Sinfonia Orchestra News Fall 2004 An Introduction to Duke Ellington Christian Howes Edward Kennedy Duke Ellington (1899- was precisely at this point in his career when 1974) serves as a fitting exemplar of master Ellington the composer began pushing the musician, bandleader, arranger and composer of boundaries of the jazz idiom and the existing “Howes is a jazz player, first and the 20th century, often referred to as the “Ameri- recording technology. Along with the beautiful, foremost—one whose solid, can Century.” Born April 29, 1899, in the Dis- sophisticated songs, moderate and up-tempo classically trained technique trict of Columbia to James Edward and Daisy dance and blues fare Ellington wrote on a steady provides the freedom to fully Kennedy Ellington, the young “Duke,” so basis, he also recorded extended compositions, express an expansive, improvisa- dubbed by his friends for his princely bearing, suites, and tone poems, which were longer than tional imagination.” was indeed coddled and catered to like a prince the three-minute side of the 78-rpm record. Don Heckman, by his tight-knit family, and especially by his Many writers feel the years around 1940 were Los Angeles Times adoring mother. a creative peak for Ellington. Contributing to that Duke Ellington absorbed the cultural influ- assessment are the following: 1) the stability of ences of his time in Washington, D.C., which the core band personnel during the thirties, 2) Christian Howes, the jazz violinist who will was the preeminent African American cultural the consistent, excellent compositional output by be performing in concert with the Philadelphia center of America during his youth. Eschewing Ellington, 3) the superior performance of the Sinfonia on December 5th of this year, began a painting career, band, 4) and outstanding life as a student of the Suzuki method. His first Ellington chose to pursue solos by the new younger “violin” consisted of a ruler taped to a Cracker music. He slowly became members like swing styl- Jack box. Maybe the ingenuity involved in the adept enough on the piano ist saxophonist Ben creation of this first makeshift instrument helped to perform the ragtime Webster, bassist Jimmy set the stage for the innovative ways in which and popular music of the Blanton, and cornetist Christian Howes now plays the violin. A child day in Washington’s local Rex Stewart. prodigy, he played the Mendelssohn violin con- entertainment scene. After certo with the Columbus Symphony Orchestra Certainly Ellington’s a few forays to New York at the age of sixteen. Howes himself does not collaborative personality City as pianist with vari- like being called a child prodigy, however. As contributed to the alle- ous bands, he eventually far as Howes is concerned, he was “just a regu- giance of his band mem- settled there in 1923 and lar Suzuki kid who really stuck with it” and bers for what would be- began to lead his own whose curiosity about music left him wanting to come more than 30 years band, The Washingto- explore more than just the classical repertoire. of performing together, nians. By the time Howes entered college, he had won but it also facilitated the numerous competitions and was tackling the fun- Honing his skills as many wonderful, collec- damentals of composition from Baroque to Mod- bandleader, pianist and tive projects with his “al- ern. Throw some blues, rock, pop, country, and composer with The Wash- ter ego,” composer Billy jazz into that mix, and suddenly you have a vio- ingtonians, Ellington Strayhorn, whose many lin that does not sound like a violin anymore, landed a prestigious job at the Cotton Club in compositions, including Take the “A” Train, with a radically new and improvisational voice. Harlem in 1927. This began a new phase in his became so closely associated with Ellington’s career. As a result of composing and arranging band that most people attribute them to the Today, at the age of thirty-two, Howes trav- exotic shows featuring hot jazz, inculcating the Duke’s own hand. els the country playing his own eclectic blend of literature and the arts of dynamic Harlem Re- music. He has broken out of the classical mold Ellington considered his band to be “his in- naissance, and through NBC radio broadcasts and forged a spontaneous new jazz persona for strument.” Consequently, he was able to experi- from the Cotton Club, Ellington’s orchestra and himself as a musician. Howes plays a Yamaha ment at will in creating new orchestral textures compositions gained national significance and Silent Electric Violin and wields his bow like a for the unique soloists in his ensemble. Ellington prominence. Over 180 of his recordings were percussion instrument. Critics have dubbed him and his musicians toured the