“Billie’s Song” is a beautiful one-page ballad dedicated to Billie Holiday, an African American jazz singer who influenced jazz and pop singing. The performer should take care to find the special warmth and intensity represented in this piece — her singing represented an unforgettable experience, perhaps because of so much sadness and tragedy she underwent in her personal life. A student would learn more about this care emotional expression, and would benefit from familiarizing themselves with Holiday’s work in order to capture her full presence and sentiments.
The piece requires careful voicing of the right hand chords in order to create a smooth melody. The piece may help young pianists develop a natural sense of time freedom and rubato, which are integral to this kind of jazz ballads, and to Holiday’s singing.
Portraits of Jazz by Valerie Capers is a collection of 12 early intermediate to intermediate jazz style pieces published in 1976 by Aztec Diaz-Tec 800, and Oxford University Press in 1992. These pieces are inspired by or dedicated to a particular jazz musician or singer
Valerie Capers was born in 1935, and was introduced to music through her father’s ties to Fats Waller (American Jazz Pianist), and her brother’s performances in the Mongo Santamaria Band. She received her early education at the New York Institute for the Education of the Blind and graduated from the Juilliard School of Music, with Bachelors and Masters degrees. Capers brings a wide scope of pianistic styles and concepts to her playing, drawing from jazz idols and keyboard masters alike.
Source
Performance by David Reid.