Manuel Perez, born Emanuel Perez on December 28, 1871, in New Orleans,
Louisiana, was an American New Orleans jazz cornetist and bandleader. Raised in
a Creole family of Spanish, French, and African descent, he played in local
brass bands starting in the 1880s. Around 1900, he joined the Onward Brass Band,
serving as its leader from 1903 to 1930, and founded the Imperial Orchestra,
which operated from 1901 to 1908. He performed alongside prominent jazz
musicians including King Oliver, Peter Bocage, Lorenzo Tio, and George Baquet.
In 1915, Perez moved to Chicago, performing with C...