num_pages: 32
description: You ever hear of the jazz playin' man, the man with the cats who could swing with his band?His name was Duke. Duke Ellington. As a child, he said piano made an umpy-dump sound that was headed nowhere worth following. But, years later, he heard the piano played a whole new way. People called the music "ragtime", and soon the sound had Duke's fingers riding the piano keys.Duke began to compose his own melodies, which led him to form a band, The Washingtonians. Before long, the group was performing at the swankiest hangouts in Harlem, including The Cotton Club, but under a new name: Duke Ellington and His Orchestra. Soon the whole country swung to Duke's beat.This is the story of one of the greatest composers of the twentieth century - the king of the keys - Duke Ellington.
language: English
title: Duke Ellington: The Piano Prince and His Orchestra (Caldecott Honor Book)
titlecomplete: Duke Ellington: The Piano Prince and His Orchestra (Caldecott Honor Book) (Great Black Performers, 2)
genres: Music, Historical, History, Cultural, Jazz, Picture Books, Childrens, African American, Biography, Nonfiction
ratings_count: 3392
awards: awardedAt: 915177600000
name: Caldecott Medal, awardedAt: 915177600000
name: Coretta Scott King Book Award
category: Illustrator Honor
publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers