Ellington, Mercer Kennedy, 1919-1996 (musician) Search this
Extent:
1.33 Cubic feet (4 boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Audiotapes
Photographs
Clippings
Programs
Correspondence
Television scripts
Date:
1924-1990
Scope and Contents:
Photographs, event programs, periodicals, cassette audio tapes, correspondence, TV program scripts and pamphlets documenting Duke Ellington's career as a musician, 1924-1974, and his legacy after his death.
Arrangement:
Divided into five series.
Series 1; Photographs, 1964-1968
Series 2: Publications, 1944-1990
Series 3: Memorabilia, 1965-1981
Series 4: Correspondence and sketches, 1958-1990
Series 5; Cassette audio tapes, 1924-1933
Biographical / Historical:
Businessman and Ellington enthusiast, Robert Udkoff was born in Chicago and first heard Duke Ellington perform at Chicago's Oriental Theater in 1928. In 1932 he established a cordial relationship with Ellington that lasted until Ellington's death in 1974.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Robert Udkoff, 1991, January 29.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Eight conference programs, seventeen videotapes, and eighty-six cassette audio tapes documenting the proceedings of the International Conference of the Duke Ellington Study Group.
Arrangement:
Collection is unarranged.
Biographical / Historical:
Collector, president and board member of the New York chapter of the Duke Ellington Society (TDES).
Provenance:
Collection donated by Morris Hodora, July 16, 1990.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection documents Willie Smith's career as a musician and arranger between 1945 and 1958.
Scope and Contents:
The Willia Smith Collection consits of correspondence, event programs, a periodical entitled Musikkunde in beispielen, thirty-siz black and white photograph, and nine music arrangements documenting Smith's career as a musician and arranger between 1945 and 1958.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into three series.
Series 1: Music Manuscripts, 1945-1947
Series 2: Photographs, 1938-1958
Series 3: Ephemera, 1945-1987
Biographical / Historical:
Willie Smith, aleading alto saxophonist and arranger of the swing period, was born in Charkeston, South Carolina on November 25, 1910 and died in Los Angeles on March 7, 1967. He attended Nashville Tennessee's Fisk University during the 1920s and played with the Jimmy Lunceford Orchestra between 1929 and 1942. After a brief period performing with Charlie Spivak's band between 1942 and 1943, Smith began his tenure with the Harry James Orchestra in 1944. Hew remained with the Harry James Orchestra until 1964 with brief interruptions between 1951 and 1953 performing with the Duke Ellington Orchestra, Jazz at the Philharmonic, and leading several of his own small ensembles in Los Angeles. In addition to Smith's reputation as a section leader and soloist, he is best known for his arrangmenets of Sophisticated Lady and Rose Rooom for the Jimmie Lunceford Orchestra.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Fischella Smith, August 14, 1990.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
The collection documents Levy's short career as a musician, his longer career as a manager, and the careers of some of his clients. The client most well represented in the collection is Nancy Wilson, with recordings, photographs, correspondence, financial statements, and contracts included. Papers relating to other clients include business records such as ledgers, scheduling information, itineraries, and contracts; publicity materials such as articles, press kits, photographs, and videotapes; personal correspondence; photographs; oral history interviews; scrapbook pages; recordings, some commercial and some non-commercial; and miscellany. The non-commercial recordings feature artists including Nancy Wilson, Cannonball Adderley, Nat Adderly, Abbey Lincoln, Wes Montgomery, Shirley Horn, Letta Mbulu, and others. Also included are some of Wes Montgomery's music manuscripts.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into six series.
Series 1: Personal Papers, 1916-2010, undated
Series 2: Business Records, 1957-2007, undated
Series 3: Photographic Materials, 1963-2002, undated
Series 4: Artist Files, 1942-2001-05-12
Series 5: Joe Williams, 1962-2007, undated
Series 6: Nancy Wilson, 1959-2008, undated
Biographical / Historical:
John Levy was a renowned leading representative of jazz musicians and was the first African American to work in the music industry as a personal manager. Born in 1912 in New Orleans, Louisiana his family moved to Chicago when he was six. By the early 1940s he had begun playing bass in jazz bands around town. In 1944, Levy left Chicago with the Stuff Smith Trio to play an extended engagement at the Onyx Club on New York City's 52nd Street. Over the next years, he played and recorded with many jazz notables, including Ben Webster, Buddy Rich, Errol Garner, Rex Stewart, Milt Jackson, and Billy Taylor, as well as with Billie Holiday at her comeback performance at Carnegie Hall in 1948. In 1949, blind pianist George Shearing hired Levy for his own group and as they toured the country, Levy gradually took on the role of road manager. By 1951, Levy stopped performing to become the group's full-time manager, making history as the first African American manager of a major musical group, and establishing the career he would continue for the next fifty years.
