Billy Strayhorn epitomized the Harlem Renaissance. He was a classically trained virtuoso who fell in love with the wonder of jazz. If he weren't a prodigy, he sure had the knack, crafting his signature theme "Lush Life" while only a teen and writing the hit "Take The 'A' Train" by riffing off the directions to Duke Ellington's house.
According to Jazz essayist John Twomey, when he dined at French restaurants, Strayhorn ordered in that language, much to the chagrin of the white patrons who shot him dirty looks. Scotch, smokes and books fueled his aura, and his refusal to hide his homosexualityin an era when Langston Hughes never talked about such things, and James Baldwin had to leave the country before he could come to terms with itonly added to the mystique.
It's not every high school student who has a subscription to the New Yorker and is composing sophisticated concertos for the graduation festivities, but colleges weren't interested in any classical pianist whose skin was the same color as the chef, Twomey wrote. Fortunately, however eloquent his elocution, Strayhorn, at least, was no snob when it came to appreciating new musical horizons.
In 1934, the 19-year-old heard Duke Ellington's Orchestra, and was blown away by a single chord. Twomey quotes Strayhorn saying, "That's what really got me. He had a chord, which I have never discovered. I haven't heard it since. I couldn't figure this chord out. I went home after going to see this show at the Penn Theater in Pittsburgh, and I couldn't figure out what was in that chord, it was just wonderful," according to JazzSight.com .
Four years later, he would attend another event involving Ellington's orchestra that would change his life. Strayhorn now had enough of a reputation that he was invited backstage after the performance. Ellington sat in his chair, eyes closed, his hair stylist at work. At the bandleader's request, Strayhorn took his seat at the piano in the corner of the dressing room. With all the certainty of youth, Strayhorn played a song Ellington had just performed, then said, "Now this is how I would play it." Needless to say, Ellington opened his eyes.
"Billy Strayhorn was my right arm, my left arm, all the eyes in the back of my head, my brain waves in his head, and his in mine," Ellington said of his collaborator, composer, arranger and friend. Except for a brief period in the 1950s when Strayhorn pursued solo projects, their partnership lasted until Strayhorn succumbed to cancer at 51.
Strayhorn's life and work are going to be celebrated by the Music Institute of Chicago (MIC) during its Billy Strayhorn Jazz Festival, taking place Oct. 26-28. Terrell Stafford, Temple University's Grammy-winning professor of music, will be performing Strayhorn compositions Oct. 27 with his quintet as well as jamming with MIC faculty and special guests the final night.
Although Strayhorn was a public figure who was open about his sexuality, and a prominent figure alongside his friend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the civil-rights movement, personal details remain elusive. Mark George, MIC President and CEO, told Windy City Times, "For these questions I must refer you to the writer David Hajdu, the author of the definitive biography of Strayhorn, Lush Life.
Hadju is attending the festival and participating in a panel discussion Friday, Oct. 26 at 7:30 p.m. The panel will address many of these issues in advance of a screening of Robert Levi's documentary, Lush Life. "For anyone interested in the sociological and musical journey of Billy Strayhorn, this is a must-see event," said George.
"While I am no expert on this issue, it seems to me that the members of the Ellington band felt very protective of Billy Strayhorn," George said. "There is a palpable fondness in their statements and recollections about Billy as a musician and a man. There were undoubtedly disadvantages in the music business to being a [gay man] and African-American artist. What is most significant in this story is the fact that Billy persevered through all obstacles and managed to emerge as a man who was not crippled by bitterness."
George credited the resurgence of Strayhorn's popularity to the fact that the rights to Strayhorn's music have reverted back to his family, who have "tirelessly advocated for the belated recognition of Strayhorn's genius. Also, musicians are fascinated by the depth, complexity and artistry of Billy's music," George said.
That family connectionspecifically Strayhorn's niece, Alyce Claerbaut of Chicagowas part of the reason MIC is honoring Strayhorn with the jazz fest, and because "the Music Institute of Chicago also has a fabulous jazz studies program, which of course we want the world to know about," George said. "The intersection of the musical, the personal and the educational was just too wonderful to pass up."
The Billy Strayhorn Jazz Festival is Oct. 26-28 at the Music Institute of Chicago, Nichols Concert Hall, 1490 Chicago Ave., Evanston. For tickets and more information, visit www.musicinst.org/jazz-festival.