Duke Ellington

positivity and creativity in a time of great turmoil. Who was it? There were many people who were part of the Harlem renaissance, however, some who are more known include Zora Neale Hurston, Langston Hughes, Claude McKay, W.E.B DuBois, Eubie Blake, Duke Ellington, Aaron Douglas, and James Weldon Johnson. Where did it take place?…

The Progressive was now gone but we must remember that it paved the way for the exciting years to come. The Progressive was the time of change but the 1920’s was the time to reap and enjoy the benefits of such a depressing time. In the 1920’s people started to enjoy some of the many things that we enjoy today like movies. Today when going to the movies you may be casual attire, it is a time to layback and spill popcorn. However in the 1920’s it was like attending a red carpet event at a…

The black autobiography has played an integral role in documenting the realities of African-American life in American literature. Rising to literary prominence concurrently with the Civil Rights Movement and the emergence of leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X, these publications illustrated an existence permeated by struggle and provided unprecedented representation of the black reality within popular literature. These autobiographies taken together depict a collective existence…

Harlem Renaissance The Harlem Renaissance was a period in which African American arts were celebrated with vivacity through prominent individuals. This was the result of, “… the Great Migration of African Americans from rural to urban spaces and from South to North… [which] opened up socioeconomic opportunities and developing race pride” (Gale). The reason for the movement was due to “economic depression… and racial tension” (Songs of the Soul). These African Americans migrated to…

The Harlem Renaissance was a cultural, social, and an artistic explosion that took place in Harlem, New York. During the time of this event, the movement was known as the "New Negro Movement." This event happened between 1917-1935, this was at the time of the end of World War I. During this period in Harlem black writers, artists, musicians, photographers, poets, and scholars were blossoming with creative art. Much of the writings and art was focused on the portrayal of realistic black life.…

of people. When family asked me to sing, I would procrastinate, or find any other reason not to perform. “I’m sick. I don’t think it’ll come out today, maybe next thanksgiving”, I would say to get myself out of the situation. I auditioned for Duke Ellington School of the Arts in february 2012, and I originally thought that I would not get in. I stepped into the audition room, and I began to sing and the teacher in the room just stared in a supportive, “you got it” type of way. I received my…

was standard for a big band; it included about four of each horn (saxophone, trumpet, and trombone), an upright bass, a piano, and a drumset. The group played several big band standards like Take the A-Train, the famous song originally played by Duke Ellington’s big band and sung by Ella Fitzgerald. Since there were no vocalists in the band, every song was arranged as an instrumental. The set was kicked off by a tune written by shorty rogers,…

Success is a big part of life. This quote by Duke Ellington takes an overused idea and pushes you to do your best no matter the circumstances. Millions of sayings that hit on this same idea are used constantly. I believe they've already become cliché ,but at this point who can disagree with the meaning of this quote. We all have our own special struggles. Sometimes you find yourself feeling weak, but you have to know you are strong enough. In life you have to work hard to get what you…

Duke Ellington once said, “Jazz is freedom”. When he said this, he tried to convey the image that jazz was more than just a genre that people would listen to and a way for people to liberate themselves. There were groups in America facing struggles of oppression, and jazz felt like a way for these people to express themselves. The main groups of people that were touched by the powerfulness of jazz were women and African Americans. The major impact that jazz had was revolutionary for these groups…

Queen Victoria Louise Virginia Smith, also known as “Bricktop,” was an African-American woman living during the Harlem Renaissance. Bricktop’s first job was as a singer in a nightclub called the Barron’s Exclusive Club. Bricktop sang along side Duke Ellington, a popular African-American jazz musician, among others. Bricktop lived in France for big part of her life. One of the many of the things she did there was she replaced the lead singer at a club called Le Grand Duc. Becoming a lead singer…