Levy's client roster included many major artists, including Nat and Cannonball Adderley, Betty Carter, Roberta Flack, Herbie Hancock, Shirley Horn, Freddie Hubbard, Ahmad Jamal, Ramsey Lewis, Abbey Lincoln, Herbie Mann, Wes Montgomery, Carol Sloane, Joe Williams, and Nancy Wilson, as well as Arsenio Hall (the only comedian he has managed among some one hundred entertainers). In recognition of his achievements, Levy has received numerous awards, including induction into the International Jazz Hall of Fame (1997), receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Los Angeles Jazz Society (2002), and being named a National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master (2006). His autobiography, Men, Women, and Girl Singers: My Life as a Musician Turned Talent Manager, written with his wife Devra Hall, was published in 2001 and expanded into a photograph book, Strollin': A Jazz Life through John Levy's Personal Lens, released in 2008 on the occasion of his 96th birthday. Levy died in 2012 at the age of ninety-nine in Altadena, California.
Related Materials:
Bobby Short Papers
Provenance:
Donated to the Archives Center in 2011 by Devra Hall Levy.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Primarily audiotapes, sheet music, and photographic images. Also: correspondence, newspaper clippings, magazine articles, itineraries, awards, and ephemera.,Of particular interest are recordings or photographic images, including the personalities listed below, and President and Mrs. Tubman of Liberia; also, two interviews and three recordings of Cat Anderson as guest with various university and college jazz bands.
Arrangement:
Collection is divided into four series.
Series 1: Music
Series 2: Original tapes and recordings
Series 3: Photographs
Series 4: Miscellaneous
Biographical/Historical note:
Cat Anderson (Sept 12, 1916 - April 29, 1981) was one of the premier trumpet players of the Duke Ellington Orchestra. Known for his effortless high notes, he was a strong section leader and a great soloist whose style exhibited humor and precision. He grew up in Jenkins= Orphanage in Charleston, SC, received basic music training there, and participated in many of their famous student ensembles. He formed and played with the Cotton Pickers, a group of orphanage teens while still a young man. Before joining Ellington in 1944, he played in several big bands, including Claude Hopkins and Lionel Hampton. Anderson left the Ellington organization from 1947 through 1949 again to lead his own group. From 1959 to1961 and after 1971 Anderson free lanced, working with the Ellington orchestra intermittently. He died in 1981 after receiving honors from the US Air Force, the Prix du Disque de Jazz, and the City of Los Angeles.
Related Archival Materials:
Related artifacts include: awards, plaques, mutes, trumpet mouth pieces, and the Jon Williams/Cat Anderson simulator in the Division of Cultural and Community Life (now Division of Cultural and Community Life). See accession: 1998.3074.
Provenance:
The collection was donated to the National Museum of American History in January 1998, by Dorothy Anderson, Cat Anderson's widow. It was acquired through negotiations with her, her brother, Mr. John Coffey and her nephew, Andrew Brazington. The materials were picked up from Mr. John Coffey of upper N.W. Washington, DC on January 21, 1998.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research. Master tapes not available to researchers.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Copyright status of items varies. Signed copies of releases on file.
