Duke Ellington Research Paper

With the new jazz sound that came blazing out of the roaring twenties came one of the greatest jazz musicians, Edward “Duke” Ellington. Duke Ellington played a big role in the fame of the Cotton Club and eventually persuaded the club to repeal its whites-only rule. Ellington had contributed to the jazz sound by creating a new style of performing band which he called the “Big Band” sound. Although he was a jazz musician he had a very different style and technique including the new setup style made him a hit for for his long lasting time at the Cotton Club. His uniqueness struck a chord with the people of Harlem and in our own history. The Cotton Club also featured performers like Cab Calloway, Adelaide Hall, Ethel Waters, and Earl “Snakehips” Tucker. These performers are the reason the Cotton Club had so many top revues and it stayed in business for years after the boom of the roaring

Our music industry would not be what it is today without one of America’s greatest music legends, Duke Ellington. He made major breakthroughs at a time when the odds were against him. He was born Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington (1899-1974) (Tirro 1993). He was a natural and has many life achievements that have contributed to the genre of jazz. He was a catalyst in his era. His music spoke to the soul. He defied the odds with his musical accomplishments. It was not everyday blacks were awarded the opportunity to shine in America’s spot light.

3. Name some of the specific innovations Duke Ellington brought to jazz in the 1930’s and 1940’s.

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.

James Earl Carter Jr. born on October 1, 1924 was born in Plains, Georgia to James Earl Carter Sr. and Bessie Lillian Gordy. HIs father a peanut farmer and his mother a registered nurse. By the age of ten he started working in his dad store and enjoyed listening to baseball games and politics on the radio with his father. His parents were deeply religious and took him to church and sunday school each week. Carter attended Plains High School, an all white school, and became the first on his father's side of the family to graduate from high school. After high school, Carter went to Georgia Southwestern Junior College and studied engineering. He then went to the Georgia Institute of Technology and enrolled in the Naval ROTC program. After a while he applied and was accepted into the Naval Academy and served time in the navy. In 1962 after the Supreme Court ruling on Baker v. Carr he decided he might have a chance at running for office, so he ran for the Georgia State Senate and

This song made Waller become a famous jazz musician. Not only did this catchy tune influenced his early career, but also paved the way for famous jazz artists including Louis Armstrong and Cab Calloway. Billie Holiday and other recording artists did a cover of “Ain't Misbehavin” making Waller an even bigger icon in the history of music. One of the main reasons for its popularity can also be contributed to its simple but moving lyrics. All these factors made this melody to be one of the five known jazz standards written by Waller that is commonly practised by stride pianists to this very day. It's growing popularity continues to this day, and surely musicians will pay tribute to this breath-taking artist in the

music while others had a taste for the old, more familiar styles. Ned Williams, who became Ellington’s publicist, commented on Ellington’s first performance at the Cotton

Duke formed his own music group called, The Duke’s Serenaders, in late 1917. Between 1918 and 1919, Duke made three important steps towards independence. First, he moved out of his parents home and into a home he bought for himself. Second, Duke became his own booking agent for his band. By doing that Duke’s band was able to play through out the Washington area and into Virginia for private society balls and embassy parties. Finally, Duke married Edna Thompson and on March 11, 1919, Mercer Kennedy Ellington was born.

Duke Ellington is considered to be one of the greatest figures in the history of

Born in Alton, Illinois, Miles Davis grew up in a middle-class family in East St. Louis. Miles Davis took up the trumpet at the age of 13 and was playing professionally two years later. Some of his first gigs included performances with his high school bandand playing with Eddie Randall and the blue Devils. Miles Davis has said that the greatest musical experience of his life was hearing the Billy Eckstine orchestra when it passed through St. Louis. In September 1944 Davis went to New York to study at Juilliard but spend much more time hanging out on 52nd Street and eventually dropped out of school. He moved from his home in East St. Louis to New York primarily to enter school but also to locate his musical idol,

John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie, along with Charlie Parker, ushered in the era of Be-Bop in the American jazz tradition. He was born Cheraw, South Carolina, and was the youngest of nine children. He began playing piano at the age of four and received a music scholarship to the Laurinburg Institute in North Carolina. Most noted for his trademark "swollen cheeks", Gillespie admitted to copying the style of trumpeter Roy Eldridge early in his career.

Dizzy Gillespie In today’s world, people get excited when they hear about artists like Kanye West, Muse, and Beyoncé. Our generation has seemingly overlooked the musicians that laid down the pavement for these artists to be famous. These legends watched music progress from jazz, to rock, and now hip-hop. The music that once made hundreds of people rise to their feet and dance is now heard in elevators and coffee shops, which is truly a shame.

Miles Dewey Davis was born into a well-to-do family in the town of Alton, Illinois. The family owned a large portion of a farm where Miles learned to ride horses as a young boy. In 1927 the family moved to East St. Louis. Miles' mother, Cleota Henry, encouraged him to play the violin while his father bought him a trumpet when he turned thirteen and

Duke Ellington managed his band for almost 50 years making prodigious music and using amazing instruments. He toured all over Europe, he managed to compose an orchestra without a baton, how amazing is that. In his whole music career, he composed about 2000 pieces and won 12 Grammy

In New York, Dukelsky met George Gershwin and they became best friend. Since Duke’s classical composition began to explore, Gershwin encouraged Duke’s ambition to write songs in American style, saying “Do not be scared about going low-brow” Also, Gershwin suggested Dukelsky to change his name in to American name called, Vernon Duke. Duke moved to Paris in 1924 and wrote music for Serge Diaghilev’s renowned Ballet Russes. In 1929, he came back to American and began to write songs.