Ellington: From Stride to Strings will be a dazzling journey through the extraordinary musical life of Duke Ellington, from his early work in stride piano to his rise to stardom and emergence as one of Jazz’s most ground-breaking composers – an incredible night of music not to be missed!

In the first half of the performance, the evolution of Ellington’s spectacular genius will be celebrated and reimagined by a sextet of virtuoso musicians from the USA led by renowned trumpeter Dominick Farinacci. Breathtaking stride piano and iconic numbers such as Mood Indigo, Satin Doll and Take the A Train will be featured. The second half will unite these outstanding artists with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and begin with New World ‘a Comin’, a piece often seen as the Duke’s musical response to Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, in which the talented young pianist Mathis Picard will take the piano chair. This will be followed by two specially commissioned works by Ethan Iverson, an esteemed composer and pianist known for his bold re-imaginings of familiar work: A Duke Ellington Symphonic Fantasy and a high-energy arrangement for orchestra and jazz sextet of the iconic C Jam Blues