Search results
People also ask
Who was Duke Ellington?
Is Duke Ellington still alive?
What songs did Duke Ellington write?
How did Duke Ellington die?
May 20, 2024 · Duke Ellington, American pianist who was the greatest jazz composer and bandleader of his time. One of the originators of big-band jazz, Ellington led his band for more than half a century, composed thousands of scores, and created one of the most distinctive ensemble sounds in all of Western music.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Feb 8, 2024 · An originator of big-band jazz, Duke Ellington was an American composer, pianist and bandleader who composed thousands of scores over his 50-year career.
- editor@biography.com
- Staff Editorial Team And Contributors
Duke Ellington. Edward Kennedy " Duke " Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous jazz orchestra from 1923 through the rest of his life. [1]
Dec 12, 2002 · Considered one of the greatest jazz composers of all time, Duke Ellington had an enormous impact on the popular music of the late 20th century. Among his more than two thousand songs are such...
- Early Life & Career. Edward Kennedy Ellington was born April 29, 1899 in Washington D.C. to a middle-class African-American family. While he had some piano lessons when he was seven, he did not take the music seriously until he was a teenager.
- Duke Ellington & The Cotton Club. On December 4, 1927, Irving Mills helped secure the band an audition for a prized spot in the Cotton Club which they won.
- The Swing Era. The rise of the swing era, which started in 1935, resulted in many other big bands being formed, but Ellington was already considered a musical genius who was above any real competition.
- The 1940s & Carnegie Hall. While the onset of World War II. made traveling difficult for big bands, Ellington continued working including appearing with his band in the Los Angeles civil rights play Jump For Joy and at special Carnegie Hall concerts.
Duke Ellington Biography. Born: April 29, 1899. Washington, D.C. Died: May 24, 1974. New York, New York. African American composer, band leader, and pianist. Duke Ellington is considered by many to be one of America's most brilliant jazz composers (writers of music) of the twentieth century.
May 29, 2018 · A prolific composer, Ellington created over two thousand pieces of music, including the standard songs “ It Don ’ t Mean a Thing (If It Ain ’ t Got That Swing) ” and “ Sophisticated Lady ” and longer works like Black, Brown, and Beige and The Liberian Suite.
