Duke Ellington: Musical Genius
Duke Ellington: Musical Genius is an intimate lecture-performance celebrating the Washington, D.C., native’s extraordinary career and compositions. Pianist, composer, and jazz educator Quentin Walston combines scholarly context with live performance, tracing Ellington’s development from Roaring Twenties works such as “Black and Tan Fantasy” through big-band standards including “Take the A Train” and more refined tone poems such as “Come Sunday.”
Walston’s presentation considers the range of Ellington’s musical imagination and the reasons he remains one of America’s most important composers. The event is open to the public.
When: Thursday, October 29, 2026, at 7:00 PM
Venue: Arts Club of Washington, 2017 I Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20006
Format: Lecture and live performance
Presenter: Quentin Walston, a Washington-area composer, pianist, and educator
Presenter background: Walston performs as a solo pianist and with his jazz trio. His album “Retro Future” connects the influence of Thelonious Monk with contemporary groups such as The Bad Plus. Through social media devoted to jazz history and appreciation, he reaches more than 225,000 followers and regularly highlights figures including Duke Ellington, Charlie Parker, and Miles Davis. He has written *How to Teach Jazz & Improvisation* and *Jazz Piano Like A Pro*, and his work has been featured by All About Jazz and on podcasts internationally. He is a Maryland State Arts Council Touring Artist and a Virginia Commission for the Arts Teaching Artist.
Repertoire discussed: The program includes Ellington works such as “Black and Tan Fantasy,” “Take the A Train,” and “Come Sunday.”
Tickets: Arts Club members pay $40 per person; non-members pay $50 per person.
Registration: Members RSVP through the Arts Club, with $40 charged to their account. Non-members must purchase admission, and payment is required to hold the reservation. Guests must be registered.
Cancellation policy: Tickets are non-refundable, although a credit toward a future purchase may be issued for cancellations made up to 48 hours before the event.
Parking: Discounted parking is available at 2001 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, at the corner of I Street and 20th Street NW. Parking is free for members who present their membership card.
Organization: The Arts Club of Washington is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.