The Most Influential African American Composers Of The Twentieth Century

Count Basie, was born August 21, 1904 in Red Bank, New Jersey. He was a gifted pianist, bandleader, and composer. His mother was a pianist and his father was a mellophonist. His mother, not realizing that he would become an amazing pianist and bandleader, started off his journey by giving him his first piano lessons. Later on, William and his family moved to New York, where he was further influenced by James P. Johnson and Fats Waller. In New York, Waller taught Basie organ playing techniques. Further on in his life Count Basie had many top chart hits such as “One O’Clock Jump” and “Blue Skies” In the 1858 Grammy’s became the first African-American male represent of a Grammy Award. Throughout his career, he won many more. Not only was he a great composer and musician, but he was a good person who influenced many people's lives. This essay will outline the life of Count Basie and all of his

to the utmost of his dreams. At such a crucial time in the history of

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

Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was born in Washington, D.C. on April 29, 1899, to parents James Edward and Daisy Kennedy Ellington. Duke, even as a teenager, had a great talent for music. His school music teacher, Mrs. Clinkscales, who played the piano, was always the

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.

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. The pioneer who scouted these new regions of musical space more than any other jazz musician of the time was Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington (1899-1974). (Tirro 1993)

Edward “Duke” Kennedy Ellington was born April 29, 1899 in Washington, D.C. Duke Ellington was born into a typical family with average income and growing up, the future musician was home-schooled by his parents. His father James Edward Ellington and mother Daisy Kennedy Ellington were both pianist. His father played operatic arias while parlor songs were his mother’s first choice. It is an interesting fact that Duke is not actually Ellington’s name, but it is only his nickname, which children gave him when he was a little boy for his aristocratic manners and the ability to dress elegant things. When Duke was seven years old, he began his piano training and took lessons from Marietta Clinkscales. (Ruhlmann) Duke

Though music has been around for generations, during the 1900’s, Duke Ellington was a famous composer in the Americas. Edward Kennedy Ellington was born on April 29, 1899 in Washington D.C. to a religious family; his mother was a Baptist and his father was a Methodist (“Duke,” n.d.). Ellington had a passion for piano during his childhood; he had started taking piano at the age of seven

Duke Ellington was an African American pianist during the Harlem Renaissance period at a time known as the “Roaring 20s.” Ellington was born on April 29, 1899 in Washington, D.C to a middle class family to where both of his parents were musicians as well. Ellington is known for his contributions to primarily to Jazz, the creation of Big Band Music, and also revolutionized what he would call “American Music” until his death in 1974. Ellington was known to be a virtuoso as he began his piano career at the age of 7. Throughout Ellington’s musical career, he was known to be a revolutionary and a professional.

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

in Kansas City and became one of the most famous jazz musicians of all time. He led us

Who was Miles Davis and why was he such an important element in the music of Jazz? Miles Davis, as we would know him, was born Miles Dewey Davis in Alton, Illinois on the 25th of May 1926 to a middle-class black family.. A couple of years later, Miles went on to St. Louis where he grew up. Since he was a youngster, Miles' hobby was to collect records and play them over without getting tired of them. Since his family knew Miles was so interested in the music of his time, primarily Jazz, for his thirteenth birthday Miles received his first trumpet, although he had been playing since the age of nine. With this Miles began to practice and play his trumpet along with his records. Who would have known that just three years later, at the

Considered one of the best jazz writers ever, Duke Ellington enormously affected the well known music of the late twentieth century. Among his more than two thousand tunes. Conceived in Washington D.C. in 1899, Edward Kennedy Ellington, his mom managed his instruction of the piano, making him ready to perform professionally at age 17. He then began to create his own music. In 1923 he moved to New York, and the next year shaped his own band, the Washingtonians.By 1927, Ellington's band had found a little base of fans and secured an engagement at Harlem's celebrated Cotton Club. This ended up being a noteworthy defining moment in Ellington's profession, giving him access to bigger groups of onlookers through radio and recordings. In 1931 Ellington

His first compassion ever “Soda Fountain Rag” was at the age of 15, he started playing professionally at 17, Duke Ellington 50 years of compositions, and a lot of his great work came from his teenage years and his late 20s. in 1923 duke and some of his friends came to New York they form the group the Washingtonians, they took part in the Harlem Renaissance and started playing in homes for income.

Bill Evans was born in August 16, 1929. He was a jazz pianist and played in a song called Someday My Prince Will Come. He died September 15, 1980.