The collection consists of 235 pieces of music ephemera assembled by an anonymous California musicologist over several decades. The contents include such things as concert ticket stubs; show programs; handbills; publicity stills; record store posters; nightclub souvenirs; autographs; contracts, lobby cards; movie stills; postcards; fan and record industry magazines; sheet music; an oversize RKO theatre owners' advertising book for the 1942 sensation "Syncopation," starring Charlie Barnet, Benny Goodman, Harry James, Gene Krupa, et al; and miscellany such as matchbook covers and novelty promotional pieces. There are just a few letters in the collection. The collection contains materials representing both bands and band members, and individual artists. In many cases, there are only one or a few relevant items. Persons and acts represented include: Ray Anthony, Louis Armstrong, Charlie Barnet, Tex Beneke, Les Brown, Dave Brubeck, Cab Calloway, June Christy, Nat King Cole, Tommy Dorsey, Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Erroll Garner, Stan Getz, Dizzy Gillespie, Benny Goodman, Glen Gray, Fletcher Henderson, Woody Herman, Harry James, Louis Jordan, Sammy Kaye, Stan Kenton, Gene Krupa, Kay Kyser, Frankie Laine, Peggy Lee, Guy Lombardo, Vincent Lopez, Jimmy Lunceford, Gordon MacRae, Freddy Martin, Billy May, Johnny Mercer, Glenn Miller, Vaughn Monroe, Gerry Mulligan, Red Norvo, Patti Page, Buddy Rich, Artie Shaw, Dinah Shore, Frank Sinatra, Charlie Spivak, Rudy Vallee, Sarah Vaughan, Fred Waring, Chick Webb, Ted Weems, Lawrence Welk, Paul Whiteman, Margaret Whiting, and Benny Goodman. In other cases, the collection contains an item or items (such as menus) that have been autographed. The collection contains autographs or autographed items for the following: Gene Krupa, Jess Stacy, Teddy Wilson, Blue Barron, Eddie Duchin, Shep Fields, Ziggy Elman, Glen Gray Band, Milt Gabler, Horace Heidt, Dick Jurgens, Kay Kyser, Guy Lombardo, Xavier Cugat, Hal McIntyre, Art Mooney, Buddy Morrow, Harry James and "Tiny" Timbrell.
Arrangement:
Collection is arranged into six series.
Series 1: Magazines, 1939-1950
Series 2: Programs, 1930-1975
Series 3: Publications, 1949-1965
Series 4: Sheet Music, 1935-1943
Series 5: Advertisements, 1932-1954
Series 6: Ephemera, 1938-1953
Provenance:
Purchased at auction by the Archives Center from Cohasco, Inc. in 2016.
Restrictions:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection consists of 157 8" x 10" black-and-white photographic copy prints of photographs in Frank Driggs's collection: Duke Ellington and his orchestra. Some copy prints have Smithsonian negative numbers.
Arrangement:
Collection arranged into ten series.
Biographical/Historical note:
Photographer and collector.
Related Materials:
Materials at Other Organizations
Jazz at Lincoln Center
The Frank Driggs Jazz Photograph Collection was acquired by Jazz at Lincoln Center in 2013. The collection also includes posters, sheet music, records and Frank Driggs' personal papers.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Frank Driggs, January 11, 1991.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
The Archives Center does not own rights to these photographs. Contact respository for details.
Ray Brown was an African-American musician, composer, bandleader, manager, music teacher and promoter. He became best known for his collaborative work with Dizzy Gillespie, Oscar Peterson, Ella Fitzgerald, the Oscar Peterson Trio and Norman Granz' s Jazz at the Philharmonic. Over the course of his career, Brown received awards and accolades from the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Jazz Hall of Fame, Down Beat and Playboy. Brown's papers document his professional music career from 1944 to 2002 and include music compositions and notes, publicity materials, photographs, and some recordings of his performances.
Scope and Contents:
The collection primarily documents the near sixty-year music career of upright bass player, bandleader, composer, and instructor Raymond Matthews (Ray) Brown and the various bands that he played with. The materials consist of music manuscripts, musical arrangements, published sheet music, photographs, programs, newspaper clippings, magazine articles, posters, audio and video recordings, honors and awards, correspondence, and publications. There is very little information about Brown's education, family or other aspects of his personal life.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into six series.
Series 1: Musical Compositions and Notes, 1940s-2000s, undated
Series 2: Publicity Materials, 1950s-2002, undated
Series 3: Photographic Materials, 1940-2003, undated
Series 4: Personal Papers, 1954-2010
Series 5: Audiovisual Materials, 1978-1993, undated
Series 6: Performance Materials, 1964-1995, undated
Biographical / Historical:
Raymond Matthews Brown was an African American musician (double bass and cello) born on October 13, 1926 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He became known for his collaborative work with Dizzy Gillespie, Oscar Peterson, Ella Fitzgerald (to whom he was married for a few years), and others. He was a composer, bandleader, manager, music teacher, and promoter. His professional music career lasted almost sixty years, dating from 1944 to 2002.
