Duke Ellington Essay

Duke Ellington's 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.

Duke Ellington was a musical and political genius; he was “America’s only original musical mind.” He was not only a performer, but a composer. He learned the craft of composing by observing others instead of disciplined study. One important factor of Ellington’s music was its relation to black heritage and African American history. His symphony “Black, Brown, and Beige” displayed the African American struggle in America. Not only did Ellington use his music to portray the struggle, voice, and triumph of black Americans, he used his professionalism, originality, persuasiveness, and political performances.

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 “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 of

By 1926 Ellington’s band had found a small amount of fans and started playing their music at Harlem’s famous Cotton Club. This was to be a major turning point in his career, providing him with access to larger audiences through radio and recordings.

By the late 1920’s Duke was performing in Broadway nightclubs and made hundreds of recordings with his bands, as well as preforming in films and on the radio. Duke’s fame rose to the rafters in the 1940’s when he composed several works including “Concerto for Cootie,” “Cotton Tail” and “Ko-Ko”. Duke’s most famous jazz tune was “Take the A Train”. It was Ellington’s sense of musical drama that people loved so much. Duke brought a level of style and sophistication to Jazz that it had not seen

One of the greatest tragedies in the 20th century can be seen in the debasing of the Jazz genre as a unworthy equal to it's predecessor, European Classical music. This can be seen in various statements about Jazz, such as Boris Gibalin commit, "The "Jazz Mania" has taken on the character of a lingering illness and must be cured by means of forceful intervention."1 This conflict can be traced through out the history of Jazz, as Classical composers have relatively disregarded this new type of music. Before Duke Ellington's Cotton Club performances, Jazz play on the radio was delegated for late night audience only. This sub-culture treatment has led many critics to disregard the Jazz movement as a dance craze, or unsuccessful recreations

One of the most iconic happenings in this age was the creation of jazz. Jazz had always been popular in night clubs in the south but during the great migration, jazz was brought to the north. After just a few weeks, jazz was the new fad and everyone was playing it. “Jazz flouted many musical conventions with its syncopated rhythms and improvised instrumental solos…improvisation meant that no two performances would ever be the same…” (The Decade That Roared, page

Duke Ellington is one of the most influential jazz figures. Although, he preferred to call his genre of play “American Music” rather than jazz. He and his band were known for creating very distinctive styles of music which influenced much of the Western music. Ellington earned much recognition and given rewards for feats in his lifetime.

People like Langston Hughes, Duke Ellington, Cab Calloway and even Louis Armstrong were some of the regular customers or performers in the Club. In Harlem, you could not find a place that had more black culture. The time period of the Harlem Renaissance also brought us a lot of innovation in music. Jazz music reached popularity in the 1920’s. Artists like Louis Armstrong, Count Basie, and Sidney Bechet. These jazz artists would lead to other music later down the road. Jazz would later turn to rap and lead to even more breakout African American artists. The breakout of African American culture was one that led to great new artistry in the United States. The Harlem Renaissance and the Great Migration led to opportunities for all races and without it, America would not be the same.

Over the course of the 20th century, perhaps no composer was as accomplished, as prolific, as loved as Edward Kennedy Ellington. For decades, Ellington — known as “Duke” — created thousands of timeless, essential jazz compositions. As a bandleader, pianist, and composer, Ellington’s contributions to jazz and his breadth of work were unmatched. Despite Ellington’s genius, there was another composer — arguably as talented and unique — that shadowed Ellington’s every step, ultimately pushing his music to new creative heights. This composer was a short, bespectacled Ohioan named Billy Strayhorn. From 1938 till his death in 1967, Billy Strayhorn worked alongside Ellington, collaborating with Ellington on hundreds of pieces as well

I have learned that the Harlem Renaissance was a period of sudden expansion within the African American community during the 1920’s and 30’s. It expanded in literature, visual art, and music, and finally gave African Americans a voice in America. Their opinions were suddenly being realized by whites indirectly through the art they created. They also contributed much to the culture we observe today. Swing, one of the most popular forms of jazz, was made famous by artists such as Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong, and vocalists like Ma Rainey, the “Mother of Jazz”. Visual art depicted images of African American lifestyle and their ambitions, often such as an image of a Negro in bondage, hoping to be released. Literature was the most direct

Renowned jazz musician, Duke Ellington, liked to refer to his music as, “American Music”. During the 50+ years he spent playing music, Ellington composed over 3000 songs and performed over 20, 000 concerts (Biography). Ellington paved the way socially and musically, for future generations of jazz performers. He is remembered for his contributions to the African American community and their daily struggles and triumphs, as he portrayed in his music.

Duke Ellington shared an interesting viewpoint of authenticity in Black culture in response to the critics that accused him of “watered down” and “inauthentic” music. Ellington believed that Black aesthetic guided the primary principle that underlies the work of African American artists and he under minded Negro music being part of categories like jazz and swing, while defining his music as part of something bigger

The Jazz age provided freedom and an opportunity for African Americans to express themselves and display their talents in an effort to gain social and political equality. Catchy and unique jazz music drew in young audiences, both white and black. Jazz originated in the south, developing from blues and ragtime music with African Americans leading the development (All That Jazz). Jazz then spread to Chicago which would eventually become the center for jazz music in the north (Hardesty). African Americans experienced freedom in America in ways they never had before.

In the 1920s, jazz music started to gain popularity in America. Taking place during the Harlem Renaissance, jazz music helped define this time and the 1920s as the “jazz age”. The new upbeat and exuberant style of music attracted many young people looking for change. Jazz broke the customary rules of classical music and allowed musicians to improvise. Famous artists like Duke Ellington, Billie Holiday, and Louis Armstrong took the country by storm with their talent. Soon speakeasies around cities began hosting jazz artists and everyone flocked to these venues for a night of entertainment (Luca). Americans in nearly every part of the country could listen to jazz either on the radio or at clubs (O’Neal). Jazz music developed into an enjoyable and trendy art form. Even though jazz was well liked, some people in America did not care for it. Racism influenced people to disapprove of jazz because of the “new” distasteful sound it produced, the dangerous life style associated with it, and the African ancestries in which it originated.