Duke Ellington, photo by Herb Snitzer
"Stan Kenton can stand in front of a thousand musicians and make a dramatic gesture, and every studio arranger will nod his head and say, 'Oh, yes, that's done like this,'" remarked André Previn, who knew all about orchestration. "But Duke merely lifts his finger, three horns make a sound, and I don't know what it is!" Previn was probably thinking of "Mood Indigo." No other orchestrator ever accomplished more with less. Backed by a four-piece rhythm section, Duke's three horns make a sound fit for nirvana. Only Whetsol's and Nanton's occasional imperfections remind us that humans are at work.