I was born on November 29, 2015, in Dayton, OH. My parents moved to Pittsburgh, PA when I was still an infant so I grew up in Pittsburgh, PA (Homewood-Brushton). I graduated from Westinghouse High School; moved to New York City, and spent my entire career as a lyricist, arranger, and composer for Duke Ellington.
New York Celebrates Billy Strayhorn’s Centennial With Special ‘A Train’ Ride
Photo
Wynton Marsalis played "Take the A Train" on the A line in 1999. On Sunday, the song's composer, Billy Strayhorn, will be honored with another subway performance.Credit Bebeto Matthews/Associated Press
All aboard the A Train! This Sunday, Jazz at Lincoln Center will celebrate the centennial of jazz great Billy Strayhorn with a series of performances — including a surprise pop-up concert on the subway that inspired Strayhorn’s most famous composition, “Take the A Train.”
The MTA will unearth an era-appropriate subway train to run on the A line for the occasion. The train’s passengers will be serenaded by the Donald Malloy Quartet and the Evan Sherman Entourage playing a medley of Strayhorn compositions, including “Take the A Train”. (Time and location of the concert will not be announced because of concerns about crowding.)
“We celebrate the centennial of Mr. Strayhorn by saluting one of the most meaningful compositions in the jazz canon, as we also salute our public transit system,” Wynton Marsalis, the trumpeter and artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center, said in a statement.
The celebration is a collaboration between Jazz at Lincoln Center, MTA Music and the New York Transit Museum. Mr. Marsalis
J. Malls
Read about (and HEAR) Billy Strayhorn's Pittsburgh-based trio, The Mad Hatters:
http://idigpgh.blogspot.com/2015/11/the-mad-hatters-early-recording...
Nov 30, 2015
Dr. Nelson Harrison
New York Celebrates Billy Strayhorn’s Centennial With Special ‘A Train’ Ride
All aboard the A Train! This Sunday, Jazz at Lincoln Center will celebrate the centennial of jazz great Billy Strayhorn with a series of performances — including a surprise pop-up concert on the subway that inspired Strayhorn’s most famous composition, “Take the A Train.”
The MTA will unearth an era-appropriate subway train to run on the A line for the occasion. The train’s passengers will be serenaded by the Donald Malloy Quartet and the Evan Sherman Entourage playing a medley of Strayhorn compositions, including “Take the A Train”. (Time and location of the concert will not be announced because of concerns about crowding.)
“We celebrate the centennial of Mr. Strayhorn by saluting one of the most meaningful compositions in the jazz canon, as we also salute our public transit system,” Wynton Marsalis, the trumpeter and artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center, said in a statement.
The celebration is a collaboration between Jazz at Lincoln Center, MTA Music and the New York Transit Museum. Mr. Marsalis
Nov 30, 2015
Cheryll M. Chakrabarti
This has been a tremendous year for honoring Billy. It has been an international affair.
Dec 2, 2015