Duke

the Jazz Age. Music from black musicians was so popular that clubs like The Cotton Club were opened. The club was initially just for white customers, and all the performers were black with the most famous being Duke Ellington.2 Jazz music was so popular that it helped artists like Duke Ellington, and Louis Armstrong careers take off making their music recognized to this day. Other great musicians played at the Savoy Ballroom, which was a club that people went to and danced to upbeat Jazz music…

influenced by those before them. Joe King Oliver influenced Louis Armstrong by training him and because of Oliver moving to Chicago, Armstrong got his start in Kid Ory’s band. Jelly Roll Morton, Joe King Oliver, Sidney Bichet, Louis Armstrong, and Duke Ellington all changed things for musicians today. Jelly Roll Morton grew up in New Orleans and started playing piano at the age of 10. In 1904 he began traveling, playing the piano in places like Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi and Florida. He was…

Billy Strayhorn was an incredibly gifted musician, as well as a talented arranger and composer, who was best known for his work while in the band Duke Ellington and His Orchestra. His love for music stemmed from his mother, a classically trained pianist, and from playing hymns on his grandmother’s piano at a young age. Strayhorn preferred to work in the shadows, content to arrange and compose music for the band as his employer wanted. Through working with Ellington, Strayhorn blossomed as an…

It is not rare that the media jumped to the coverage of this case, mainly because it involved the sports’ team of an elite university as it is Duke and because the “victim” happened to be African-American. Not only did the university’s administration and faculty rushed to turn their backs to the lacrosse team, but they also rushed to judge them. With president Richard H. Brodhead’s public statement that they were not going to support the lacrosse team in any way and then later, as a ramification…

Imagine walking down the street into a place where the aroma is cigarette smoke, perfume, and sweat. At least the smell gave off the realization that you were about to have a good time. Even though the whole decade was a good time! During this time period, there was a social outbreak in all kinds of people. All the worries people had were: fashion, music, and dancing. In the 1920s, men dressed very sophisticated. The goal of dressing so elegantly was to become more attractive. In their…

The differences between these two kinds of Jazz mentioned in the test seems to have more to do with “the five-year gap between them,” a lot can happen in five years especially with the introduction of record players and the radio (Starr & Waterman, 88). The suggestion that “the ODJB’s recordings are rooted in the past,” being more similar to ragtime than The Creole Jazz Bands style of Jazz, which “points toward the future of jazz” makes a valid point (Starr & Waterman, 88). ODJBs were playing…

Collegiate athletes are some of the most important students at every university. They represent their school, and they are highly valued by the university they attend. “University of Missouri Campus Protests: ‘This is Just a Beginning’” explains that about thirty black Missouri University football players stated via Twitter that they would not participate in football activities until their president, Tim Wolfe, resigned for his recent mishandling of racial issues at the university. Soon after…

Edward Kennedy Ellington, better known as Duke Ellington, never took formal action in forwarding the Civil Rights movement but his accomplishments helped to forward civil rights. On the biographical page of his website it says, “Duke Ellington influenced millions of people both around the world and at home. He gave American music it’s own sound for the first time… His legacy continues to live on and will endure for generations to come.”(Duke Ellington Biography). Being a well known bandleader…

Billie Holiday is considered one of the most influential jazz singers of all time. Holiday was born on April 7, 1915 in Philadelphia and died on July 17, 1959. Billie Holiday struggled in her early life which was why she moved to New York and began her career, but she encountered problems even though she was successful. Billie Holiday did not live in a peaceful home while growing up. Born in Philadelphia, her birth name was Eleanor Fagan. She spent much of her childhood in Baltimore with her…

American Jazz legend Duke Ellington once said, “A problem is a chance for you to do your best”. What he means by this is that if you have a situation that is difficult for you, you should try your hardest to solve it. I agree with this quote because I believe that you should try your hardest anytime, especially when you have a difficult situation because that is when it counts the most. For example, when you know a big test is coming up, and you do not know if you are going to pass it or not…