Live Liederhalle Stuttgart 1967

As Duke Ellington approached seventy, he was already regarded as the great historical figure of African American music, had been honored with honorary degrees, and had landed on the covers of prestigious magazines. But Ellington still had to and wanted to play as much as possible, and therefore toured the world with his orchestra, from Japan to North Africa and Eastern Europe. This also allowed him to make a stop in Stuttgart in March 1967 as part of his travels, to present a colorful program of some tried-and-true and mostly lesser-known compositions. It was an exceptionally modern concert by Ellington's standards, exuberant in mood, mischievous in places in the arrangements. And it also showed that even a ultimately traditional jazz orchestra could develop enough radiance in the rocking sixties to carry along an audience like the one in the Liederhalle. Others were making the revolutions by now, but Duke Ellington still mastered the great musical gesture brilliantly.