Too sad as the world lost one of my favorites, Donald Byrd, The Jazz legend! Hit the jump as we travel through the life of Byrd.
The Legendary Jazz Trumpeter passed away February 4th but it wasn’t confirmed until a few days ago. The reason behind it is his family wanted to keep it secret? Who does that? The man is a Legend and touched so many people with his music, why would anyone want to keep someone’s death a secret? We can all thank his nephew for confirming and for this statement about his uncle:
“Let’s remember Donald as a one of a kind pioneer of the trumpet, of the many styles of music he took on, of music education. In sum, Donald was an avid, eternal student of music, until his death. That’s what I try to be, everyday!! Rest in peace, uncle!”
Huff Post gives a brief Bio below:
Byrd was born in Detroit in 1932, and was already an accomplished trumpeter by the time he finished high school. He later went on to play in a military band during his term in the United States Air Force, and then obtained a bachelor’s degree in music from Wayne State University and a master’s degree from Manhattan School of Music.
His career began when he joined Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers, as a replacement for Clifford Brown, in the 1950s, and formed the fusion group The Blackbyrds in the early 1970s. According to Amoeba, Byrd was a “one of a kind trumpeter,” who was known not just for his work in jazz, but also in R&B, soul and funk music, and it was his ability to transcend time and genre and remain relevant that sets his work apart from others.
