DUKE ELLINGTON

FAMILY

• Dad-James Edward Ellington lived for 58 years
• Mom-Daisy Ellington
• Lived for 56 years

WIFE AND KIDS

• On July 2, 1918, Ellington married Edna Thompson who was from a prominent Washington family. On March 11, 1919, their son, Mercer Kennedy Ellington, was born. Ellington's career was so successful that he was able to buy a house and a car.

MERCER ELLINGTON

• Mercer was born in Washington, D.C., United States.He was the only child of the composer, pianist, and bandleader Duke Ellington and his high school sweetheart Edna Thompson d. 1967. Mercer grew up primarily in Harlem from the age of eight. By the age of eighteen, He had written his first piece to be recorded by his father "Pigeons and Peppers".

CHILDHOOD

• Duke Ellington grew up in Washington, D.C., in a secure middle-class family that encouraged his interests in the fine arts. He began studying piano at age seven, studied art during his high-school years, and was awarded but did not accept a scholarship to the Pratt Institute.

DEATH

• Duke Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and leader

FACTS ABOUT DUKE ELLINGTON

• He wrote his first song while stuck at home with a cold
• Duke Ellington's parents both played the piano
• His gift of melody and his mastery of sonic textures, rhythms, and compositional forms

MORE FACTS

• Ellington took piano lessons, he was more interested in baseball.President Theodore Roosevelt would come on his horse sometimes, and "stop and watch us play", he recalled.14 Ellington went to Armstrong Technical High School in Washington, D.C. His first job was selling peanuts at Washington Senators baseball games.

MORE FACTS

• Ellington started sneaking into Frank Holiday's Poolroom at age fourteen. Hearing the music of the poolroom pianists ignited Ellington's love for the instrument, and he began to take his piano studies seriously.

UNUSUAL FACTS

• Duke Ellington was born Edward Kennedy Ellington in Washington DC. Both his parents were pianists and he began piano lessons at the age of 7. 2. His mother taught him refinement and elegance and always dressed him smartly, hence his nickname which he earned at a young age.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS

• Duke Ellington was awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1966. He was later awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1969 and the Legion of Honor by France in 1973, the highest civilian honors in each country. After passing away in May of 1974, his funeral was attended by over 12,000 people.

FAMOUS FOR

• Considered one of the greatest jazz composers of all time, Duke Ellington had an enormous impact on the popular music of the late 20th century. Among his more than two thousand songs

TAKE THE A TRAIN

• https://youtu.be/KV8Hj_E8LJc

DUKES PLACE

• https://youtu.be/ObrJyjlkQ0M

IT DON’T MEAN A THING

• https://youtu.be/myRc-3oF1d0
• The song was first recorded in February 1932 by Duke Ellington & His Famous Orchestra, with Ivie Anderson on vocals. “It Don't Mean a Thing had instant success upon its release, remaining on the top charts for six weeks.

WEBSITES USED

• Wikipedia
• PBS
• Encyclopedia Britannica

THANK YOU

• By max Regier