Being a legend in any field it is complex and this is precisely what Viola Smith managed to become, who is better known as the drummer fastest in the world.
Viola, who was born on November 29, 1912 in a small town in Wisconsin, United States, grew up playing in a jazz band with her seven sisters.
It turns out that his father, a man who was involved in various businesses, conceived the idea of creating the Schmitz Sisters Orchestra to perform at state fairs and tour the vaudeville circuit.
When he was just 13 years old, his father assigned him drums in the family band, largely because all the other instruments were already reserved.
Viola Smith was jazz's first female star drummer. Source: NYT
After most of her sisters left the band, Viola decided to start another all-female musical ensemble, the Coquettes, who achieved modest fame in the late 1930s in America.
Her photo appeared on the cover of Billboard magazine and they performed in a Warner Bros. musical short. This is how she became the first female drummer star. Because of this she even got to perform at President Harry S. Truman's inauguration gala and worked with Ella Fitzgerald and Chick Webb.
The bright lights of New York and the jazz pouring out of the nightclubs of 52nd Street called to Viola Smith, who no doubt decided to move to the big city with her drumsticks to make a name for herself there.
Opportunities abounded for her in New York. She studied timpani at the renowned Juilliard School of Music before performing with snare drum virtuoso Billy Gladstone at Radio City Music Hall.
A young Frank Sinatra chatted with her one night at a steakhouse and they did a couple of collaborations. Viola Smith found a studio in Midtown, where she ended up living for 70 years.
Snake charmer was the song in which he managed to display his virtuosity in a striking solo that was mesmerizing for viewers.
When people called her the female Gene Krupa, she would correct them and say that Krupa, drummer extraordinaire for big band, was the male Viola Smith.
As the ranks of the predominantly male big gangs dwindled during World War II, Smith decided to publish an editorial in DownBeat magazine titled Give women in music a break!, which urged orchestras to hire talented women who were eager to fill the gaps that had been left empty.
Despite the passionate argument offered by Viola Smith, the big bands did not pay attention to her call for inclusion, so she had no choice but to continue working hard throughout her life and thus be remembered as a true legend. .
