John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer, born 21 October 1917 in Cheraw, South Carolina, and died 6 January 1993 in Englewood, New Jersey. A central architect of bebop alongside Charlie Parker in the 1940s, he built on the virtuosic trumpet style of Roy Eldridge while adding new layers of harmonic and rhythmic complexity.

Gillespie’s compositions, including “A Night in Tunisia” (co-written with Frank Paparelli, c. 1942), became foundational jazz standards. “A Night in Tunisia” has since been widely arranged for other instruments, including a well-known classical guitar arrangement by Roland Dyens.

Sources:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dizzy_Gillespie