Duke Ellington - New York, NY
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denben
N 40° 47.814 W 073° 56.962
18T E 588631 N 4516742
American composer, pianist and big band leader, Duke Ellington is a prominent figure in the history of jazz.
Waymark Code: WMBVB9
Location: New York, United States
Date Posted: 06/22/2011
Views: 17
Edward Kennedy Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974), wrote over 1,000 compositions and his music stretched into various genres, including jazz, blues, gospel, film scores, popular, and classical.
Ellington was awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1966. He was later awarded several other prizes, the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1969, an Honorary PhD from the Berklee College of Music in 1971, and the Legion of Honor by France in 1973, the highest civilian honors in each country.
His reputation increased after his death, the Pulitzer Prize Board bestowing a special posthumous honor in 1999. On February 24, 2009, the United States Mint launched a new coin featuring Duke Ellington, making him the first African-American to appear by himself on a circulating U.S. coin.
Duke Ellington Memorial in NYC is installed at Duke Ellington Circle (Fifth Avenue at 110th Street) in Central Park.
The Memorial is a pulpit-like form that stands 30 feet, on three tall columns. At the top of each column stand three female figures that represent the muses. With their arms raised, the nine muses hold aloft a circular platform, bearing an 8-foot high standing figure of Duke Ellington beside a piano.
The figure of Duke Ellington was molded in clay at 32 inches in height. The muse figure was molded in clay at 26 inches in height. The figure were scanned and enlarged in foam to 8 feet and 5 feet respectively. The figures were cast in bronze. The piano, platform, and the columns were fabricated from bronze sheets and all the elements were welded and patinaed. The interior of the dome platform was gilded in gold.
Dedicated on July 1, 1997, Duke Ellington Memorial was commissioned the Duke Ellington Memorial Fund as a gift to the City of New York.
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