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Duke Ellington & His Orchestra - The Ellington Suites Audio CD

A fair review of the Duke Ellington & His Orchestra "The Ellington Suites" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Duke Ellington & His Orchestra reviews here, or go back to the Duke Ellington & His Orchestra tabs.

Duke Ellington & His Orchestra Band: Duke Ellington & His Orchestra
Title: The Ellington Suites
Rating:
Release Date: 1991-07-01
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Queen's Suite: Sunset and the Mocking Bird/Lightning Bugs and Frogs/Le - Duke Ellington 2: Lightning Bugs and Frogs 3: Sucrier Velours 4: Nothern Lights 5: Single Petal of a Rose 6: Apes and Peacocks 7: Fanfare 8: Goutelas 9: Get-With-Itness 10: Something 11: Having at It 12: Fanfare 13: Uwis 14: Klop 15: Loco Madi

Perfect music
According to the liner notes this music was entirely written by Ellington as a present for the Queen of England. This is a proof that Ellington's composing skills rank up there with XX century's most brilliant musicians, both in the classical and jazz realms. It is a music that shines for its sheer beauty. Perhaps it is less swinging than some other jazz pieces, but it is so enchanting that anyone with ears will be thrilled by it. Don't hesitate to buy this CD since it is a remastered version of a previous release. The remastering is most evident in the Queen's suite, as now most of the hiss has been removed and the instruments sound sharper than ever. We should feel blessed for being able to listen to these masterpieces. .


I never knew about this, still I was stunned
I just put it on one day while composing emails, and I was simply stunned. I had never heard the "back story" of this music, I just picked this out of the used record bins at the sight of the name Ellington. I'm no jazz expert, no music theorist who can tell you a d flat minor from a G major, I just like what I hear. I learned a little about Ellington's genius years ago and he's never let me down, even though I haven't felt a need to study his music. I just let it happen and you very likely can do the same. .


Such Obscured Beauty
This review is an excerpt from my "So You'd Like To. . " guide called, "Explore the Music of Duke Ellington: Part I. "

In 1958, Duke Ellington agreed to appear at a musical festival held in England on the account of a chance to meet Queen Elizabeth II. At the festival, Duke Ellington was presented to the queen, and she reportedly conversed with him longer than anyone else. Charmed, Duke Ellington returned to the U. S. and, within a few months, composed The Queen's Suite in Queen Elizabeth's honor. After the suite was recorded at his expense, it was made into a single copy and sent to Buckingham Palace. For seventeen years, it would remain the only copy until the Duke Ellington estate released the recording two years after the Duke's passing, and we are extraordinarily previleged. Now issued on "Ellington Suites" along with The Goutelas Suite and The UWIS Suite, The Queen's Suite is a collection of compositions based on some of the beauty experiences in Duke Ellington's life. The first movement, "Sunset and the Mocking bird," was composed on a pretty melody that Duke Ellington once heard a bird sing. Jimmy Hamilton renders the major statement beautifully with his clarinet, while the Duke and Johnny Hodges also contribute brilliantly as soloists. Perhaps due to the suite's focus on aesthetic, the compositions are not especially demanding, but every minute of the suite is a pleasurable listen with many memorable moments. The fifth movement, "The Single Petal of a Rose," is a beautiful duet between the Duke's piano and Jimmy Woode's bowed bass. It is a reflective piece that Duke Ellington often played at concerts.


Hidden Gems
He could have recorded it at Columbia Studios, but he went to a studio and produced this suite himself. "The Queen's Suite" was so personal to Ellington that he had no intentions to release it in his lifetime. Ellington, over his career never continued to play "personal" pieces frequently. He would play something that sounded as it was from another heart, such as "solitude", rather something so obviously from his, like "Single Petal of a Rose". "The Queen's Suite" contains a very interesting soungs about beautiful expierences in Ellingtons life. "Goulteaus Suite is great as well.


A Lasting Tribute
One of the more crass examples being the recent Golden Jubilee. "The Queen's Suite" is the most memorable work in this collection, and shows a respect for the Queen which she has rarely been given by other musicians. Ellington offers up a lovely collection of vignettes that are most gracious and very entertaining. The Suite was written after his royal engagement in 1958, in which the Queen singled him out at the reception, apparently leaving him speechless in reply. Instead, he and Billy Strayhorn played for her a series of short pieces, which they eventually formed into "The Queen's Suite. " The other two suites in this collection are also enjoyable, but don't have the same resonance.


You can see a complete list of all Duke Ellington & His Orchestra discography, or go back to the Duke Ellington & His Orchestra tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.

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