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Billy Strayhorn
If you are familiar with the jazz composition, "Take the A Train," then you know something about not only Duke Ellington, but also Billy "Sweet Pea" Strayhorn, its composer. Strayhorn joined Ellington's band in 1939, at the age of twenty-two. Ellington liked what he saw in Billy and took this shy, talented pianist under his wings. Neither one was sure what Strayhorn's function in the band would be, but their musical talents had attracted each other. By the end of the year Strayhorn had become essential to the Duke Ellington Band; arranging, composing, sitting-in at the piano. Billy made a rapid and almost complete assimilation of Ellington's style and technique. It was difficult to discern where one's style ended and the other's began. The results of the Ellington-Strayhorn collaboration brought much joy to the jazz world. The history, of the family of William Thomas Strayhorn (his mother called him "Bill") goes back over a hundred years in Hillsborough. One set of great grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. George Craig, lived behind the present Farmer's Exchange. A great grand-mother was the cook for Robert E. Lee. Billy, however, was born in Dayton, Ohio in 1915. His mother, Lillian Young Strayhorn, brought her children to Hillsborough often. Billy was attracted to the piano that his grandmother, Elizabeth Craig Strayhorn owned. He played it from the moment he was tall enough to reach the keys. Even in those early years, when he played, his family would gather to listen and sing. In 1923 Billy entered the first grade in a little wooden school house, since destroyed. Soon after that, however, his mother moved her family to Pittsburgh to join Billy's father, James Nathaniel Strayhorn. Mr. Strayhorn had gotten a job there as a gas-maker and wire-puller. Charlotte Catlin began to give Billy private piano lessons. He played the piano everyday, sometimes becoming so engrossed that he would be late for his job. He also played in the high school band. His father enrolled him in the Pittsburgh Musical institution where he studied classical music. He had more classical training than most jazz musicians of his time. Strayhorn lived a tremendously productive life. He influenced many people that he met, and yet remained very modest and unassuming all the while. For a time he coached Lena Horne in classical music to broaden her knowledge and improve her style of singing. He toured the world with Ellington's band and for a brief time lived in Paris.
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The Duke Ellington Carnegie Hall Concerts: January 1943
by Chuck Lenatti
Duke Ellington was one of the most popular and successful jazz musicians of the first half of the 20th century and according to composer Gunther Schuller and musicologist and historian Barry Kernfeld, “the most significant composer of the genre." Radio broadcasts from his residency at New York's Cotton Club beginning in 1927 extended Ellington's orchestra's national exposure and a parade of hit records, from “East St. Louis Toodle-Oo" in 1926 to “C Jam Blues" in 1942, among many ...
Continue ReadingMy Brainwaves in His Head, and His in Mine - Duke Ellington & Billy Strayhorn (1941 - 1967)
by Russell Perry
Duke Ellington was the well-spring that flowed through many decades of jazz. In 1938, Ellington found his soul-mate in composer/arranger Billy Strayhorn. By the early 1940s, Strayhorn combined with bassist Jimmy Blanton and tenor saxophonist Ben Webster to reinvigorate both Ellington and his band. In this hour, we will feature the compositions and arrangements of Ellington's most important collaborator, Billy Strayhorn, from “Take the A Train" and “Chelsea Bridge" through “Satin Doll" and “Lush Life" to his dying lament--"Blood Count"--from ...
Continue ReadingPittsburgh Jazz: A Brief History
by Steve Rowland
This article was first published at the Explore PA History website. At first glance, Pittsburgh might not seem the most likely place to produce great jazz musicians. Situated on the western edge of the state, “Smoketown" was a gritty industrial city, better known for being the center of the nation's steel industry, than for its popular music or culture. Like jny: Philadelphia, its industries attracted many African Americans from the south, men and women who were looking for ...
