Famous musical composition by Duke Ellington. Duke Ellington: biography, best compositions, interesting facts, listen

Music is what helps to escape from the hustle and bustle of gray days and find strength even in the most difficult situations. Therefore, there is nothing surprising in the fact that composers, musicians and singers have been revered at all times - both in moments of joy and in hours of trouble.

It is fair to say that cheerful rhythmic music, in particular jazz, is the best way to lift the mood. This fact explains why the names of musicians such as Ray Brown, Billie Holiday and Duke Ellington are known to this day.

Childhood and youth

Edward Kennedy (that's actually the name of an outstanding jazzman) was born in the capital of the United States of America. It happened on April 29, 1899. The boy was lucky enough to be born in the family of the White House butler James Edward Ellington and his wife Daisy Kennedy Ellington. The position of the father protected the boy from the problems that the black population of America had to face in those years.

Literally from the cradle, his mother began to teach Edward how to play the keyboard (she herself played well, and sometimes even performed at parish meetings). At the age of nine, the child was hired by a more experienced piano teacher.

The boy begins to write his own works already in 1910. The first work that has survived to this day is called Soda Fontaine Rag. This composition was written in 1914. In Soda Fontaine Rag, Kennedy's early interest in dance music (particularly ragtime) can be seen.

After graduating from a specialized art school, Edward got a job as a poster artist. The work is not dusty, the earnings are sufficient - the young guy was regularly trusted with orders from the state administration, but this occupation did not bring Kennedy such pleasure as playing the piano did. As a result, Edward abandoned art, even refusing a position at the Pratt Institute.

Since 1917, the young Kennedy has been making his living with music, while learning the nuances of skill from professional metropolitan piano players.

Music

Edward made his first team already in 1919. In addition to Kennedy himself, the band included saxophonist Otto Hardwick and drummer Sonny Greer. A little later they were joined by trumpeter Arthur Watsol.

Once their performance was heard by the owner of a New York bar, who came to the capital on business. He offered the guys a contract, according to which they would have to perform with him for several years, and the bar owner guarantees the musicians an audience and a good reward. Kennedy and company agreed, and as early as 1922 began performing at Barron's in Harlem as the Washingtonians quartet.

We talked about guys. They began to be invited to perform at other venues, such as the Hollywood Club located in Time Square. The fees allowed Edward to continue his studies with local recognized keyboardists.

The success of the Washingtonians gave the quartet members an opportunity to get to know the local public, both creative and influential people. To match the New Yorkers, Kennedy began to dress in bright and expensive clothes, for which he received from his comrades the playful nickname "Duke" (translated as "Duke").

In 1926, Edward met Irwin Mills, who later became the musician's manager. It was Mills who advised the guy to use a creative pseudonym instead of his real name, based on his father's nickname and surname. Also on the advice of Irvine, Duke renamed the expanding jazz ensemble The Washingtonians to Duke Ellington and His Orchestra.

In 1927, Ellington and his team moved to the New York jazz club Cotton Club, where he performed until the first concert tour around the country. During this period of time, compositions such as Creole Love Call, Black and Tan Fantasy and The Mooche were written.

In 1929 Duke Ellington and His Orchestra performed at the Florenz Ziegfeld Musical Theater. At the same time, the hit composition Mood Indigo was recorded at the RCA Records recording studio (now part of Sony Music Entertainment), and other compositions of the orchestra could often be heard on the radio live.

In 1931, the first tour of the Ellington Jazz Ensemble took place. A year later, Duke performed with the orchestra at Columbia University. It is believed that this period of the musician's life was the entrance to the peak of his career, since it was then that he wrote his legendary works It don`t mean a thing (“Everything is meaningless”) and Star-crossed lovers (“Unfortunate lovers”).

In fact, Duke became the progenitor of the swing genre, having written the compositions Stormy weather and Sophisticated Lady in 1933. Skillfully operating with the personal characteristics of the musicians, Ellington achieved an individual, incomparable sound. The main musicians in Duke's team are saxophonist John Hodges, trumpeter Frank Jenkins and trombonist Juan Tizol.

