Tiroler Festspiele - J. S. Bach: SACRED CONCERT

The American pianist, bandleader, and composer Duke Ellington is one of the most significant musicians in jazz history; he is regarded as the founder of the modern big band style. His arrangements shaped the development of jazz for decades. Of his over 2,000 works, hundreds have become standards. In 1965, he was commissioned to create a religious concert for the consecration of the new Grace Cathedral in San Francisco. This first Sacred Concert for big band, choir, soloists, and dancers was performed in September 1965. Further Sacred Concerts followed, with which Ellington and his big band toured America and Europe until 1974. He himself described the works as "the most important thing I have ever done".