Duke Ellington: Annotated Bibliography

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Duke Ellington was born on April 29, 1899 in Washington, DC. He died of lung cancer on May 24, 1974 in New York City, New York. 12,000 people attended his funeral. Duke Ellington was raised by two talented, musical parents in a middle-class neighborhood of Washington DC. At the age of 7, he began studying piano. He played the trombone and he married Edna Thompson. Soon after their marriage they had their only child, Mercer Kennedy Ellington.
Duke Ellington is from the modern time period. He composed Jazz music and Ellington 's fame rose in the 1940s when he composed several masterworks,“Concerto for Cootie” and “Cotton Tail.” Some of his most popular songs included "It Don 't Mean a Thing if It Ain 't Got That Swing," "Sophisticated Lady,"