In 1933, Duke and his musicians went on their first European tour, the main event of which was a performance at the London Palladium concert hall. During the performance of Duke Ellington and his orchestra, there were people of royal blood in the hall, with whom Duke had a chance to talk after.

Inspired by the success of the European tour, the musicians set off on a new one - this time first in South America and then in North America. At the end of the tour, Ellington writes a new hit - the song Caravan ("Caravan"). After its release, Duke received the title of the first truly American composer.

But the protracted white stripe was replaced by a black one - in 1935, Duke's mother died. This seriously affected the musician - Ellington began a creative crisis. However, Duke managed to overcome it by writing the composition Reminiseing in Tempo, which was seriously different from everything that Duke had done before.

In 1936, Ellington first wrote the music for the film - this tape was a comedy by Sam Wood with comedians the Marx brothers in the lead roles. In 1938, Duke worked as a conductor of the Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra, performing at the St. Regis Hotel.

A year later, new musicians joined the Ellington team in the person of tenor saxophonist Ben Webster and double bassist Jim Blenton. The two guys changed the sound of Duke's orchestra, which inspired him to start a new European tour. The skill of the musician was highly appreciated by the English conductor Leopold Stokowski and the Russian composer.

In 1942, Ellington wrote the music for the tape Cabin in the Clouds, and in January of the following year he assembled a full Carnegie Hall concert hall in New York. The proceeds from the concert went to support the Soviet Union during World War II.

After World War II, public interest in jazz began to decline - people were immersed in a state of depression and constant fear. For some time, Duke managed to perform and pay fees to artists (sometimes even out of his own pocket), but, in the end, the musicians, disappointed in everything, dispersed. Ellington began to earn a living by working part-time in the form of writing music for films.

However, in 1956, Duke made a spectacular return to jazz, performing at the Newport Genre Festival. Together with arranger William Strayhorn and new performers, Ellington delighted listeners with compositions such as Lady Mac and Half the Fun, based on the works of .

The sixties of the last century became the second peak in the career of a musician - during this period, Duke was awarded eleven Grammy awards in a row. In 1969, Ellington was awarded the Order of Freedom. Duke was presented with the award by the President of the United States himself. It is worth noting that three years earlier, Ellington was personally awarded by another president -.

Personal life

Duke married quite early - on July 2, 1918 (at that time the guy was nineteen). His wife was Edna Thompson, married to whom Ellington lived until the end of his days.

Death

For the first time, Duke felt bad while working on the music for the film "Mind Exchange", but then the musician did not pay serious attention to it. Ellington was diagnosed with lung cancer in 1973. The following year, he caught pneumonia and took to his bed.

On May 24, 1974, the jazzman died. Ellington was buried three days later at New York's oldest cemetery, Woodlawn, located in the Bronx.

Duke was posthumously awarded the Pulitzer Prize, and in 1976 the Center was established in his name at the Lutheran Church of St. Peter. The center is decorated with photographs highlighting the highlights of the musician's biography.

Discography

• 1940 - The Okeh Ellington
• 1944 - Black, Brown & Beige
• 1952 This Is Duke Ellington And His Orchestra
• 1957 - In A Mellotone
• 1959 Festival Session
• 1964 - The Great London Concerts
• 1964 - One O "Clock Jump
• 1968 - And Mother Called Him Bill
• 1972 The Ellington Suites

American jazz pianist and composer Duke Ellington is an iconic figure in the musical Olympus of the 20th century. His work has had a huge impact on world jazz culture.

Young Duke Ellington

Childhood

Edward Kennedy Ellington was born April 29, 1899 in the Colored Quarter. His family differed from its neighbors in its rather high income. The father worked in decent houses and earned good money, because the boy's childhood was full and calm.

Duke Ellington was predicted from childhood to become a musician -

A close relationship connected him not with his father, but with his mother. She was a delicate nature, very pious and passionately fond of music. Mother from an early age shaped the worldview of the boy. It was she who first began to teach him how to play the piano, and from the age of 7 he began taking lessons from a teacher.

