Salaparuta, Sicily: the Source of Jazz?

Here’s an interesting landmark for jazz historians that I encountered on my travels. The town of Salaparuta (pop. c2000) in the west of Sicily lays claim to being of seminal importance in the development of jazz. The root of this assertion is that it was the birthplace of the parents and grandparents of three notable musicians. The first was Girolammo LaRocca whose son, Nick LaRocca (1889-1961) was a trumpeter with the Original Dixieland Jass Band (note the original spelling) who are credited with the first commercial jazz recording, “Livery Stable Blues”. Nick went on to write “Tiger Rag” which became a much loved standard. The second example is trumpeter/singer Louis Prima (1910-1978) whose grandfather, Leonardo, was from Salaparuta but emigrated to the US. The third notable was Leon Roppolo (1902-1943) clarinetist with the New Orleans Rhythm Kings and whose family also emigrated to the New World. Salaparuta is now home to the Nick LaRocca Jazz Research Centre although unfortunately this seems to have become a victim of financial difficulties and is currently closed. Let’s hope this situation changes in the near future.