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Booker Little
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==Early life == Booker Little Jr. was born in [[Memphis, Tennessee|Memphis]], [[Tennessee]] to Booker, a Pullman porter who was a trombonist, and his wife Ophelia Little, who was a church organist. He also was the brother of Helena, Vivian, and [[Vera Little]] (Vera later sung with the London Opera Company).<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|last=Lagamma|first=Dylan|date=October 2017|title=Abstract of the Dissertation Victory and Sorrow: The Musical Life of Booker Little|url=https://rucore.libraries.rutgers.edu/rutgers-lib/55280/PDF/1/play/|url-status=live|access-date=3 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210927054602/https://rucore.libraries.rutgers.edu/rutgers-lib/55280/PDF/1/play/ |archive-date=2021-09-27 }}</ref> From such a musically inclined family, Little naturally gravitated towards music at a young age. His first instrument was trombone (like his father), but he switched to clarinet at the age of 12.<ref name=":0" /> At 14, his band director urged him to switch to trumpet, and he settled on the instrument quickly.<ref name=":0" /> In 1952, Little started attending Manassas High School where he continued his development on trumpet and later graduated.<ref name=":1" /> Being in Memphis, Little was able to further develop his talent with contemporaries such as [[Phineas Newborn Jr.]], [[George Coleman]], [[Frank Strozier]], and his cousin [[Louis Smith (musician)|Louis Smith]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|last=Miller|first=Dan|date=2010|title=Booker Little: His Life and Music|url=https://www.danmillerjazz.com/booker.html|url-status=live|access-date=3 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030604130715/http://danmillerjazz.com:80/booker.html |archive-date=2003-06-04 }}</ref> He was performing with Newborn on a casual basis by his mid-teens.<ref>{{cite news|last=McDonough|first=John|url=https://downbeat.com/news/detail/booker-little-cutting-at-the-edges|title=Booker Little: Cutting at the Edges|work=DownBeat|date=August 17, 2021|access-date=September 13, 2021}}</ref> After graduating, he moved to [[Chicago|Chicago, Illinois]] to continue his studies at the [[The Music Conservatory of Chicago College of Performing Arts|Chicago Conservatory]] in 1954.<ref name=":0" /> At the conservatory, he continued to study trumpet but also incorporated studies in composition, theory, and orchestration with a minor in piano.<ref name=":1" /> He would later on graduate with a bachelor's degree in his main instrument.<ref name=":2" /> As a sophomore, Little met [[Sonny Rollins]]. For about nine months, they both stayed at the YMCA where Rollins would influence Little greatly by encouraging him to find his own sound versus mimicking other musicians.<ref name=":2" />
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