Little Melba and Her Big Trombone by Katheryn Russell-Brown

See how the art for Little Melba and Her Big Trombone was made.Ĭheck out educator lesson plan and activities for Little Melba and Her Big Trombone, a title featured in RIF’s Multicultural Book Collections. Overcoming obstacles of race and gender, Melba went on to become a famed trombone player and arranger, spinning rhythms, harmonies, and melodies into gorgeous songs for all the jazz greats of the twentieth century: Randy Weston, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Billie Holiday, and Quincy Jones, to name just a few.īrimming with ebullience and the joy of making music, Little Melba and Her Big Trombone is a fitting tribute to a trailblazing musician and a great unsung hero of jazz.Įxplore a reading guide and learning activities for Little Melba and Her Big Trombone created by the Education Division at the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) for its Book of the Month program.Ĭheck out Frank Morrison's Little Melba Playlist of his favorite jazz music.

She joined a band led by trumpet player Gerald Wilson and toured the country.

By the time she was a teenager, Melba’s extraordinary gift for music led her to the world of jazz. As a child, she daydreamed about beats and lyrics, and hummed along with the music from her family’s Majestic radio.Īt age seven, Melba fell in love with a big, shiny trombone, and soon taught herself to play the instrument. “Melba Liston: Bones Of An Arranger”: NPR.Melba Doretta Liston loved the sounds of music from as far back as she could remember.

What do you notice that you can’t explain?.

What do you notice that you didn’t expect?.

What do you see that looks strange or unfamiliar?.

How much of the text can you read? What does it say?.Additionally, listen to songs on this album on this YouTube playlist using the Primary Source Analysis Tool for Sound Recordings as a guide to a listening analysis. For this primary source pairing, invite students to study an image of Melba in 1958 and the album cover for “Melba Liston and Her Bones” released in 1959. Melba’s life was full of music even before she learned to play the trombone when she was only seven years old! Her career in music would last the rest of her life as a musician, band leader, and music arranger. Illustrated by Frank Morrison, Written by Katheryn Russell-BrownĪ biography of African American jazz virtuoso Melba Doretta Liston, a pioneering twentieth-century trombone player, composer, and music arranger at a time when few women, of any race, played brass instruments and were part of the jazz scene.

Little Melba and Her Big Trombone by Katheryn Russell-Brown