Biography of Duke Ellington
Biography of Duke EllingtonDuke Ellington, by the time of his passing, was considered
amongst the world's greatest composers and musicians. The French
government honored him with their highest award, the Legion of Honor,
while the government of the United States bestowed upon him the
highest civil honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He played for
the royalty and for the common people and by the end of his fifty-year
career, he had played over 20,000 performances worldwide.
Duke Ellington - Edward Kennedy Ellington - was born into the
world on April 28, 1899 in Washington, D.C. Duke's parents Daisy
Kennedy Ellington and James Edward Ellington served as ideal role
models for young Duke and taught him everything from proper table
manners to an understanding of the emotional power of music. Duke's
first piano lessons came around the age of seven or eight and appeared
to not have that much lasting effect upon him. It seemed as if young
Duke was more inclined to baseball at a young age. Duke got his first
job selling peanuts at Washington Senator's baseball games. This was
the first time Duke was placed as a "performer" for a crowd and had to
first get over his stage fright. At the age of fourteen, Duke began
sneaking into Frank Holliday's poolroom. His experiences from the
poolroom taught him to appreciate the value in mixing with a wide
range of people. As Duke's piano lessons faded into the past, Duke
began to show a flare for the artistic. Duke attended Armstrong Manual
Training School to study commercial art instead of an
academically-oriented school. Duke began to seek out and listen to
ragtime pianists in Washington and during the summers, where he and
his mother vacationed in Philadelphia or Atlantic City. While
vacationing in Asbury Park, Duke heard of a hot pianist named Harvey
Brooks. At the end of his vacation Duke sought Harvey out in
Philadelphia where Harvey showed Duke some pianistic tricks and
shortcuts. Duke later recounted that, "When I got home I had a real
yearning to play. I hadn't been able to get off the ground before, but
after hearing him I said to myself, 'Man you're going to have to do
it.'" Thus the music career of Duke Ellington was born
Duke was taken under the wings of Oliver "Doc" Perry and Louis
Brown who taught Duke how to read music and helped improve his...
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