Essay On Duke Ellington - 1506 Words

Duke Ellington: 1899-1974 Edward â€Å"Duke† Kennedy Ellington was born April 29, 1899 in Washington, D.C. Duke Ellington was born into a typical family with average income and growing up, the future musician was home-schooled by his parents. His father James Edward Ellington and mother Daisy Kennedy Ellington were both pianist. His father played operatic arias while parlor songs were his mother’s first choice. It is an interesting fact that Duke is not actually Ellington’s name, but it is only his nickname, which children gave him when he was a little boy for his aristocratic manners and the ability to dress elegant things. When Duke was seven years old, he began his piano training and took lessons from Marietta Clinkscales. (Ruhlmann) Duke†¦show more content†¦Ellington’s band thrived and played all throughout Washington and Virginia, usually playing for embassy and private parties. His band included Sonny Greer on drums, his childhood friend Otto Hardwick on alto saxophone, Elmer Snowden on banjo and Arthur Whetsol on trumpet. The group performed for both African-American and white audiences which was quite rare in those times. When Ellington’s drummer Sonny Greer joined the Wilber Sweatman Orchestra in New York City, he decided to leave behind his successful career in Washington, D.C and moved to Harlem. Shortly after his move to Harlem, in May of 1927, Andy Preer who had been leading the house band at the Cotton Club died. In looking for a replacement, the gig went to Duke Ellington and his men. The clubs decor was modelled after the old south of plantations and slavery, hence the name the â€Å"Cotton Club†. The club was segregated, meaning only whites were allowed in the audience, while all the waiters and entertainers were African American. What made Duke Ellington and his Cotton Club Orchestra famous were the weekly broadcasts on radio station WHN. (Cotton) These broadcasts were heard all over the country and gave Ellington national exposure. With the Great Depression worsening, the recording industry too was hit by the financial crisis and that resulted into dropping of over 90% of artist by the year 1933. (Ruhlmann) In the case ofShow MoreRelatedDuke Ellington Essay1260 Words   |  6 PagesDuke Ellington Duke Ellingtons pre-eminence in jazz is not only because of the very high aesthetic standard of his output and not simply due to his remarkable abilities as a pianist, composer and bandleader, but also to the fact that he has extended the boundaries of jazz more than any other musician, without abandoning the true essence of the music. Perhaps no other American musician left such a massive and challenging legacy in composition and performance. Edward Kennedy Duke EllingtonRead MoreDuke Ellington Essay746 Words   |  3 PagesDuke Elington Duke Ellington was an American jazz bandleader, composer, and pianist. 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Ellington enteredRead More Duke Ellington: An American Legacy Essays1818 Words   |  8 Pages Duke Ellington: An American Legacy nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Where would music be had it not been for the men that stepped before him. The Motzarts and Beethovens, who wrote the music that today is known as the classics. These men were naturals in their own right, but these people wrote their music in the 17th and 18th century. Many people dont realize all of the changes that music had to go through between that period of music and the present day. One such musician stands alone at the topRead MoreEssay on A Portrait Of Duke Ellington By Tracy Frech1748 Words   |  7 PagesPortrait of Duke Ellington By Tracy Frech Duke Ellington is considered to be one of the greatest figures in the history of American music. Edward Kennedy quot;Dukequot; Ellington was born in Washington D.C. on April 29, 1899. His parents were James Edward and Daisy Kennedy Ellington. They raised Duke as an only child, until his sister, Ruth, was born when Duke was sixteen years old. Duke, even as a teenager, had a great talent for music. In the beginning of his musical life, Duke began to takeRead MoreEssay on A Portrait of Duke Ellington by Tracy Frech1779 Words   |  8 PagesA Portrait of Duke Ellington By Tracy Frech Duke Ellington is considered to be one of the greatest figures in the history of American music. Edward Kennedy Duke Ellington was born in Washington D.C. on April 29, 1899. His parents were James Edward and Daisy Kennedy Ellington. They raised Duke as an only child, until his sister, Ruth, was born when Duke was sixteen years old. Duke, even as a teenager, had a great talent for music. In the beginning of his musical life, Duke began to take a promisingRead MoreThe Critical Impacts Of The Harlem Renaissance1066 Words   |  5 PagesNatives crosswise over America appreciate hearing the stories of the difficulties in the newest era and how they overwhelmed these. Jazz was the most persuasive sort of music all through the Harlem Renaissance. Acclaimed performers, for example, Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, and Bessie Smith massively affected the part of Jazz right up til the present time. As expressed in The New York Times, 1922, it seems these African Americans were living to the beat jazz in their own Little Africa. The classRead MoreHarlem Renaissance : A Cultural, Social, And Artistic Explosion840 Words   |  4 Pagessculptures, and songs. Some of the great writers were Langston Hughes, Zora Neal Houston, and Countee Cullen. Some of the great artists were Jacob Lawrence, Aaron Douglas, and Lois Mailou Jones. Some of the great musicians were Louie Armstrong, Duke Ellington, and James Weldon Johnson. Langston Hughes is one of the most known writers of the Harlem Renaissance. He was born February 1, 1902. When Langston was still a child he moved to Lincoln, Illinois. Langston began writing poetry in Lincoln. AccordingRead MoreJazz, By Louis Armstrong2718 Words   |  11 Pagesperformer were the emotion, beauty, and technical mastery he brought to each performance, and he knew how to please an audience. Performing jazz was a personal and powerful experience to him, and it was communicated effectively to his audience. Duke Ellington is quoted as calling him a â€Å"truly good and original man,† and his contributions to jazz music reflect that statement. Prior to Armstrong’s involvement, jazz was considered an urban folk music that was closely related to ragtime and militaryRead MoreThe Influence Of The Harlem Renaissance1912 Words   |  8 PagesAfrican American acts, such as singers like Ethel Waters. Dancers, like Clayton Peg Leg Bates performed. Some really famous names, such as Duke Ellington and Cab Calloway performed there, with their bands, as well. Although all the acts were performed by African Americans, whites were the only ones originally admitted into the Cotton Club as. However, Duke Ellington eventually persuaded the club to allow African Americans to be admitted. They filled up the seats in the back of the club. Regardless, the