Donald Walbridge Shirley (January 29, 1927 – April 6, 2013) was an American classical and jazz pianist and composer. He recorded many albums for Cadence Records during the 1950s and 1960s, experimenting with jazz with a classical influence.

Jan 29, 2021 · In 1962, casually racist Italian-American bouncer Tony "Lip" Vallelonga and Don Shirley, a gifted Jamaican-American musician, had very little in common — yet a road trip through the South led...

Dec 10, 2018 · Don Shirley was a 20th-century Jamaican American pianist and composer who often performed with the Don Shirley Trio. A chapter of his life story was the subject of the 2018 film...

Nov 26, 2018 · Jazz pianist Don Shirley, as shown in Nick Vallelonga's film 'Green Book', traveled the south during the Jim Crow-era with a white driver. Shirley's niece criticized the film for being "a depiction of a white man’s version of a Black man’s life."

Nov 19, 2018 · Italian-American bouncer Tony Lip (left) began driving pianist Don Shirley in 1962. Actor Viggo Mortensen (right) portrays Lip in the Green Book movie. Where was musician Don Shirley born? Numerous articles state that Don Shirley was born in Kingston, Jamaica.

In June 1945, at age 18, Shirley made his concert debut with the Boston Pops, playing Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 in B flat.

American classical and jazz pianist and composer Don Shirley is best remembered for his jazz albums for Cadence Records in the 1950s and 1960s.

Feb 17, 2019 · Donald Walbridge “Don” Shirley was an American classical and jazz composer and pianist. Shirley was born on January 29, 1927, to Stella Gertrude Young and Edwin Samuel Shirley in Pensacola, Florida. His mother and father were Jamaican-born immigrants.

Jan 21, 2019 · Shirley was a musical prodigy who started playing piano at the age of three. (Some reports say that he started playing at two.) At nine, he studied musical theory at the Leningrad...

Don Shirley’s primary instrument of choice was the piano. He was a masterfully skilled pianist, often lauded for his effortless showcase of dynamics.