Continue ReadingOutbeat Jazz Festival 2014
by Victor L. Schermer
Outbeat Jazz Festival Philadelphia, PA September 18-21, 2014 The Outbeat Jazz Festival, touted as “America's First Queer Jazz Festival," where the “Q-word" has become an “in" word, proved to be an innovative event that brought the public's attention to the important role of gay (LGBT) jazz musicians and composers. A series of concerts and discussions drove the point home. It was no accident that the festival was held at venues in and around Center City, ...
Continue ReadingBilly Strayhorn: Out Of The Shadows
by Chris Mosey
An elaborate box set from the Danish Storyville label: seven CDs and one DVD, paying tribute to Duke Ellington's arranger and composer Billy Strayhorn that--alas--doesn't quite live up to the ambitions of it's makers. Ask yourself, was Strayhorn truly the shadowy figure implied by the title? While the bulk of his work was achieved out of the public eye, Billy Strayhorn was no shrinking violet. He “subbed" for Ellington on piano with the band ...
Continue ReadingBilly Strayhorn: Piano Passion
by Andrew Velez
During their nearly three decades of working together, Billy Strayhorn and Duke Ellington created a legacy of music for the ages. This set offers a rare opportunity to hear Strayhorn the composer playing many of his own songs, as well as some he wrote with Ellington and others. Their partnership began in 1939 and ended only with the death of “Swee' Pea," as Strayhorn came to be fondly called by Ellington, at a mere 52 from cancer in 1967.
Continue ReadingLush Life: A Biography of Billy Strayhorn
by Joel Roberts
by David Hajdu Farrar Straus and Giroux, 1996 0-374-19438-6
The young pianist and composer Billy Strayhorn was introduced to Duke Ellington, already a major international star and leader of one of the world's most popular bands, for the first time backstage at an Ellington Orchestra performance at the Stanley Theatre in Pittsburgh in December 1938. After a brief audition, which consisted of Strayhorn playing a few of his own compositions as well as interpretations of Ellington ...
Continue ReadingLibrary of Congress Acquires Archive of Jazz Great Billy Strayhorn
Source:
All About Jazz
The Library of Congress announced today that it has acquired the original manuscripts documenting the work of composer, arranger and pianist Billy Strayhorn. An important star in the jazz firmament, Strayhorn was the source of much of the sound of the Duke Ellington Orchestra. He worked with Ellington for nearly 30 years, writing or collaborating on more than 200 tunes and arrangements for the band. Strayhorn wrote the orchestra’s signature tune, “Take the ‘A’ Train.” The Strayhorn Collection contains nearly ...
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Billy Strayhorn's 101st
Source:
Rifftides by Doug Ramsey
Charlie Shoemake sent a reminder that today is the 101st anniversary of the birth of Billy Strayhorn (pictured with Duke Ellington). Strayhorn was a 16-year-old high school student in Pittsburgh when he wrote “Lush Life.” A few years later he brought his songwriting ability to Ellington’s attention. One of the songs he demonstrated that day was “Lush Life.” “Take The ‘A’ Train” followed soon after he joined Ellington. The encounter led to one of the most significant partnerships in twentieth ...
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Nancy Valentine: A Special Presentation Of Billy Strayhorn Music at St. Peter's Church on September 19th
Source:
Michael Ricci
A Special Presentation Of Billy Strayhorn Music by Nancy Valentine & Friends at Season Opener Concert/Party Thurs., Sept. 19th 7:30 Pm. Nancy Valentine,, Vocalist with special guest Warren Vache, cornet. Featuring John di Martino - Piano, Neal Miner - Bass, Alvin Atkinson, Jr.- Drums, Joel Frahm - Tenor Sax. Saint Peter's Church (54th Street & Lexington Avenue, NYC). Nancy Valentine is a straight-ahead jazz vocalist who weaves an emotional story with each song. She gets deeply intimate with the intent ...
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Grant Stewart - Plays the Music of Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn (Sharp Nine, 2009)
Source:
Music and More by Tim Niland
Saxophonist Grant Stewart leads a subtle and swinging tribute to the music of pianists and composers Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn on this solid mainstream jazz recording. While he can only touch the tip of the iceberg of these composers voluminous output, the band hits a few high points along the way. Accompanied by Tardo Hammer on piano, Paul Gill on bass and Joe Farnsworth on drums, the group works through a series of compositions from their canonical songbook, beginning ...
