Choreographer David Roussève shines a light on Duke Ellington's unsung arranger Billy Strayhorn
World Arts and Cultures/Dance Professor David Roussève presents the world premiere of Halfway to Dawn at REDCAT, featuring UCLA dancers including Bernard Brown '16 (M.F.A., World Arts and Cultures/Dance) who appears in the image above. Roussève tells the Los Angeles Times that he was drawn to Ellington's arranger because “Even his joyous songs have a blue tone. ‘Lush Life’ is about sadness, but also yearning and seeking. This is why I fell in love with Billy Strayhorn.”
For the last half century at least, musicians and historians alike have considered Duke Ellington to be one of the greatest jazz composers for a body of work that began in 1920s Harlem and ended up on concert stages across the world. Perhaps his band’s definitive and most-covered number was 'Take the "A" Train,' and many Ellington concerts concluded with the playful 'Satin Doll.'
David Rousseve's "Halfway to Dawn." (Steve Gunther)
But neither is really an Ellington number.
'Satin Doll' was cowritten with Ellington’s arranger, and '"A" Train' was composed entirely by this bespectacled, long underappreciated figure who also wrote classics including 'Lotus Blossom,' 'Chelsea Bridge' and 'Lush Life.'
Over the last few decades, Billy Strayhorn’s reputation has been emerging from Ellington’s shadow, and this week, the man and his music are the subject of a new dance piece making its world premiere at REDCAT."— Scott Timberg, October 3, 2018
This post is an excerpt. Read the full article on the Los Angeles Times website.
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