​A concert celebrating the early years of one of the world's great jazz festivals.  In 1956 Duke Ellington’s Orchestra came to Newport and presented a concert which George Wein described as "the greatest performance of Ellington's career... It stood for everything that jazz had been and could be."

 

Our concert features music from the best- selling Ellington at Newport 1956 album including Jeep’s Blues (recently featured in the hit movie “American Hustle”) and the legendary Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue famous for its 27 choruses from Ellington’s sax star Paul Gonsalves in a performance that created pandemonium on the night and subsequently revived the fortunes of Ellington and his Orchestra.

 

The 1958 festival was featured in the movie “Jazz On A Summer’s Day” and we recreate some of the music which was stunningly captured on film by photographer Bert Stern.   Louis Armstrong’s Allstars provide the link from one famous Newport movie to another – High Society.