Brown's career began with a risky move to New York City in 1945, as a recent high school graduate, which resulted in his being hired on the spot to play with Dizzy Gillespie. Brown continued to play with Gillespie and others in various groups, recording songs such as "One Bass Hit" and "Night in Tunisia," before leaving in 1947. Brown married notable jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald that same year. He and Fitzgerald adopted a son, Raymond Matthew Brown Jr., and performed together in Norman Granz's Jazz at the Philharmonic. Granz's tours, which Brown participated in from around 1949 to 1958, allowed him to travel and play all around the world. After being introduced to Oscar Peterson during a Philharmonic tour, Brown became a founding member of the Oscar Peterson Trio in 1952. His growing commitment to the group, along with other factors, led to Brown and Fitzgerald's divorce in 1953. However, the two would continued to collaborate and perform together, as friends and colleagues.
Brown worked with Peterson and other prominent jazz musicians to find the Advanced School of Contemporary Music in Toronto, which lasted from 1960 to 1965. He left the Peterson trio in the late 1960s and moved to Los Angeles to work as a composer, manager, educator, and publisher. In California, he worked for several movie and television show orchestras, became bassist for all of Frank Sinatra's television specials, and accompanied some noted singers, including Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, and Tony Bennett. He composed the theme song to Steve Allen's show, "Gravy Waltz," for which they both won a Grammy Award in 1964. He also managed the Modern Jazz Quartet, and Quincy Jones. In the 1980s, he formed the Ray Brown Trio with pianist Gene Harris, which lasted nine years. He also directed events such as the Monterey Jazz and Concord Summer Festivals, and consulted for the Hollywood Bowl Association. Brown continued to play and record with his trio and various other groups, such as the Oscar Peterson Trio and the Modern Jazz Quartet, for the rest of his life. He also published an instructional book for the bass, Ray Brown's Bass Method, through his own company in 1999. Over the course of his career, Brown received awards and accolades from the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Jazz Hall of Fame, Down Beat, Playboy, and many more. Ray Brown died in 2002 at the age of seventy- five.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Charismic Productions Records of Dizzy Gillespie NMAH.AC.0979
Ella Fitzgerald Papers NMAH.AC.0584
Duke Ellington Collection NMAH.AC.0301
Duke Ellington Oral History Project NMAH.AC.0368
Edward and Gaye Ellington Collection of Duke Ellington Materials NMAH.AC.0704
Ruth Ellington Collection of Duke Ellington Materials NMAH.AC.0415
Leslie Schinella Collection of Gene Krupa Materials NMAH.AC.1220
Provenance:
The collection was donated to the Archives Center in 2015 by Ray Brown's widow, Cecilia Brown.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
This collection contains 326 photographs of jazz musicians taken by James Arkatov from 1995 to 2003.
Scope and Contents:
A collection of 326 photographs of musicians, taken by James Arkatov. Most of the photographs are performance shots or were taken in rehearsal. Most were taken at theJazz Bakery, a non-profit, volunteer-run venue for jazz in Los Angeles; others were taken at the Hollywood Bowl or other venues.
Arrangement:
Collection is arranged one series.
Biographical / Historical:
Arkatov is a Russian-American cellist who began his career performing with the Pittsburgh Symphony in 1938. He later moved on to perform with the San Francisco Symphony, and was the principal cellist in the Indianapolis Symphony and NBC Symphony Orchestra. He founded the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra in 1968. He began photographing musicians early in his career, and later published his works Masters of Music: Great Artists at Work (1990) and Artists: The Creative Personality (1998).
Sources
Russell, Maureen. "Highlights from UCLA's Collections: The James Arkatov Photograph Collection." Ethnomusicology Review. February 12, 2015. Accessed August 08, 2016. http://ethnomusicologyreview.ucla.edu/content/highlights-uclas-collections-james-arkatov-photograph-collection.
Provenance:
Donated to the Archives Center by James Arkatov in 2011.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
James Arkatov retains copyright. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
An interview of Robert Ryman conducted 1972 October 13-November 7, by Paul Cummings, for the Archives of American Art.
Ryman speaks of his early career as a Jazz musician and transition to painting in the early 1950's, after moving to New York City. He recalls working as a guard for the Museum of Modern Art and as a page for the New York Public Library, where he encountered such artists and curators as Dan Flavin, Sol Lewitt, and Betsy Jones. Ryman elaborates on his development as a painter; experimentation with lithograph printmaking; his work methods; group shows at the Tenth Street Galleries; solo shows in Europe and New York, including The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum; his marriage to art critic Lucy Lippard.
Biographical / Historical:
Robert Ryman (1930-2019 ) was a painter from New York, N.Y.
General:
Originally recorded on 1 sound tape reel. Reformatted in 2010 as 2 digital wav files. Duration is 2 hrs., 8 min.
Provenance:
These interviews are part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and others.
Restrictions:
This transcript is open for research. Access to the entire audio recording is restricted. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Strayhorn, Billy (William Thomas), 1915-1967 Search this
Extent:
3 Items (3 folders)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photographs
Clippings
Date:
1965-1969
Summary:
Collection consists of two newsclippings, and an advertising yearbook documenting Strayhorn's career as Duke Ellington's chief arranger, co-composer, lyricist, and emergency fill-in at the piano.
Scope and Contents:
The Billy Strayhorn Ephemera Collection consists of two newsclippings, and an advertising yearbook documenting Strayhorn's career as Duke Ellington's chief arranger, co-composer, lyricist, and emergency fill-in at the piano. The newsclippings document the collaborative relationship that existed between Ellington and Strayhorn. The advertising yearbook was published as a tribute to Strayhorn after his death. It includes numerous commentaries to Billy Strayhorn by some of the period's leading jazz musicians.
Arrangement:
Collection is arranged into one series.
Biographical / Historical:
Billy Strayhorn, composer and pianist, was born in Dayton, Ohio on November 19, 1915. He joined the Duke Ellington Orchestra in 1939 after a brief period working as the pianist for the Mercer Ellington Orchestra. For nearly three decades Strayhorn served as associate arranger and second pianist for Duke Ellington. Billy Strayhorn remained with the Ellington Orchestra until his death on May 31, 1967.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Gregory & Thelma Morris, May 17, 1991.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
A collection of 78 r.p.m. recordings of jazz artists, including many by Duke Ellington, many of them test pressings.
Arrangement:
1 series.
General:
Discs, 78 r.p.m.
Provenance:
Donated by Jay McCarter in 2003.
Restrictions:
UNPROCESSED COLLECTION.
Unrestricted research access on site by appointment.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
The collection consists of a single memorial program documenting the April 9, 1990 funeral of Sarah Vaughan at the Mount Zion Baptist Church, Newark, New Jersey.
Scope and Contents:
The collection consists of a single memorial program documenting the April 9, 1990 funeral of Sarah Vaughan that took place at the Mount Zion Baptist Church located in Newark, New Jersey. A brief biography of Vaughan's music career, photograph, and the order of the funeral service are included in the memorial program.
Arrangement:
The collection consists of a single item.
Biographical / Historical:
Sarah Lois Vaughan was born to Asbury "Jake" and Ada Vaughan on March 27, 1924 in Newark, New Jersey. In 1942, she won an amateur contest at the Apollo Theatre and by 1943 was working as a singer and second pianist for the Earl Hines band. She was a leading female jazz vocalist between the 1940s and 1980s. During her long career she performed with such leaders in the field of American jazz like Billy Eckstine, Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, and Miles Davis. Vaughn died on April 3, 1990 at the age of sixty-six in California.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Bobby Tucker Papers NMAH.AC.1141
Benny Carter Collection NMAH.AC.0757
WANN Radio Station Records NMAH.AC.0800
Earl Newman Collection of Monterey Jazz Festival Posters NMAH.AC.1207
Herman Leonard Photographic Collection NMAH.AC.0445
Leonard and Mary Gaskin Papers NMAH.AC.0900
W. Royal Stokes Collection of Jazz Musicians' Photographs NMAH.AC.0766
Ella Fitzgerald Papers NMAH.AC.0584
Duncan Schiedt Photograph Collection NMAH.AC.1323
Provenance:
Collection donated by Azariah Morton,1991 May 21.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection contains sixty-two posters commemorating the Monterey Jazz Festival created and signed by Earl Newman.
Scope and Contents:
Collection consists of a set of sixty-two posters created by Earl Newman to publicize the Monterey Jazz Festival. The prints are numbered and signed by Mr. Newman and feature Ray Charles, BB King, Etta James, Dizzy Gillespie, Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, and others. They are arranged in chronological order. Folders one through eleven contain the prints. Advertising and the cloth-covered portfolio to hold the poster collection are in folder twelve.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into one series.
