and
and his
HIS LIFE:
At the age of seven, he began to take piano lessons from Marietta Clinkscales
his mother surrounded him with dignified women to reinforce his manners.
His childhood friends noticed that his manners and dress gave him the
appearance of a nobleman, and so started calling him Duke Ellington
credited Edgar McEntree for the nickname.
Although he had piano lessons, Ellington was more interested in baseball, and
got his first job selling peanuts at Washington senators baseball games.
In 1914, when he was working as a soda jerk at the Poodle Dog Caf, he wrote
his first composition, SODA FOUNTAIN RAG, by ear as he hadnt learnt to read
and write music.
He played it as a ONE-STEP, TWO-STEP, WALTZ, TANGO and FOX TROT,
recalling that listeners never knew it was the same piece
He missed more of his lessons than he attended feeling that playing the piano
wasnt his talent.
He started sneaking into Frank Holidays Poolroom at the age of 14, and
hearing the poolroom pianists play inspired him and caused him to take his
piano lessons seriously.
He began listening to and imitating ragtime pianists, and with the guidance of
band-leader Oliver Perry, he learnt to read sheet music, project a professional
style and improve his technique.
From 1917-1919 he launched his musical career, painting signs by day and
playing piano at night. He would use his job painting signs to get opportunities
to play the piano - when people came asking for signs for dances or parties,
he would ask if they had musical entertainment and offer to play for them.