Duke Ellington's 115th Birthday Celebration Event Schedule Is Finalized for 4/27 & 4/29

The Duke Ellington Center for the Arts will commemorate the Duke's 115th birthday with an outdoor ceremony and concert on Sunday, April 27th at 1 PM in front of Duke Ellington's statue at 5th Avenue and 110th street. Additionally Duke Ellington's 115th Birthday Bash, a musical birthday Party and show will be celebrated on Duke's actual birthday two days later (Tuesday, April 29, from 7 to 9 PM) at Ballroom off Fifth on 37th St between 5th and 6th Avenues.

Although the legendary Duke Ellington passed away on May 24, 1974, nearly 40 years ago, his fame and stature continue to grow and blossom. Just this past year alone, After Midnight, a big band musical featuring all-Ellington music in a tribute to Harlem's famous Cotton Club, opened on Broadway and is one of the favorites for winning a Tony Award this year; an SRO audience cheered the hundreds of students who participated in Arranging Ellington, concert of Ellington's sacred music, at Carnegie Hall this past March 23; and the Duke Ellington Center Big Band is finalizing plans for concert tours of France and the US during the upcoming year.

As the world prepares to celebrate the 115th birthday of the legendary Duke Ellington on April 29, 2014, the 20th century's most prolific composer in both volume and variety with more than 3,000 compositions to his credit, the Duke Ellington Center for the Arts is planning two celebrations to commemorate the event, it was announced by Mercedes Ellington, the Duke's granddaughter and Founder/President of the Center.

The first event -- on Sunday, April 27, from 12:45 to 3:30 PM (Rain or Shine) -- will be a free outdoor ceremony and concert staged in front of the Duke Ellington Statue which stands majestically at the corner of Fifth Avenue and 110th Street - the Gateway to Harlem; and two days later (on Duke's actual birthday, Tuesday, April 29) the Center will present Duke Ellington's 115th Birthday Bash, a festive Birthday Party and Musical Show, from 7:00 to 10 PM, at Ballroom Off Fifth (37 West 37th Street, between 5th Avenue and Avenue of the Americas), for which there will be a nominal admission charge of $45.

The Sunday afternoon concert will feature an all-Ellington jazz program, produced and staged by Ms. Ellington, an award-winning dancer/choreographer, featuring young jazz musicians and singers from Jazz at Lincoln Center's The Middle School Jazz Academy (MSJA) and The Youth Workshop Band; the multi-Latin Grammy nominated Manhattan School of Music Afro-Cuban Jazz Orchestra, conducted by percussionist and Latin bandleader Bobby Sanabria; vocals by renowned jazz singers Antoinette Montague and Tony Ponella; tap master Tony Waag of the American Tap Dance Foundation; and swing dancers Christina Isaksen and Andrew Willens.

The Tuesday night Birthday Bash Party and Show, at Ballroom Off Fifth, will feature dance music by Eli Yamin and his Trio; singers Antoinette Montague, Marion Cowings, Tony Ponella, Kent Drake, Cheryl Warfield, Jacqueline Thompson and Swedish singer/songwriter/recording artist Viktoria Tocca; plus tap and ballroom dancers Alex Cowings and Michael Choi.

There will be food, wine, soft drinks, dessert items and a Birthday Cake honoring the Duke's 115th birthday! Tickets are $45 and may be purchased at www.brownpapertickets.com/event/655165

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