Related Materials:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Duke Ellington Collection, NMAH.AC.0301
William H. Quealy Collection of Duke Ellington Recordings, NMAH.AC.0296
Duke Ellington Oral History Project, NMAH.AC.0368
Billy Strayhorn Ephemera Collection, NMAH.AC.0383
Collection of Duke Ellington Ephemera and Related Audio-visual Materials, NMAH.AC.0386
Robert Udkoff Collection of Duke Ellington Ephemera, NMAH.AC.0388
Frank Driggs Collection of Duke Ellington Photographic Reference Prints, NMAH.AC.0389
New York Chapter of the Duke Ellington Society Collection, NMAH.AC.O390
Felix Grant Collection, NMAH.AC.0410
Carter Harman Collection of Interviews with Duke Ellington, NMAH.AC.0422
Archives Center Collection of Music Transcriptions of Duke Ellington Compositions, Carter Harman NMAH.AC.0430
Jazz Oral History Collection about Duke Ellington, NMAH.AC.0431
Herman Leonard Photoprints, NMAH.AC.0445
Don Brown Collection of Duke Ellington Recordings, NMAH.AC.0472
Betty McGettigan Collection of Duke Ellington Memorabilia, NMAH.AC.0494
Dr. Theodore Shell Collection of Duke Ellington Ephemera, NMAH.AC.0502
Jay McCarter Phonograph Record Collection, NMAH.AC.0541
Tom Whaley Collection, NMAH.AC.0652
William Claxton Photographs, NMAH.AC.0695
Edward and Gaye Ellington Collection of Duke Ellington Materials, NMAH.AC.0704
Andrew Homzy Collection of Duke Ellington Stock Arrangements, NMAH.AC.0740
Benny Carter Collection, NMAH.AC.0757
John Gensel Collection of Duke Ellington Materials, NMAH.AC.0763
W. Royal Stokes Collection of Music Publicity Photoprints, Interviews and Posters, NMAH.AC.0766
Milt Gabler Papers, NMAH.AC.0849
Paquito D'Rivera Music Manuscripts and Photograph, NMAH.AC.0891
Charismic Productions Records of Dizzy Gillespie, NMAH.AC.0979
Floyd Levin Jazz Reference Collection, NMAH.AC.1222
Al Celley Collection of Duke Ellington Materials, NMAH.AC.1240
James Moody Papers, NMAH.AC.1405
Provenance:
The collection was donated to the Archives Center by Earl Newman, 1992 and 2010.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Thirty-four tapes of radio shows Wells did on radio station KJAZ in San Francisco on the subject of women in jazz. Some of the sessions featured interviews, while others featured recorded music. The performers and interviewees are listed below.
Arrangement:
1 series.
Biographical / Historical:
Film director and producer, Wells was once a disc jockey on radio station KJAZ in San Francisco.
Related Materials:
Archives Center, National Museum of American History
John and Devra Hall Levy Collection, NMAH.AC1221
Ella Fritzgerald Papers, NMAH.AC0584
Bill Holman Collection, NMAH.AC0733
W. Royal Stokes Collection of Music Photoprints and Interviews, NMAH.AC0766
Joel Dorn Papers, 1966-1987, NMAH.AC.0536
Jeffrey Kliman Photographs, NMAH.AC0628
John Gensel Collection of Duke Ellington Music, NMAH.AC0763
Leonard Gaskin Papers, NMAH.AC0900
Smithsonian Institution Archives
Smithsonian Institution, Division of Performing Arts, Accession T90055
Provenance:
Donated by Audrey Wells to the Archives Center in 2005.
Restrictions:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
The Mississippi: River of Song (Television program : 1999)
The Mississippi: River of Song (Radio program : 1999)
The Mississippi: River of Song: A Musical Journey Down the Mississippi (Compact disc : 1998)
The Mississippi: River of Song: Americans Old and New (Television program : 1999)
The Mississippi: River of Song: Midwestern Crossroads (Television program : 1999)
The Mississippi: River of Song: Southern Fusion (Television program : 1999)
The Mississippi: River of Song: Louisiana, Where Music is King (Television program : 1999)
The Mississippi: River of Song: Land of Lakes and Cultures (Radio program : 1999)
The Mississippi: River of Song: Midwestern Crossroads (Radio program : 1999)
The Mississippi: River of Song: Sounds Around Saint Louis (Radio program : 1999)
The Mississippi: River of Song: Memphis Rhythm and Delta Blues (Radio program : 1999)
The Mississippi: River of Song: Rockin' Round the Water (Radio program : 1999)
The Mississippi: River of Song: Musical Bayous and Traditional Melodies (Radio program : 1999)
The Mississippi: River of Song: The Beat of New Orleans (Radio program : 1999)
Extent:
48.5 cu. ft. (45 record storage boxes) (7 document boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Manuscripts
Compact discs
Databases
Electronic records
Floppy disks
Audiotapes
Motion pictures (visual works)
Videotapes
Place:
Mississippi River
Mississippi River Valley
Date:
1995-1998
Descriptive Entry:
This accession documents the production of "The Mississippi: River of Song." This project combined a television series, radio series, and compact disc (CD) set. The
project as a whole explores the richness and vitality of American music at the close of the twentieth century through live performances and intimate discussions with musicians
along the course of the Mississippi River.
