Have you ever worked on a project where you did a huge amount of the heavy lifting, but someone else ended up getting most of the credit? It happens all the time – especially in the music business. But sometimes, the person working behind the scenes is just too brilliant to remain unknown.
Greetings – I’m Loki Karuna, and on this edition of Noteworthy we’re gonna give credit where credit is due, to the legendary Billy Strayhorn.
Born in 1915, Billy grew up in Pittsburgh with dreams of becoming a classical composer. Because of the harsh racial barriers of the time AND Billy being openly gay, the classical world wasn’t exactly welcoming, so he pivoted to jazz. He eventually crossed paths with Duke Ellington, creating some of the genre’s most celebrated compositions, including this one – Billy Strayhorn’s Take the A Train.
While Duke was the face of the band, Billy was often the musical architect, which resulted in a historical narrative that sidelined Billy. But today, the world is finally beginning to understand just how important Billy Strayhorn was to American jazz – a man who is without a doubt, one of history’s MOST Noteworthy composers.
Noteworthy is a production of WDAV classical public radio.