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Photos by Reginald Jackson and Eugene Cook
The Duke Ellington Fellowship at Yale has remained dedicated to community throughout its 30 year history. Visiting Artists perform for school children in both the Yale School of Music's Sprague Memorial Hall and in local schools. Talented young musicians have also been featured alongside the Mitchell Ruff Duo in their Sprague Hall Concerts. Special projects have included:
The Vocal Music Project (1997)
"Singing is the most fundamental of all of humankind's music making. The voice is more accessible than expensive instruments, and excellence in its use needs to be stressed. This is especially true in inner-city school programs whose resources for instrumental music instruction have been so drastically cut. But students at schools with well-funded programs in music also need to sing. Why? Because language is the central feature of meaningful singing, and we all know that language is no small consideration in the current debate in American education.
Over the past decade, compelling studies have shown that students who sing and play music at a high level in schools are significantly more successful in their academic studies. Not only do they perform at higher levels in their study of science, math and reading, the research shows that they are actively sought after by the leading universities in the country, such as Yale and her sister institutions. " - Willie Ruff
After a Saturday symposium at Yale, Shades (a Yale a capella singing group), the Manjeé Trio from the Coop High School, and Greater Hartford Academy for the Performing Arts Jazz Choir were selected to perform with the Mitchell Ruff Duo and Nate Pruitt on the DE Fellowship's 25th Anniversary Concert.
Duke Ellington Centennial Dance Project (1999)
The Cooperative Arts and Humanities Magnet High School (serving Greater New Haven) Dancers performed original ballets and jazz selections on three tunes with the a Yale School of Music orchestra conducted by Willie Ruff. The arrangements for classical instruments were done as part of Professor Ruff's Instrumental Arranging Class at the Yale School of Music.
Mentoring
Mentoring young talented jazz musicians has long been a source of inspiration for the Mitchell Ruff Duo. When a truly exceptional talent is found, he or she is often asked to share the stage with them on the Duke Ellington Fellowship Series.