The nutcracker suite is an album by american pianist, composer and bandleader duke ellington recorded for the columbia label in 1960 featuring jazz interpretations of the nutcracker by tchaikovsky, arranged by ellington and billy strayhorn. It uses the plot of the alexandre dumas, pere, version of e. Join the thompson jazz studies program for a joyful and swinging evening of the hippest holiday music ever. Duke ellingtons nutcracker and holiday concert jazz ensemble dr. In the 1990s there was the harlem nutcracker, which also used the ellington strayhorn music. Discover more music, concerts, videos, and pictures with the largest catalogue online at. Swingin nutcracker featuring the nutcracker suite by tchaikovsky 1892 the nutcracker suite by tchaikovsky, arr. A sweet duke ellington suite, is a tribute to duke ellington, the harlem renaissance pianist and composer. Almost anything by the ellington band is a genuine aural banquet, and this is no exception. Toot toot tootie toot dance of the reedpipes, peanut brittle brigade march, sugar rum cherry dance of the sugarplum fairy, danse of the floreadores.
Overture di duke ellington and his orchestra tratto dallalbum nutcracker suite the suites vol. Since its debut, fortunately, plenty of other people have played and recorded it, none of them any better than what we have here. Nicholas hersh, conductor fly dance company showstopping hiphop dancers join the bso for this funfilled holiday concert. Ellington s band is not keen on tackling it, but he is not dissuaded. Duke ellington and his orchestra the nutcracker suite 1960. Prior to the concert, join us in the lobby starting at 9. Ballet afrique presents duke ellingtons the nutcracker. The baltimore symphony orchestra performs duke ellington s nutcracker with step afrika. The nutcracker suite is an album by american pianist, composer and bandleader duke ellington recorded for the columbia label in 1960. Overture first movement of the jeff tyzik adaptation of the ellingtonstrayhorn arrangement of music from the nutcracker suite by tchaikovsky. Yet when the duke and his writing partner billy strayhorn first announced plans to take the classical ballet and perform a jazz version, even members of dukes orchestra expressed. Ccm has become an allsteinway school through the kindness of its donors. Ellington and strayhorns the nutcracker suite at studenaker. Listen free to duke ellington the nutcracker suite overture, toot toot tootie toot dance of the reedpipes and more.
Overture movement 1 nutcracker suite, tyzikellington nutcracker. This authentic edition of tchaikovskys nutcracker suite, as ar. Duke ellington and his orchestra the nutcracker suite. Hoffmanns tale, the nutcracker and the mouse king 1816. Featuring jazz interpretations of tchaikovskys the nutcracker, the album has come to be recognized as one of duke ellington s most important albums of the 1960s. Complete your duke ellington and his orchestra ellington, strayhorn, tchaikovsky collection. Overture center for the arts is a stunning architectural landmark in the heart of madisons thriving cultural arts district. The process of adaptation that ellington and strayhorn began continues today in new productions, like the oregon ballet theaters revision of george balanchines nutcracker to exclude problematic elements like the yellowface of the chinese dance. Dec 24, 20 when ellington signs a record contract in 1960, he teams up with fellow musician billy strayhorn, and the two composers create a new spin on tchaikovskys nutcracker suite. Duke ellingtons nutcracker suite its a challenge to transform the nutcracker suites romantic orchestra into jumpin jazz melodies, but thats exactly what duke ellington and his collaborator, billy strayhorn, did. The christmas eve setting of tchaikovskys ballet, the nutcracker, has helped it to. Washingtonlee jazz big band duke ellingtons nutcracker suite.
The nutcracker suite duke ellington album wikipedia. In 1960 duke ellington recorded a jazz version of the nutcracker suite. Ellingtons band memebers were not so sure that a classical ballet could become a coolcat jazz number. I suppose it helps that ellington wrote mainly dance numbers, and tchaikovskys piece is a ballet.
Dec 19, 2019 the program starts as a loyal pastiche of the original ellington nutcracker record album, with instrumental sections and soloists playing the original arrangements note by note in the nutcracker overture and toot toot tootie toot, alternately known as dance of the reedpipes. Duke ellington composer the nutcracker suite, for orchestra tchaikovskyellingtonstrayhorn wise music classical. Riffing off of duke ellington s reimagining of tchaikovskys masterpiece, jazz composer paul murtha has created a swingin nutcracker that the whole family will love. The duke ellington orchestra keeps its transformed the nutcracker suite fresh and surprising, even 59 years after its debut. Later, in the early 2000s, the tap innovator brenda bufalino created her own tap version. The nutcracker suite is an album by american pianist, composer and bandleader duke.