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The Billy Strayhorn Songbook
Source:
David Brent Johnson
Night Lights celebrates the 95th anniversary of Billy Strayhorn's birth with “The Billy Strayhorn Songbook," a program featuring interpretations of Strayhorn's music by the Duke Ellington orchestra, Ellingtonians such as Johnny Hodges, Ray Nance, and Ben Webster, John Coltrane, the Dutch Jazz Orchestra, and Strayhorn himself. Strayhorn was Ellington's writing partner for 27 years, contributing scores of compositions and arrangements; we'll hear some of his signature tunes such as “Chelsea Bridge," “Lush Life" (a rare performance by Strayhorn himself), and ...
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A Billy Strayhorn Show
Source:
All About Jazz
Billy Strayhorn, Duke Ellington's creative alter-ego, continues to connect with old audiences and find new ones. His music is for everyone, but it is no surprise that Strayhorn's story and songs move the gay community, in which he has become a symbol and icon. The Gay Mens Chorus of Los Angeles paid tribute to Strayhorn last year near the fortieth anniversary of his death on May 31, 1967. Video of that ninety-minute production is now streaming in full on the internet. The chorus sings Strayhorn's music ...
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The Jazz Museum in Harlem Allstars Salute: Billy Strayhorn February 16th + Ella Fitzgerald February 20th
Source:
Jim Eigo, Jazz Promo Services
The National Jazz Museum in Harlem 104 East 126th Street New York, NY 10035 212 348-8300 THE JAZZ MUSEUM IN HARLEM ALLSTARS SALUTE: BILLY STRAYHORN FEBRUARY 16th ELLA FITZGERALD FEBRUARY 20th FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2007 TRIBUTE TO BILLY STRAYHORN AND DUKE ELLINGTON HARLEM IN THE HIMALAYAS AT THE RUBIN MUSEUM OF ART 150 W. 17TH STREET CALL FOR TICKETS 212.620.5000 ...
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Dianne Reeves Speaks on Judged Jazz Artist (Billy Strayhorn)
Source:
All About Jazz
If jazz legend Billy Strayhorn were straight, his work may have not been underrecognized. A companion soundtrack to the 90-minute documentary film about the pioneering composer, arranger and pianist, “Billy Strayhorn: Lush Life," will take a hard look at the intolerant society Strayhorn infiltrated his music with and his complex relationship with Duke Ellington. The documentary debuts nationally as part of PBS's Independent Lens series on Feb. 6. “Billy Strayhorn: Lush Life," the soundtrack, features 15 Strayhorn compositions performed by ...
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New Film Examines Billy Strayhorn's Rich Contributions to Jazz
Source:
All About Jazz
Anyone familiar with Pittsburgh's rich jazz legacy will recognize the name Billy Strayhorn and his contributions to the 20th-century jazz canon. But folks outside the cognoscenti might wonder: Who was Strayhorn, and why does he matter? Before his death from cancer at 51 in 1967, Strayhorn shared a musical relationship with Duke Ellington that spanned nearly 30 years. His sound and originality contributed heavily to the Ellington oeuvre. Strayhorn's best-known works are “Lush Life," “Chelsea Bridge" and “Take the 'A' ...
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ASCAP & IAJE Commissioned Works Honoring Billy Strayhorn Premiered at 2007 IAJE Conference in New York City
Source:
All About Jazz
New Works by Rufus Reid and Oscar Perez Premiered New York, NY - Two jazz works, commissioned by ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers) in memory of Billy Strayhorn, were premiered on January 11, 2007 during the Opening General Session at the IAJE (International Association for Jazz Education) Conference held at the Hilton Hotel Grand Ballroom in New York City. Rufus Reid, composer, bassist and music educator, was recognized in the Established Composer category for Hues Of A ...
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