STRAYHORN, WILLIAM

STRAYHORN, WILLIAM (BILLY SWEETPEA). Jazz arranger (29 November 1915 in Dayton, Ohio; 31 May 1967 in New York, New York). He obtained his musical education in the public schools of Hillsboro, North Carolina, and of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In 1938 he met Edward (Duke) Ellington and played one of his compositions for Ellington. In 1939 he played for a short period with Mercer Ellington, then joined Duke's band as arranger and occasional pianist (1939-67). He wrote many of the pieces...