She may be the most famous jazz drummer you’ve never heard of and was considered the female Gene Krupa. Even the great Benny Goodman asked her to join his band (she turned him down), and she played with Ella Fitzgerald and many other greats.
Born November 29, 1912 Viola (Schmitz) grew up in Mount Calvary, Wisconsin with seven sisters and two brothers. All learned piano first, Viola started playing in the 1920s with her family band, the Schmitz Sisters Family Orchestra (later the Smith Sisters Orchestra). Consisting of Viola, seven of her sisters, and one of her two brothers, they played the vaudeville and movie theater circuit on weekends. Later the girls were to be in an “all-girl” orchestra conceived by their father. Her parents operated a concert hall in Mount Calvary and later booked and managed the family band. They toured the Radio-Keith-Orpheum (RKO) circuit of vaudeville and movie theaters on weekends and summer vacation while some of the sisters were still in school.
Smith penned an article in 1942 for Down Beat magazine titled “Give Girl Musicians a Break!” in which she argued that woman musicians could play just as well as men. She argued, “In these times of national emergency, many of the star instrumentalists of the big name bands are being drafted. Instead of replacing them with what may be mediocre talent, why not let some of the great girl musicians of the country take their place?’
In a Facebook post on 10/23 Ludwig drums added:
We are saddened by the news of the passing of legendary drummer Viola Smith. Viola was one of the first professional female drummers when she came on to the scene in the late 1920’s. She was a Ludwig endorser and member of the NBC Symphony Orchestra. In 1942 during World War II, Viola wrote an article for Down Beat magazine titled, “Give Girl Musicians a Break!” She stated, “In these times of national emergency, many of the star instrumentalists of the big name bands are being drafted. Instead of replacing them with what may be mediocre talent, why not let some of the great girl musicians of the country take their place?” Viola paved the way for so many female drummers and was still playing at 107 years old! She was a true innovator and will be greatly missed.
We at Drumming News Network are saddened to hear of the passing of Viola Smith (née Schmitz; November 29, 1912 – October 21, 2020) and celebrate the life of a true trailblazer.
