Columbia Encyclopedia
Search results
500 results found
Ellington, Duke
(Encyclopedia)Ellington, Duke (Edward Kennedy Ellington), 1899–1974, American jazz musician and composer, b. Washington, D.C. Ellington made his first professional appearance as a jazz pianist in 1916. By 1918 he...Strayhorn, Billy
(Encyclopedia)Strayhorn, Billy (William Thomas Strayhorn), 1915–67, African-American jazz composer, arranger, lyricist, and pianist, b. Dayton, Ohio. Classically trained, he was drawn to jazz, and early in his ca...Mingus, Charles
(Encyclopedia)Mingus, Charles mĭngˈgəs [key], 1922–79, American jazz musician, b. Nogales, Ariz. Mingus was a bassist, pianist, bandleader, composer, and vocalist. He was one of the most important jazz compose...Jackson, Mahalia
(Encyclopedia)Jackson, Mahalia məhălˈyə [key], 1911–72, American gospel singer, b. New Orleans. She sang in church choirs during her childhood. Moving (1927) to Chicago, she worked at various menial jobs and ...Newport Jazz Festival
(Encyclopedia)Newport Jazz Festival, annual summer music festival, probably the best known of all such festivals, held at Newport, R.I. Originally sponsored by Newport socialites Mr. and Mrs. Louis Lorillard and ja...Reinhardt, Django
(Encyclopedia)Reinhardt, Django (Jean Baptiste Reinhardt), 1910–53, Belgian jazz guitarist of Romani (Gypsy) descent. Reinhardt began playing the guitar professionally at 12. He was severely burned in a fire in 1...Schuller, Gunther Alexander
(Encyclopedia)Schuller, Gunther Alexander, 1925–2015, American composer and conductor, b. Queens, N.Y. He studied French horn and flute, becoming principal hornist with the Cincinnati Symphony (1943–45) and Met...Pennebaker, D. A.
(Encyclopedia)Pennebaker, D. A. (Donn Alan Pennebaker), 1925–2019, pioneering documentary filmmaker, b. Evanston, Ill. His first film, Daybreak Express (1958), is a five-minute short detailing New York's doomed T...Jones, Quincy
(Encyclopedia)Jones, Quincy (Quincy Delight Jones, Jr.), 1933–, African-American musician, composer, bandleader, and music executive, b. Chicago. Jones played trumpet and sang gospel growing up, and studied brief...Ailey, Alvin, Jr.
(Encyclopedia)Ailey, Alvin, Jr. āˈlē [key], 1931–89, American modern dancer and choreographer, b. Rogers, Tex. Ailey studied in Los Angeles with Lester Horton, whose strong, dramatic style and views about mult...Browse by Subject
- Earth and the Environment +-
- History +-
- Literature and the Arts +-
- Medicine +-
- People +-
- Philosophy and Religion +-
-
Places
+-
- Africa
- Asia
- Australia and Oceania
- Britain, Ireland, France, and the Low Countries
- Commonwealth of Independent States and the Baltic Nations
- Germany, Scandinavia, and Central Europe
- Latin America and the Caribbean
- Oceans, Continents, and Polar Regions
- Spain, Portugal, Italy, Greece, and the Balkans
- United States, Canada, and Greenland
- Plants and Animals +-
- Science and Technology +-
- Social Sciences and the Law +-
- Sports and Everyday Life +-
