Happy Birthday to jazz pianist, bandleader, and composer Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington (b. April 29, 1899, in Washington, D.C.), who combined exceptional talent with remarkable business acumen to help shape the modern American music industry. This influence extended internationally and through his work he greatly advanced the global reach of American music. In the United States, he also challenged and undermined racial barriers by excelling within previously white spaces. Historian Harvey G. Cohen describes this social changemaking method well, writing: “Ellington’s approach was infiltration and circumvention, not confrontation.” For example, he and his band chartered their own Pullman car for their tours around the U.S. South. This allowed them to play more venues and rest for their next performance much better than would be possible within the segregated transportation system. However, that Ellington and company found such measures necessary also speaks to the oppression faced by African Americans navigating life in the South.
Citations: Harvey G. Cohen, Duke Ellington’s America (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2010), 1, 3-4, 147, Kindle edition; William Paul Gottlieb, “Duke Ellington,” (location unknown, c. 1946), collection of the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery (Washington, D.C.), https://www.si.edu/object/duke-ellington:npg_NPG.92.58.
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