Uptown Lockdown Uproar...

Uptown Lockdown with special guest Steven C. Bowie...

Do Be Frank (Be Do Be Do)

 

On 110th anniversary of the birth of Francis Albert Sinatra, the latest edition of Tone Parallel is published today.

Subscription is free and the newsletter is available here.

As an added 'extra', here is a 'soundboard' recording of the the first of six concerts Sinatra gave in support of Hubert Humphrey's run for office in 1968. The concert took place at The Oakland Arena on 22 May, 1968 and features, among its selections, Billy May's arrangement of All I Need Is The Girl from the Francis A and Edward K album, sadly with neither Edward K nor his Orchestra... (the ensemble being conducted by Sinatra's long-time pianist and ex-Charlie Barnet man, Bill Miller)

Three Black Kings

With the publication in English of Luca Bragalini's study Duke Ellington's Symphonic Visions now just a week away, here is our final pre-publication posting.

A compact disc of recordings of the 'new' and newly-discovered Ellington works was included in the original Italian publication of the book. For this new iteraton of the book, the International Center for American Music has made these same recordings available on line. We have published already the recording of Celebration. Today we present the triptych Les Trois Rois Noir as they are presented on the American Music Center's page here.

“Duke Ellington’s Symphonic Visions” by Luca Bragalini, University Press of Mississippi.

Duke Ellington’s Symphonic Visions (UPM-University Press of Mississippi, 2025) is the first book entirely dedicated to Ellington’s symphonic music. The new international edition of the book, based on the Italian text published by EDT in 2018, was translated by Brent Waterhouse under the scholarly supervision of ICAMus and Aloma Bardi. The audio files accompanying the book are made accessible on the ICAMus channels.

Duke Ellington's Symphonic Visions by Luca Bragalini. Foreword by David Schiff. Preface by Aloma Bardi.
University Press of Mississippi, 2025 - American Made Music Series.

Audio files complementing Duke Ellington’s Symphonic Visions:

 

1. Three Black Kings - Part 1 - “King of the Nativity”
2. Three Black Kings - Part 2 - “King Solomon”
3. Three Black Kings - Part 3 - “Martin Luther King (Elos)”
4. Paolo Birro, piano

Bepi D’Amato, clarinet & alto saxophone

Teatro Marrucino Orchestra

SIdMA Jazz Orchestra

Bruno Tommaso, conductor

Live recording - Chieti, Italy, March 6, 2007.

 

Centro di Documentazione sulla Musica Americana · Duke Ellington - Three Black Kings - Part 1 - “King of the Nativity”

Centro di Documentazione sulla Musica Americana · Duke Ellington - Three Black Kings - Part 2 - “King Solomon”

Centro di Documentazione sulla Musica Americana · Duke Ellington - Three Black Kings - Part 3 - “Martin Luther King (Elos)”

Duke Ellington’s Symphonic Visions by Luca Bragalini addresses English language readers in   an adapted and revised edition based on the book published by EDT in Italy in 2018, Dalla Scala a Harlem: I sogni sinfonici di Duke Ellington From La Scala  to Harlem: Duke Ellington’s Symphonic Visions. In the English text, based on Professor Bragalini’s original Italian text, translated by Dr. Brent Waterhouse under the scholarly supervision of ICAMus and Aloma Bardi who worked   in close association with the author the University Press of Mississippi edition of Luca Bragalini’s book can now meet the large audience it was meant for.

LUCA BRAGALINI is professor of history and analysis of jazz at the Music Conservatory          Giuseppe Verdi of Milan. Bragalini was a distinguished scholar at Reed College, where he          offered a series of lectures on Ellington. He has discovered unpublished works by Duke EllingtonChet Baker, and Luciano Chailly. The Italian edition of his monographic study on Ellington, Dalla Scala a Harlem: I sogni sinfonici di Duke Ellington was named Best Musicological Book of 2018 by the Jazzit Awards.

Duke Ellington’s Symphonic Visions by Luca Bragalini, the University Press of Mississippi website.

#symphonicellington #dukeellington #LucaBragalini

At Elos For Words...

Continuing to look forward to the advent of the publication of Luca Bragalini's Symphonic Visions, here is video of a zoom seminar conducted by Luca in 2022. The title MLK as a Black King of the Bible in Duke Ellington’s Symphonic Triptych Three Black Kings gives us some insight into the forthcoming English translation of his book. 

The inclusion of Luca's discoveries with regard to the 'private session' recording of Elos is particularly striking.... 

Further Celebration...

We continue our celebration of the forthcoming publication on 15 December of Luca Bragalini's book Duke Ellington's Symphonic Visions.

Here is a video of Luca's address on the subject of Ellington's 'lost' symphony to the delegates at Ellington 2012. Luca is introduced by the late Geoff Smith, a former Chairman of Duke Ellington Society UK.

Celebration

 

The much anticipated English translation of Luca Bragalini's  Dalla Scala a Harlem. I sogni sinfonici di Duke Ellington will be published as Duke Ellington's Symphonic Visions on 15 December.

Recordings of some of the music featured in the book have been published on line by The International Center for American Music. Here is Ellington's 1972 composition, Celebration. The piece was composed for  the sesquincentenniel (the one-hundred-and-fiftieth anniversary) of Jacksonville, Florida.

You can read more about the occasion here.

Centro di Documentazione sulla Musica Americana · Duke Ellington - Celebration (World premiere recording)

Live: December 2025

It is advisable to book any event listed here in advance when possible and check with the promoter/ organiser to ensure any performance is going ahead as planned before travelling.

Sunday 7 December 2025, 14:30

North West Duke Ellington Orchestra directed by Phil Shotton

Lowther Pavilion & Gardens, Lowther Pavilion, West Beach, Lytham St Annes, FY8 5QQ

The North West Duke Ellington Orchestra was formed in 2024, and now embarks on its second tour, playing at Wigan Jazz Club on Sunday 30th November and at Lowther Pavilion on the afternoon of Sunday 7th December

Directed by acclaimed saxophonist and bandleader Phil Shotton, the 15-piece big band brings together Ellington obsessed musicians from across the North West, including Cheshire, Lancashire, Liverpool City Region, and Manchester. The orchestra is dedicated to celebrating the music of jazz legend Duke Ellington, performing pieces from across his illustrious career—from his early 1920s Cotton Club dance tunes to the dynamic and sophisticated suites of the 1950s.

The ensemble performs music largely sourced from The Lincoln Centre Jazz Orchestra’s Essentially Ellington programme, featuring note-for-note transcriptions of historic live performances by The Duke Ellington Orchestra. The band gives audiences an authentic experience of the timeless brilliance of Ellington and his long-time collaborator, Billy Strayhorn, as they were meant to be heard.

Tickets here.