At the age of 11, little Edward began to compose his first compositions. The boy did not just study music, he lived it from early childhood. It often happened in the classroom, forgetting about the assignments, he beat out the rhythms on the desk, choosing the music.

Ellington got his nickname "The Duke" for his dapper style of dress.

It is interesting that the sonorous nickname Duke (translated from English as “Duke”) Ellington did not come up with himself, as many jazz players did in those years. This nickname has stuck with him since childhood, as his neighbor pianist jokingly called him, emphasizing his neat appearance and ability to keep himself on top.

Ellington was a jazz innovator of his time

In 1914, the boy entered the Armstrong High School. In the evenings after class, he sits and plays the piano for hours. But it is interesting that with all the talent and passion for music, Duke was never limited only to it.

The guy was very successful in painting, and for a long time dreamed of becoming a professional artist. In 1917, Ellington entered art school and won a prestigious poster competition. This victory turned something in the soul of the future maestro. He leaves drawing and begins to study only music.

Youth years

The beauty of jazz music is that it was not created behind the closed doors of conservatories under the strict supervision of professional teachers. It seemed that jazz simply flowed through the streets and everyone could draw from this sea.

Choosing between painting and music, Ellington remained devoted to playing the piano.

Duke Ellington often visited musical apartment houses, listened to records and tried to adopt musical techniques. The constant rotation in the circle of musicians gave Duke something that the best teacher could not give - he learned to feel ragtime.

The first, almost random, performances fell in love with the public, and the name of Duke Ellington began to gain popularity in narrow circles. Duke begins to collaborate as a pianist with successful orchestras - Sam Wooding and Doc Perry.

Musical career

At the end of 1918, Duke Ellington and several friends assembled The Washingtonians. While they play more for themselves, boldly experimenting with music, and are already beginning to dream of success. The ensemble goes to New York, but the first attempt to conquer the big city ends in failure and the team returns.

Duke Ellington Orchestra

In 1923, Ellington made a second attempt to conquer New York. Gradually, Ellington takes over the leadership role and transforms the team to his liking. New instruments are added and old members are replaced.

All the transformations were only for the benefit of the team and its fame grew more and more. Ellington experiments with arrangements and sounds, achieving an amazing level of music. By 1930, Duke Ellington's orchestra was becoming a model for musicians of the day. The team travels extensively in America and Europe.

Career downturn

But in the life of a jazz player there were not only dizzying ups and downs. The early 1950s were a difficult time when the public's interest in jazz music disappeared. For a long time, Duke kept the group afloat only thanks to his own financial injections from the income of his work as a composer.

Ellington in his dressing room at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, 1972

People start to leave the team in search of a better life. For several years, Duke Ellington stops performing in order to return again and conquer the whole world with his serious works, which have become much more complex and interesting.

In the summer of 1956, at a jazz festival, he triumphantly returns to the big stage. His photograph graces the cover of Time, a new contract is signed with him, and the Ellington at Newport album becomes the most successful in his career as a musician.

Find out how Ellington transformed Tchaikovsky's music -

Duke Ellington's visit to the USSR

In the 1971 world tour, Ellington, along with his group, visits several cities in the USSR. These performances made a great impression both on the audience and on the musician himself.

Duke himself recalled that many of his concerts there lasted several hours. Time after time, people called the musicians for an encore, and the flattered performers tirelessly repeated their beautiful melodies.

Ellington's visit to the Soviet Union

Personal life

Charming and seductive Duke Ellington has always attracted many women. He never turned down connections for one night. Duke did not seek to find the perfect girl, many of his girlfriends were not beauties from the generally accepted point of view.

The brilliant Ellington charmed women so much that many of them abandoned their spouses in the hope of becoming a constant girlfriend of the great musician. But only a few beauties managed to captivate the heart of a fickle womanizer for a long time.

Edna Thompson is the official wife of the maestro, whom he married in 1918. The couple had a son, Mercer. Although the artist's constant connections on the side quickly destroyed the marriage, Edna remained Duke's official wife until her death.