The paraphrase on tchaikovskys flower waltz is a successful piano arrangement from one of the movements from the nutcracker by the pianist and composer percy grainger. The nutcracker suite remastered by duke ellington and his. The nutcracker suite interpreted by duke ellington and billy strayhorn. Dec 03, 2015 the story behind the jazzedup nutcracker. This authentic edition of tchaikovskys nutcracker suite, as arranged in 1960 by billy strayhorn and duke ellington, was assembled from the original manuscripts held in the strayhorn repository and the ellington collection of the smithsonian institutions national museum of american history. Visions of sugar rum cherries tap dance in her head the. Find composition details, parts movement information and albums that contain performances of nutcracker suite, for jazz band on allmusic. The nutcracker suite additional works to be announced jazz up your holidays with duke ellington s dazzling reimagining of tchaikovskys the nutcracker, performed by the duke ellington orchestrathe only ensemble directly carrying on the tradition from duke himself. There is also a great book about dukes nutcracker suite by anna harwell celenza. Duke ellington and his orchestra ellingtonstrayhorn. Tchaikovskys nutcracker gets the ellington treatment. Toot toot tootie toot dance of the mirlitons, or reedpipes peanut brittle brigade march sugar rum cherry dance of the sugarplum fairy entracte. This edition of tchaikovskys the nutcracker suite, arranged in 1960 by billy strayhorn and duke ellington, was assembled from the original manuscripts held in the strayhorn repository and the ellington collection of the smithsonian.
The nutcracker suite is duke ellington and billy strayhorns masterful arrangement of tchaikovskys classic. Choreographer george balanchines production of tchaikovskys ballet the nutcracker has become the most famous stage production of the ballet performed in the u. Reviving the art of swinging the classics, steven richman and the harmonie ensemblenew york present two different versions of the beloved nutcracker suite, sidebyside on the same album for the first time. This christmas season, the joffrey ballet will premiere an entirely new scenario and. Nutcracker suite songs i have a considerable number of ellington recordings, but have not heard this one until now.
Scott belck, director jazz lab band dominic marino, director featuring ccm musical theater dance diane lala, choreographer sunday, november 24, 20 corbett auditorium 2. The sequence in the ellington strayhorn nutcracker runs. In the traditional nutcracker, the march is the second movement, but ellington and strayhorn composed a piece titled toot toot tootie toot dance of the reed pipes to follow overture. The rhythm section also included sam woodyard, back with the band after a years. Ironically, ellington never much cared for the work he did on nutcracker, never playing it in concert. Due to its popularity, the nutcracker has been used for many many different things and in many many different ways. The original cover for the 1960 big band album, the nutcracker suite, presented three people as the authors, all with equal font size and inhabiting the same line. Ellingtonstrayhorn peanut brittle brigade tchaikovsky dance of the reed pipes. The classical masterpiece is a holiday favorite and tinkering with something so well known is a bit risky.
In 1960, duke ellington and billy strayhorn arranged their own adaptation of the nutcracker suite for the duke ellington orchestra this version features the overture, toot toot tootsie toot dance of the reedflutes, peanut brittle bri gade march, sugar rum cherry dance of the sugar plum fairy, the entracte. In addition to housing ten resident organizations and presenting more than 200 performances, art exhibitions, and educational and community events each year, overture offers a variety of venues for performances, corporate meetings, conventions, trade shows, weddings. The acclaimed chicago jazz orchestra cjo will debut a new holiday music tradition in chicago when it presents duke ellington and billy strayhorns the nutcracker suite, a jazzinfused. An orchestra showed up on the philharmonic societys. Mikhail baryshnikovs production is the most famous television version, although it too originated onstage. Ellington gave new titles to the movements and rearranged their order, justified, i believe, by the new character of the music. Duke ellington and his orchestra ellington, strayhorn, tchaikovsky duke ellington and his orchestra ellington, strayhorn, tchaikovsky the nutcracker suite. Moreover, ellington had always been interested in longform composition.
Nutcracker suites harmonie ensemble new york, steven richman on allmusic 20 edward kennedy duke ellington devoted. A sweet nutcracker suite with eric felten jazz orchestra at. Aug 26, 20 tchaikovsky nutcracker suite for orchestra. Duke ellingtons nutcracker with duke ellington orchestra.
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