Live: September 2023

 Saturday 9 September 2023

The Queen's Suite, Harmony In Harlem, directed by Michael Kilpatrick

St Andrews Street Baptist Church, Cambridge, CB2 3AR

The Harmony In Harlem Orchestra, directed by Michael Kilpatrick, perform Duke Ellington's remarkable tribute to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. When Duke met the Queen at the Leeds Music Festival in 1958, he wrote a suite of six pieces and recorded it with his orchestra, having only a single pressing of the LP made and sent to Buckingham Palace in 1959. It was not released commercially until 1976. The six pieces of the suite describe wonders of the natural world - their beauty, splendour and majesty - as a parallel to those same facets Duke found in Queen Elizabeth.

Harmony In Harlem will play The Queen's Suite alongside their repertoire of 1930s/40s Ellingtonia.

Tickets available here.

Tuesday 19 September -Wednesday, 11 October, 2023

Billy Strayhorn: Something To Live For 

Pittsburgh Public Theater, The O'Reilly Theater 621 Penn Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15222

A legend begins here...    

Featuring a stunning score, Billy Strayhorn: Something to Live For brings to life the remarkable true story of one of the greatest composers of all time. From his impoverished beginnings in Pittsburgh to his lifelong collaboration with Duke Ellington, this world-premiere new musical follows the highs and lows of Billy Strayhorn's career, the joys and heartbreak of his personal life, and the challenges he faced living as an openly gay Black man in mid-20th century America at the dawn of the civil rights movement. Through his collaborations with Lena Horne, Billie Holiday, and the greatest jazz orchestra of all time, Billy Strayhorn transcended racial and sexual barriers and brought a unique fusion of jazz and classical music to the world with all-time favourites including Take the ‘A’ Train and the immortal Lush Life.

Tickets available here.