Duke Ellington and his wife Edna Thompson

Ellington's other serious passion is Mildred Dixon, with whom he lived for 10 years.

Mildred was forced out of his life by another beauty - Beatrice Ellis. She lived in New York for almost 40 years, considering herself Ellington's wife.

She expected that after Edna's death, she would receive a formal marriage proposal. But even the death of his wife did not change her status. Evie spent her entire life in a relationship with Ellington, bombarded with gifts in anticipation of rare visits from her beloved.

Ellington and Fernanda de Castro Monte

In 1959, another bright woman, Fernanda de Castro Monte, burst into the life of a musician. They had a very vivid romance, but Duke refused to marry her under the pretext that he was already married to Evie.

Despite the large number of women in his life, Duke Ellington said that his only mistress is music, and only she can play the first violin in his life.

last years of life

Almost until his death, Duke Ellington was not going to retire. He composed a lot and traveled with concerts all over the world. In 1973, doctors diagnosed him with lung cancer.

The great musician died on May 24, 1974 from pneumonia. So the famous musician died, who brought jazz to a new level of sound. Even death did not stop the flow of awards, which continued to be awarded to him posthumously.

In the last years of his life, Ellington composed music for films and musicals.

Cultural heritage

The importance of Duke Ellington's contribution to jazz cannot be overestimated. He was not just a talented musician who played jazz well and attracted the public with this.

He was a reformer of the old and a discoverer of a new style of sound. He managed to combine musical instruments in such a way that each of them was revealed to the maximum without overshadowing the others.

Duke Ellington, as a composer, has written extensively for musicals and films. For his work, he has repeatedly received prestigious awards, such as the Grammy and the Pulitzer Prize.

Duke Ellington - Multiple Grammy Award Winner

On our site you will find a fragment written by James L. Collier.

Have you ever heard Duke Ellington? I might as well ask you if you've heard Chopin. But the old Duke is really compared with. Who is this black classic of the twentieth century?

If-You-Cant-Hold-The-Man-You-Love.mp3″]

When you see the release date of his first album, it’s hard to imagine that this is even possible, and when you hear these, albeit weak, wheezing and floating sounds of an old recording, you are surprised at the purity, pressure and beauty of the sound of his orchestra.

Let's put it this way: now it can be called a classic. He played so many songs that it seems impossible to play more. And then he was Jazzman! Yes, yes, with a capital letter!

He got his nickname back in school ... oh yes, “Duke” is not a name. This is a nickname. “Duke” he was nicknamed either because of some excessive self-confidence and foppishness, or because of his love for smart outfits. There, at school, he wrote his first composition. As a result, three girls became interested in him at once ... no, not recording studios, but three girls at once. For him, this was quite a life-affirming result, and he decided to become a jazz pianist.

Creole-Love-Call.mp3″]

No, he lived so badly for a black boy who was born sometime in 1899. His father was a butler and served for some time in the White House. His name was James Edward, in honor of the father of the child was named Edward Kennedy Ellington. He grew up in prosperity, peace and stability, which few of his peers had access to.

Duke played far more than just jazz. He achieved a lot in composing music for worship, and there were reasons for this: his mother was a deeply religious woman, she played the piano well and instilled in her tenderly loving child also a love for music and religion.

Now it seems a little strange, but the man who recorded more music albums than anyone else on the planet, in his youth, wanted to be not a musician, but an artist.

Once at school, he even won a competition for the best poster in the city of Washington. And who knows how the history of modern music would have developed if, over time, his love for colors had not begun to cool.

Black Beauty.mp3″]

All this time he continued to study music and studied musical theory, and therefore in 1917 he finally set out to become a professional musician. Around the same year, he begins to informally study with well-known Washington musicians, begins to lead some ensembles.

In the early twenties, he founded his first jazz orchestra, which was called the "Washingtonians". If we keep in mind that he himself was then a little over twenty, then the result is very impressive! Especially when you consider that after some time they were accepted into the Cotton Club, where they began to play.

That's just…. Is that how he founded it? There is a version that initially he was part of the Washingtonians quintet, but he did not immediately begin to occupy a leading position in it.