Jazz and orchestral composer and pianist Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (1899-1974) is among the most admired and influential musicians and composers in the history of American music. France awarded him the Legion of Honor and the United States gave him the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The nickname given to him because of his regal appearance and bearing also came to symbolize the inner royalty of spirit that flowed through his works. His saw to it that his orchestra toured the U.S. by private railroad car to avoid the indignity of inferior "colored" hotels.
Noted compositions include "Mood Indigo," "Do Nothing Till You Hear from Me (Concerto for Cootie)", "Black and Tan Fantasy," and "Sophisticated Lady." He made musical homes for pianist Billy Strayhorn, who wrote "Satin Doll" and "Lush Life," and for his son, Mercer Ellington, who wrote "Things Ain't What They Used to Be," songs forever associated with the Duke.
Biography, discography, essays, articles, links, and a personal memory of the author's daughter and the composer's music. www.arches.uga.edu/~rholmes/duke.htm
Appreciative essay by Fred Barrett, contrasting his style with that of Fletcher Henderson and Don Redman and tracing his movement into orchestral composition. www.temple.edu/music/composers/ellington.html
Promotional material for Honolulu event sponsored by the Hawaii Academy of Performing Arts. Includes various essays on his music and responses to it. hapa2.com/Duke
Official site. Includes biographical information plus appreciation, his interpreters, sound clips, information about the society, links. museum.media.org/duke
Project of the Washington, D.C. Ellington Society. List of compositions, sessions, information on joining other societies and Love You Madly, an e-mail discussion group, glossary, time line, centennial remembrances, news, and links. www.depanorama.net
Biography tracing his movement from small bands through the "jungle" big band style and on to extended compositions, including orchestral pieces, and noting other types of works. From the Grove Concise Dictionary of Music entry at WQXR radio. www.wqxr.com/cgi-bin/iowa/cla/learning/grove.html?record=2877
Biography, filmography noting movies and TV programs based on or using his works, and musician, actor, and guest appearance credits from the Internet Movie Database (IMDb). us.imdb.com/name/nm0254153
Compositions and arrangements by him and by Ellingtonians plus lists and commentaries, essays, literature, and links. By Hans-Joachim Schmidt. themenschmidt.de/duke.htm
Wikipedia article with photographs, biographical and musicological details, OGG audio samples, and internal references to related topics and people, including other jazz "royalty." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duke_Ellington
German musicologist Jørgen Mathiasen offers research paper on Duke Ellington's known works, with lengthy bibliography and alphabetical list of 1,770 titles. roundaboutjazz.de
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