It all started in Hillsborough, where as a child Strayhorn began plinking away on the keys of the piano in his grandmother's house as soon as he was tall enough to reach them.

The Historical Foundation of Hillsborough and Orange County Historical Museum are honoring Strayhorn's music and legacy this month with a free public concert and special exhibit.

The Historical Foundation will present The Jazztones in concert, performing a selection of songs by Strayhorn, Sunday at 3 p.m. at Hillsborough United Presbyterian Church.

The concert is in conjunction with "Celebrating Billy Strayhorn," an exhibit of photographs, music and memorabilia at the Orange County Historical Museum.

"We wanted to something to celebrate African-American History month, and we decided we wanted to focus on musicians in the county," said Jennifer Koach, executive director of the museum. "Last May we merged with the Historical Society, and they already had a number of display items about Billy Strayhorn, who was a Hillsborough resident for part of his childhood. We didn't want to reinvent the wheel, so we started with what they had and expanded on it."

Among other things, the exhibit features a selection of recordings of Strayhorn's tunes you can listen to, and an electric piano and sheet music of some of his songs, including "Take the A Train" and "Lush Life." A sign beside the piano invites visitors to "Try your hand at one of Billy Strayhorn's tunes."

"You can't have an exhibit about a musician without music," Koach said.

Strayhorn was born in Dayton Ohio, in 1915, but his family had several generations' worth of roots in Orange County; Strayhorn is one of those names long associated with this place.

His mother, Lillian Strayhorn, brought him to Hillsborough frequently and for long periods to stay with his grandparents, Elizabeth and Jobe Strayhorn. He credited Elizabeth with instilling in him the love of music, and it was at her piano that he learned to play.

He went on to study classical music, but there was little place for a black man in classical music at that time, and soon he found himself drawn to jazz. He met Duke Ellington after an Ellington concert in 1939. Strayhorn did what amounted to an impromptu audition on the spot. Ellington was impressed, and he invited Strayhorn to join him. Their close collaboration lasted the rest of Strayhorn's life -- he died in 1967 -- and bore lasting fruit.

"Billy Strayhorn was my right arm, my left arm, all the eyes in the back of my head, my brainwaves in his head, and his in mine," Ellington said.

Strayhorn was a quiet artist, reluctant to seek the spotlight. As a black man and an openly gay one, he faced discrimination on both fronts, and he was active in the civil rights movement.

As a musician and a man, he influenced many of the leading lights of the era, including Dizzy Gillespie and Lena Horne.

Musician and producer Quincy Jones said "Take the T Train" was "the Holy Grail," the song that perfectly captured the sound and soul of the Harlem Renaissance.

"It's unbelievable," Jones said. "And it says it all in 32 bars."