Archive for February, 2012

Mount Harrisa, Lady of Lebanon – A Tribute by Duke Ellington

Saturday, February 4th, 2012
Some 15 miles from the Lebanese capital Beirut, on”Mount Harissa”, stands a huge statue of “Our Lady of Lebanon”. The name “Mount Harissa” was adopted by Duke Elington’s Far East Suite movement and was one of the band’s last memories. After Beirut, they traveled to Turkey; there they learned of John F. Kennedy’s assassination, which forced the cancellation of the remaining weeks of the tour. “Mount Harissa” is really two pieces: the haunting first theme, delineated by Ellington’s expressive piano, and the hard-swinging second section, which is given over to Gonsalves. As Gonsalves winds down and the band gives way to the return of the main theme, Ellington’s arpeggios shower the transition, and the piece relearns the energized serenity with which it began. As a composition, it is oceanic; as a performance, merely unalterable.

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