[Dixielandjazz] "Star Dust" (was Standard Keys)

[AL LEVY]

another 2c
To the best of my knowledge
Hoagy did NOT write "Stardust"
Hoagy wrote "Sometimes I wonder why" etc
Mitchell Parish wrote the music.
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re: standard keys
Sheet music is written by an editor at the publishing
company. I did this for a while in N.Y.
So, unless you have the original manuscript, you have
no idea what the song writer / composer wrote.
Many song writers can't write music, they can play
and/or sing it. I used to create lead sheets for song writers
while I was working in the Brill Bldg. (another story) sometime later.

Hand written fake book 1949: Stardust in D flat
Printed fake book 1950 Stardust in C major
To the best of my knowledge, published piano and vocal /
piano sheet music - key is picked to avoid ledger lines.
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Frank Loesser, Richard Rodgers and others were composers
and did write entire scores.
I really don't know about Irving Berlin. I heard that he could
only play in high sharp keys (using the black keys of the
piano) and that he had a built in lever on the piano to
transpose. I am guessing that he wrote lead sheets.
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[Only my recollection] Around 1952 White Christmas was
not the best selling nor most often played song.
Johnny Marks [another story, sometime] beat it out with Rudolph.
I'll try to get back, with your permission, to "obscure tunes."
Gotta run
Cheers,
Al
Pianist, Composer, Arranger, Conductor, Teacher and Music Prep.
Please visit me at
http://alevy.com