Blowing one of the most potent horns since the Biblical Joshua led a septet outside Jericho, the late Al Hirt (1922-1999) has left us with a trumpet legacy characterized by a singular blend of power ...

This week we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the birth of Grammy-winning musician Al Hirt, the New Orleans-born trumpeter and bandleader nicknamed “Jumbo” who was known both for his size and his ...

“Nobody,” says a fellow Bourbon Street trumpeter, “ever outblew Al.” Even allowing for civic partisanship, the boast is not unreasonable. New Orleans Trumpeter Al (“The Monster”) Hirt, 38, is a ...

Most people who grew up in the rock era viewed clarinetist Pete Fountain the same way they did Al Hirt—a bearded New Orleans traditional jazz player who turned up on lots of variety shows in the late ...