The 4-part television series aired on the Public Broadcasting Service beginning in January 1999. Episodes include "Americans Old and New," "Midwestern Crossroads," "Southern
Fusion," and "Louisiana, Where Music is King." The series takes viewers on a musical journey from the headwaters in northern Minnesota to the river's mouth in the Gulf of
Mexico, creating a portrait of the American musician along the way. All scenes were shot live on location and feature musicians that represent the regional culture.
The 7-part radio series aired on Public Radio International affiliates beginning in January 1999. The radio series is similar in content to the television series and is
hosted by Ani DiFranco. Episodes include "Land of Lakes and Cultures;" "Midwestern Crossroads," "Sounds Around Saint Louis," "Memphis Rhythm and Delta Blues," "Rockin' Round
the Water," "Musical Bayous and Traditional Melodies," and "The Beat of New Orleans."
The 2-CD set consists of 36 tracks of live recordings from 1995 through 1997 and is subtitled "A Musical Journey Down the Mississippi." The CDs feature contemporary musicians
who have forged their styles out of the rich musical heritage found along the banks of the Mississippi River. The CDs were distributed through Smithsonian Folkways beginning
in 1998.
Materials in this accession include original film negatives and audio and video originals, masters, safety copies, and transfers of performances, interviews, and scenery.
Also included are interview transcripts, logs, databases, tape lists, and other documentation of the audiovisual elements. Some materials are in electronic format.
Restrictions:
Special restrictions on use of these materials may apply. Viewing/listening copies are not currently available, but can be made for a fee, Transferring office; 4/10/2002 memorandum, Peters to SIA; Contact reference staff for details.
Topic:
Television -- Production and direction Search this
This collection documents the life and career of musician James Moody, and includes: Moody's compositions and arrangements, including parts for various instruments; correspondence, some personal, some business; business records such as contracts, copyright and royalty statements, and tour itineraries; photographs, some personal, and some documenting Moody's musical activities, some featuring other musicians, especially Dizzy Gillespie; programs from jazz shows in which Moody participated; awards; and numerous articles and clippings.
Arrangement:
Collection is arranged into one series.
Biographical / Historical:
James Moody was born in Savannah, Georgia, and grew up in Reading, Pennsylvania and Newark, New Jersey, where he learned to play the saxophone. He added the flute later in life. He served in the Air Force during World War II, where he belonged to a military band, and during this time he met Dizzy Gillespie, who was giving a performance at his base. He joined Gillespie's band for a couple of years after getting out of the service in 1946, and the two developed a strong friendship and working collaboration that lasted until Gillespie died in 1993. In addition to his frequent recording and tours with Gillespie, Moody had a series of jazz acts with whom he recorded and toured; he performed as a back-up act in Las Vegas, and worked with many notables, including Dinah Washington, Benny Golson, Tito Puente and Quincy Jones. His credits include over fifty albums, such as the highly acclaimed Henry Mancini tribute album "Moody Plays Mancini," and a small role in the 1997 film, "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil." His honors include Grammy nominations (1985 and 1990) and a posthumous Grammy award in 2010, induction into the International Jazz Hall of Fame, and his selection as a 1998 NEA Jazz Master.
Provenance:
Donated by Linda Moody, 2016.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Reproduction restricted due to copyright or trademark. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
The collection consists of correspondence, appointment books, business records, music manuscripts, sound recordings, photographs, and ephemera documenting the activities of Duke Ellington and the management of Tempo Music, Incorporated. There is a small amount of material relating to the Ellingotn family.
