The Swingers Orchestra presents a special project dedicated to the compositions of the “Duke” from the 1930s—those that made New York venues famous, where people danced and drank to escape the economic crisis and Prohibition. The search for these pieces has been particularly exciting, as the Duke was already highly prolific from a young age, both in melody and arrangement. It is worth recalling that Ellington was already a leader as a band director and remained a symbol and ambassador of jazz music for 50 years. The arrangements and transcriptions curated by Paolo Barbieri and Stefano Caniato are strictly for octet and are performed by an outstanding horn section: Rudy Migliardi on trombone, Sergio Orlandi on trumpet, Gianluigi Trovesi on alto sax, and Paolo Barbieri on tenor sax. The band’s historic rhythm section features Stefano Caniato on piano, Enrico Lazzarini on double bass, Claudio Bonora on drums, and Delio Barone on guitar.