Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American composer, pianist, and bandleader 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.
Duke Ellington was born in Washington, D.C. as Edward Kennedy Ellington. Duke was a name he picked up in childhood, given to him to describe his elegant manner and because of the flashy way he liked to dress. His parents were part of the Black middle class of Washington, D.C., and both played music at home. He started piano lessons at age seven, but it wasn't the music he was learning at his teacher's side that interested him but instead the ragtime music he heard at dance parties and pool halls when he was a teenager. It took being fired from several bands, however, for Ellington to finally learn how to read music!
Ellington dropped out of high school to pursue a career in music, and the five-piece band he played with, The Washingtonians, moved from Washington, D.C. to New York City in 1923. Under Ellington's leadership, the band grew and moved up from Times Square to Harlem's Cotton Club in 1927. He stayed at the Cotton Club through June of 1931. This popular club featured Black performers, but catered to a wealthy White audience.
Ellington's real fame came in the 1930s. His band started touring nationally, traveling by train and using the train coaches as dormitories since finding hotels that would accept the Black performers was challenging. One of his first hits from this time period was "Don't Mean a Thing", opens a new window from 1932. In 1933, he and his band went on their first International tour, visiting London and Paris, where "Daybreak Express", was one of the new works premiered. In 1935, Paramount Pictures released the short film Symphony in Black, which not only was scored entirely by Ellington but also featured a young Billie Holiday.
Ellington called his style and sound "American Music" rather than jazz, and liked to describe those who impressed him as "beyond category", including many of the musicians who served with his orchestra, some of whom were themselves considered among the giants of jazz and remained with Ellington's orchestra for decades. While many were noteworthy in their own right, it was Ellington that melded them into one of the most well-known orchestral units in the history of jazz. He often composed specifically for the style and skills of these individuals, such as "Jeep's Blues" for Johnny Hodges, "Concerto for Cootie" ("Do Nothing Till You Hear from Me") for Cootie Williams and "The Mooche" for Tricky Sam Nanton. He also recorded songs written by his bandsmen, such as Juan Tizol's "Caravan" and "Perdido" which brought the "Spanish Tinge" to big-band jazz.
In 1939, Ellington took on Billy Strayhorn, who he called his alter-ego, as a second composer, arranger, pianist, and lyricist for the band. This collaboration proved to be a great success and featured such hits as Strayhorn's "Take the 'A' Train" in 1941. World War II saw a recording ban called by the American Federation of Musicians in August 1942, which definitely had an impact on the Ellington band. The ability to tour extensively was constrained by the war in Europe, but Ellington continued to compose and started to put on recitals at Carnegie Hall in New York City. During this time he also returned to movies, appearing in Cabin in the Sky and Reveille. The recording ban ended in 1944, and record labels started putting out recordings again. The hits kept coming: some of them were ones that had been written a few years earlier, and others were brand new, like "I'm Beginning to See the Light," which became a top 10 hit. Ellington's popular favourites included "Mood Indigo," "Solitude," "Sophisticated Lady," "In A Sentimental Mood," "Take the 'A' Train," "Satin Doll," "Black, Brown and Beige," "Don't Get Around Much Anymore," and "Come Sunday".
When World War II ended, Ellington and his band kept touring, but the end of the big-band era in the 1940's took its toll on the Ellington orchestra, and as worked dried up Ellington was forced to turn to royalties from his popular songs to keep the band afloat, a situation which was later reversed. In 1946, he wrote the music for the Broadway musical Beggar's Holiday, and later scored the film Asphalt Jungle.Ellington spent much of his professional career in motion-traveling with his band from one performance to the next, composing aboard trains, planes, automobiles and living out of suitcases in an endless series of hotel rooms as he took his music to audiences across the globe.
The early 1950s were a difficult time for Ellington and the band, but they came back swinging when they performed at the 1956 Newport Jazz Festival on July 7 and wowed the audience with a rendition of "Dimuendo and Crescendo in Blue." The performance at Newport was released as a live recording by Columbia Records as Ellington at Newport, opens a new window, which became the best selling album of his career. That year also saw Ellington on the cover of Time magazine. The success of the showing at Newport opened up more opportunities for touring, and in 1958 he undertook his first large scale tour of Europe. From that point on, Ellington was a busy world traveller.
The rest of Ellington's career continued to see success until his death in 1974. He scored more movie soundtracks, including Anatomy of a Murder in 1959 (which he appeared in and also won three Grammy awards), Paris Blues, opens a new window in 1961 (which was nominated for an Academy Award), Assault on a Queen, opens a new window in 1966, and Change of Mind in 1969. He won several Grammy awards, including for "In the Beginning, God," in 1966 (best original jazz composition), Far East Suite in 1967 (best instrumental jazz performance), And His Mother Called Him Bill in 1969 (best instrumental jazz performance), and The Ellington Suites, posthumously in 1976. He never did have a real stage hit during his lifetime, as most of the shows that he was involved with ended after around 100 performances. But the revue Sophisticated Ladies, which opened on Broadway on March 1, 1981, and ran for 767 performances.
During this time Ellington was deservedly showered with awards, prizes, sixteen honorary degrees and celebrated both at home and abroad for his musical achievements. These awards included the presentation of the keys to the city of Los Angeles in 1936, the Spingarn Medal by the NAACP in 1959, The President's Gold Medal by President Lyndon B. Johnson (1966), the Pied Piper Award (1968), the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Richard Nixon (1969), the Legion of Honour by the country of France (the countries highest award), a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (6535 Hollywood Blvd.) and thirteen Grammy's.
On May 24, 1974, at the age of 75, Ellington died of lung cancer and pneumonia. His last words were, "Music is how I live, why I live and how I will be remembered." More than 12,000 people attended his funeral. He was buried in Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx, New York City. Widely recognized during his life as one of the most influential figures in jazz, if not in all American music, Ellington's reputation has increased since his death, with thematic repackaging's of his signature music often becoming best-sellers. Posthumous recognition of his work include a special award citation from the Pulitzer Prize Board.
(Edited from Boston Public Library, Curtis Jackson & Wikipedia)
