta, Manuel 1889 births 1969 deaths 20th-century multi-instrumentalists American jazz multi-instrumentalists Jazz musicians from New Orleans Place of birth missing