Duke ellington biography timeline book

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Donate icon An illustration of a heart shape "Donate to the archive" User icon An illustration of a person's head and chest. The two men sat next to each other in the orchestra. Additionally, Nance added violin to the instrumental colors Ellington had at his disposal. Privately made by Jack Towers and Dick Burris, these recordings were first legitimately issued in as Duke Ellington at Fargo, Live ; they are among the earliest of innumerable live performances which survive.

Nance was an occasional vocalist as well, although Herb Jeffries was the main male vocalist in this era until while Al Hibbler who replaced Jeffries in continued until Ivie Anderson left in for health reasons after 11 years, the longest term of any of Ellington's vocalists. Once more recording for Victor fromwith the small groups being issued on their Bluebird label, three-minute masterpieces on 78 rpm record sides continued to flow from Ellington, Billy Strayhorn, Ellington's son Mercer Ellingtonand members of the orchestra.

Louis Toodle-Oo ". Ellington and his associates wrote for an orchestra of duke ellington biography timeline book voices displaying tremendous creativity. Ellington's long-term aim, though, was to extend the jazz form from that three-minute limit, of which he was an acknowledged master. In this, he was helped by Strayhorn, who had enjoyed a more thorough training in the forms associated with classical music than Ellington.

The first of these, Black, Brown, and Beigewas dedicated to telling the story of African Americans and the place of slavery and the church in their history. While some jazz musicians had played at Carnegie Hall before, none had performed anything as elaborate as Ellington's work. Unfortunately, duke ellington biography timeline book a regular pattern, Ellington's longer works were generally not well received.

A partial exception was Jump for Joya full-length musical based on themes of African-American identity, which debuted on July 10,at the Mayan Theater in Los Angeles. Ellington objected in the interval and compared Jeffries to Al Jolson. The change was reverted. The singer later commented that the audience must have thought he was an entirely different character in the second half of the show.

Although it had sold-out performances and received positive reviews, [ 69 ] it ran for only performances until September 29,with a brief revival in November of that year. Its subject matter did not make it appealing to Broadway; Ellington had unfulfilled plans to take it there. The settlement of the first recording ban of —44leading to an increase in royalties paid to musicians, had a severe effect on the financial viability of the big bands, including Ellington's Orchestra.

His income as a songwriter ultimately subsidized it. Although he always spent lavishly and drew a respectable income from the orchestra's operations, the band's income often just covered expenses. Musicians enlisting in the military and travel restrictions made touring difficult for the big bands, and dancing became subject to a new tax, which continued for many years, affecting the choices of club owners.

As the cost of hiring big bands had increased, club owners now found smaller jazz groups more cost-effective. Some of Ellington's new works, such as the wordless vocal feature "Transblucency" with Kay Daviswere not going to have a similar reach as the newly emerging stars. Ellington continued on his own course through these tectonic shifts.

While Count Basielike many other big bands at the time, was forced to disband his whole ensemble and work as an octet for a time, Ellington was able to tour most of Western Europe between April 6 and June 30,with the orchestra playing 74 dates over 77 days. However, Ellington's extended composition, Harlemwas in the process of being completed at this time.

Ellington later presented its score to music-loving President Harry Truman. Also during his time in Europe, Ellington would compose the music for a stage production by Orson Welles. InEllington suffered a significant loss of personnel: Sonny Greer, Lawrence Brown, and, most importantly, Johnny Hodges left to pursue other ventures. However, only Greer was a permanent departee.

Tenor player Paul Gonsalves had joined in December [ 74 ] after periods with Count Basie and Dizzy Gillespie and stayed for the rest of his life, while Clark Terry joined in November But Duke merely lifts his finger, three horns make a sound, and I don't know what it is! Ellington's appearance at the Newport Jazz Festival on July 7,returned him to wider prominence.

The feature " Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue " comprised two tunes that had been in the band's book since Ellington, who had abruptly ended the band's scheduled set because of the late arrival of four key players, called the two tunes as the time was approaching midnight. Announcing that the two pieces would be separated by an interlude played by tenor saxophonist Paul GonsalvesEllington proceeded to lead the band through the two pieces, with Gonsalves' chorus marathon solo whipping the crowd into a frenzy, leading the Maestro to play way beyond the curfew time despite urgent pleas from festival organizer George Wein to bring the program to an end.

The concert made international headlines, and led to one of only five Time magazine cover stories dedicated to a jazz musician, [ 79 ] and resulted in an album produced by George Avakian that would become the best-selling LP of Ellington's career. According to Avakian, Ellington was dissatisfied with aspects of the performance and felt the musicians had been under-rehearsed.

Not until was the concert recording properly released for the first time. The revived attention brought about by the Newport appearance should not have surprised anyone, Johnny Hodges had returned the previous year, [ 81 ] and Ellington's collaboration with Strayhorn was renewed around the same time, under terms more amenable to the younger man.

The original Ellington at Newport album was the first release in a new recording contract with Columbia Records which yielded several years of recording stability, mainly under producer Irving Townsendwho coaxed both commercial and artistic productions from Ellington. Festival appearances at the new Monterey Jazz Festival and elsewhere provided venues for live exposure, and a European tour in was well received.

Such Sweet Thunderbased on Shakespeare's plays and characters, and The Queen's Suitededicated to Britain's Queen Elizabeth IIwere products of the renewed impetus which the Newport appearance helped to create. However, the latter work was not commercially issued at the time. The late s also saw Ella Fitzgerald record her Duke Ellington Songbook Verve with Ellington and his orchestra—a recognition that Ellington's songs had now become part of the cultural canon known as the ' Great American Songbook '.