United States in marketed from 1927 to 1931, further increasing the “Jimi Hendrix of the violin.” private Pullman train cars, which afforded them the popularity of the Ellington Orchestra. all day rehearsals during which Ellington could Rave reviews aside, Christian Howes is also The American successes led to a European explore orchestral and formal possibilities be- a deeply thoughtful man, who was kind enough tour in 1933, of which Ellington said: “The at- yond the imagination of other band arrangers. to answer in full the many questions I had when mosphere in Europe, the friendship, and the se- In the early forties he produced works of greater writing this article. When I asked him to com- rious interest in our music shown by critics and dimensions, including the musical Jump for Joy pare the two violins, acoustic and electric, Howes musicians alike put new spirit into us.” Upon (1941) and the “tone parallel” Black, Brown and told me that his electric violin feels a lot like an their return, Ellington and his band toured as one Beige (1943). The late thirties and early forties acoustic violin when he holds it. What is differ- of the top bands of the “swing era,” 1933-1942, saw the production of dozens of short works that cont’d on pg 2 when jazz was at the height of its popularity. It cont’d on pg 2 Sinfonia News (Christian Howes cont’d) ent are the volume and range of sound you are as a way of becoming “more capable and coop- events added fuel to the debate about such is- able to create with an electric violin. With an erative members of a world community.” sues as the merits of jazz versus “serious” mu- acoustic violin, most of your energy is concen- On Saturday, December 4th, Howes will be sic, the place of jazz in the concert hall, and trated toward creating a big sound. But with an conducting a master class for all Sinfonia musi- Ellington’s ability (or lack thereof) to compose electric violin your amplifiers do all that hard cians. It will be a session spent getting back to extended works. His growing reputation as a work for you, which enables you to put in re- the basics. As Howes pointed out, little children serious composer who happened to write for jazz serve all the energy you used to devote to pro- don’t read from a score when they sit down to orchestra led the writer Richard O. Boyer, in an ducing sound—and to concentrate instead on draw. “All they need is a crayon, paper, and their extensive 1944 profile in The New Yorker, to dub other aspects of your playing. As Howes says, imagination. We don’t tell them HOW to Ellington “The Hot Bach.” “I don’t have to use as much bow, so I can play draw. We just let them create.” Howes will be Ellington continued to turn out longer works faster when I want and focus on smaller move- exploring the same themes with the Sinfonia mu- for various occasions and diverse venues. These ments of the right arm, focus on my left hand, sicians, encouraging them to celebrate their own included Harlem (1951), Such Sweet Thunder focus on the musical ideas themselves, etc.” creative personalities. Howes wants every mu- (1957), Tool Suite (1959), and Idiom ’59 (1959). As far as the type of sound produced by both sician to understand that he or she is a composer, Ellington also explored other outlets for his com- violins, Howes be- whether he knows it or positions, writing Night Creature (1955) for com- lieves that although an not. “Improvisation/ bined symphony and jazz orchestras, A Drum is electric violin “cannot composition is the most a Woman (1956) for a television production, and produce the SAME natural thing in the Anatomy of a Murder (1959) for a Hollywood sound as an acoustic world, and students film directed by Otto Preminger. Ellington’s ap- violin,” it can still only need to be allowed pearance at the 1956 Newport Jazz Festival was sound quite similar. and encouraged to be such a triumph that Time magazine’s cover story And because his violin creative on their instru- pronounced it a “turning point in a career,” dem- absolutely has to be ments for them to see onstrating that “Ellington himself had emerged amplified in order to what they’ve been from a long period of quiescence and was once cut through the bigger missing.” Howes used again bursting with ideas and inspiration.” sounds of a rock band the phrase “idiomatic From 1960 until his passing, Ellington kept or jazz band, he prefers neutrality” to describe up a relentless schedule of composing, perform- to use an electric violin that has already been set the sort of improvisation he has in mind. “Jazz, ing, recording, and traveling often to Europe, to up to be amplified—instead of just using an classical, rock, pop, or polka, it doesn’t matter acoustic violin with a microphone attached.