Scope and Contents:
The Ruth Ellington Collection of Duke Ellington Materials includes music manuscripts (circa 1930-1981), sound recordings, Duke and Ruth Ellington's business and personal correspondence (1942-1991), business records covering the years 1923-1988, performances and programs covering the years 1951-1989, numerous awards and honors to Ellington and the orchestra, and personal papers relating to the Ellington family. Also among the materials are minutes of business meetings, letters, and newspaper clippings relating to the Duke Ellington Society in New York city, the certificate of incorporation and invitations for the Ellington Cancer Center, and slides, film, and home videos. The collection is arranged into eleven series.
Arrangement:
Divided into eleven series:
Series 1: Music Manuscripts, Scripts and Compositional Materials, 1930-1981, undated
Subseries 1.1: Music Manuscripts, undated
Subseries 1.2: Published Books, 1943-1986, undated
Subseries 1.3: Oversize Materials, undated
Subseries 1.4: Music Manuscript Notebooks and Untitled Music, undated
Subseries 1.5: Tempo Music, Incorporated Copyright Sheets of Non-Ellington Material, undated
Subseries 1.7: Notes, Scripts and Compositions, 1958-1969, undated
Series 2: Business Records, 1923-1988, undated
Series 3: Performance Materials, 1951-1989, undated
Series 4: Publicity, 1935-1992, undated
Series 5: Awards and Recognition, 1936-1989, undated
Series 6: Correspondence, 1942-1991, undated
Series 7: Photographs, 1937-1990, undated
Series 8: Family Papers, 1911-1981, undated
Series 9: Other Artists, 1955-1986, undated
Series 10: Harry Carney Materials, 1938-1959
Series 11: Audiovisual Materials, circa 1946-1970
Subseries 11.1: Sound Recordings, circa 1946-1970
Sub-subseries 11.1.1: Duke Ellington Concerts
Sub-subseries 11.1.2: Duke Ellington Volumes 1 through 58
Sub-subseries 11.1.3: Duke Ellington and His Orchestra
Sub-subseries 11.1.4: Duke Ellington Jazz Society Guest Talks
Sub-subseries 11.1.5: Interviews
Sub-subseries 11.1.6: Miscellaneous
Sub-subseries 11.1.7: Non-Ellington Materials
Sub-subseries 11.1.8: 16" Transcription Discs
Subseries 11.2: Moving Images, 1929 - 1970
Biographical / Historical:
Born in 1915, Ruth Dorothea Ellington Boatwright was the sister and only sibling of Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington. Sheltered and doted upon, she was almost sixteen years younger than her brother. She attended elementary and junior high schools in the Washington Metropolitan area and finished her basic schooling in New York City where the family moved in the early 1930s. Her mother, Daisy, died there in 1935, followed by her father, J. E. in 1937. Sometime after those life altering events, Ms. Ellington graduated from the New College program at Columbia University with a degree in biology.
In 1941, Duke Ellington established Tempo Music, and surprised his sister Ruth, by installing her as president of the company. He had a strong desire to maintain control of his own publishing, television, and recording rights, and after his sister's graduation, Duke felt that she could assist in accomplishing this goal.
Ruth's duties at Tempo included signing contracts, arranging some travel at Duke's request, and, most importantly, keeping Duke's music copyrighted. According to her own interview statement, she never arranged bookings. Other interests included hosting a Sunday salon for musicians, appearing at and listening to recording studio sessions once or twice a year, and keeping in touch with the older band members' wives. The older band members (i. e., Johnny Hodges, Harry Carney, Otto Hardwick, and Arthur Wetsol) along with the earlier singers (Ivie Anderson, Joya Sherrill, Marie Cole, and Kay Davis) were like family to Ruth.
In the 1950's, she was host of a radio program on WLIB in New York on which she interviewed guests including the writer Ralph Ellison.
Ruth Ellington's first marriage to Daniel James, a journalist and political scientist, produced two sons Michael and Stephen James. This marriage ended in divorce and she later married McHenry Boatwright, an operatic baritone. Boatright died in 1994.
Ruth was active in the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. She was a founder of the jazz ministry of St. Peter's Lutheran Church in Manhattan and a friend of the first designated jazz pastor, the Reverend John Garcia Gensel.
After Duke's death in 1974, Ruth maintained Tempo until 1995 when she sold fifty one percent of the company to a New York publishing firm, Music Sales. Ruth Dorothea Ellington Boatwright died in 2004 at the age of 88 in Manhattan. She was survived by her two sons.
Provenance:
The collection was donated to the National Museum of American History in 1991. A second set of materials was received from Ruth Ellington Boatwright in 1993.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction. Copyright restrictions exist. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.