Around this time Ellington and Strayhorn began to work on film scoring. The first of these was Anatomy of a Murder[ 39 ] a courtroom drama directed by Otto Preminger and featuring James Stewartin which Ellington appeared fronting a roadhouse combo.

Duke ellington biography timeline book: Janna Tull Steed traces Ellington's

Film historians have recognized the score "as a landmark—the first significant Hollywood film music by African Americans comprising non-diegetic music, that is, music whose source is not visible or implied by action in the film, like an on-screen band. In the early s, Ellington embraced recording with artists who had been friendly rivals in the past or were younger musicians who focused on later styles.

The Count Meets the Duke He signed to Frank Sinatra 's new Reprise labelbut the association with the label was short-lived. Musicians who had previously worked with Ellington returned to the Orchestra as members: Lawrence Brown in and Cootie Williams in The writing and playing of music is a matter of intent You can't just throw a paintbrush against the wall and call whatever happens art.

My music fits the tonal personality of the player. I think too strongly in terms of altering my music to fit the performer to be impressed by accidental music. You can't take doodling seriously. He was now performing worldwide and spent a significant part of each year on overseas tours. Ellington wrote an original score for director Michael Langham 's production of Shakespeare's Timon of Athens at the Stratford Festival in Ontario, Canada, which opened on July 29, Langham has used it for several subsequent productions, including a much later adaptation by Stanley Silverman which expands the score with some of Ellington's best-known works.

Ellington was shortlisted for the Pulitzer Prize for Music in However, no prize was ultimately awarded that year. Fate doesn't want me to be famous too young. In Septemberhe premiered the first of his Sacred Concerts. He created a jazz Christian liturgy.

Duke ellington biography timeline book: Duke Ellington chronology. By

Although the work received mixed reviews, Ellington was proud of the composition and performed it dozens of times. This concert was followed by two others of the same type in andknown as the Second and Third Sacred Concerts. Many saw the Sacred Music suites as an attempt to reinforce commercial support for organized religion. However, Ellington simply said it was "the most important thing I've done".

Like Haydn and MozartEllington conducted his orchestra from the piano—he always played the keyboard parts when the Sacred Concerts were performed. Duke turned 65 in the spring of but showed no signs of slowing down as he continued to make recordings of significant works such as The Far East SuiteNew Orleans SuiteThe Afro-Eurasian Eclipse and the Latin American Suitemuch of it inspired by his world tours.

It was during this time that he recorded his only album with Frank Sinatratitled Francis A. In Augusthe recorded several solo piano tracks at Mediasound Studios in New York, with the then brand-new assistant engineer Bob Clearmountain. Ellington got an idea to write an opera about a black beautician in the s, but did not finish it. Sincethat ballroom has been dedicated as the "Duke Ellington Ballroom".

Ellington married his high school sweetheart, Edna Thompson d. Ellington was joined in New York City by his wife and son in the late s, but the couple soon permanently separated. Inhe left his family his son was 19 and moved in with Beatrice "Evie" Ellis, a Cotton Club employee. Ellington's sister Ruth — later ran Tempo Music, his music publishing company.

Ellington died on May 24,of complications from lung cancer and pneumonia[ ] a few weeks after his 75th birthday. At his funeral, attended by over 12, people at the Cathedral of St. John the DivineElla Fitzgerald summed up the occasion: "It's a very sad day. A genius has passed.

Duke ellington biography timeline book: A major new biography of Duke

In Ellington's birthplace, Washington, D. Another school is P. Ellington's residence at Sherman Avenue NW, during the years —, [ ] is marked by a bronze plaque. Mint's program honoring the District and the U. Ina United States commemorative stamp was issued featuring Ellington's likeness. Ellington lived out his final years in Manhattan, in a townhouse at Riverside Drive near West th Street.

His sister Ruth, who managed his publishing company, also lived there, and his son Mercer lived next door. According to UCLA magazine:. On the day of the concert, Ellington accidentally mixed up the venues and drove to USC instead. He eventually arrived at the UCLA campus and, to apologize for his tardiness, played to the packed crowd for more than four hours.

And so, "Sir Duke" and his group played the first-ever jazz performance in a concert venue. The Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Competition and Festival is a nationally renowned annual competition for prestigious high school bands. Started in at Jazz at Lincoln Centerthe festival is named after Ellington because of the significant focus that the festival places on his works.

After Duke died, his son Mercer took over leadership of the orchestra, continuing until he died in Like the Count Basie Orchestrathis "ghost band" continued to release albums for many years. Mercer Ellington had been handling all administrative aspects of his father's business for several decades. Mercer's children continue a connection with their grandfather's work.

Ellington composed incessantly to the very last days of his life. Metropolitan Museum Cleveland Museum of Art. Internet Arcade Console Living Room. Open Library American Libraries. Search the Wayback Machine Search icon An illustration of a magnifying glass. Sign up for free Log in. It appears your browser does not have it turned on. Organized by year of original publication — In German and English.

Larkin, Colin. Edited by Colin Larkin, — Piras, Marcello. Edited by Charles Hiroshi Garrett, — An up-to-date biographical overview and discussion of key works. Includes an extensive bibliography. Tucker, Mark. Edited by Samuel A. Floyd Jr. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn,