Allen Toussaint, New Orleans Piano Legend has Died

New Orleans pianist Allen Toussaint died suddenly Nov. 9, 2015, while on tour in Madrid, Spain. A soft-spoken, sharp-dressing icon of the Crescent City music scene, Toussaint modeled his piano playing after his mentor Henry Byrd, better known as Professor Longhair. Toussaint became a master of the keyboard but he also excelled as a songwriter, arranger, record producer and label executive. Family members told reporters that Toussaint suffered a fatal heart attack shortly after finishing his Nov. 9 concert at Teatro Lara in Madrid. He was 77 years old. One of the last things he played that night was a two-song medley of Professor Longhair tunes, “Tipitina” and “Big Chief.” An audience member named Biri posted a message on the nola.com website on Nov. 10: “During his performance he was in good spirits, never missing a beat. He even came down from the stage to greet the fans near the end of the show. He played many of his best known songs, including ‘Mother-in-Law,’ ‘Southern Nights’ and ‘Fortune Teller.’ He closed with ‘Brickyard Blues,’ and said he wished he could take all of us with him back home to New Orleans.” Toussaint was considered by many to be the dean of the New Orleans music scene, reported the New Orleans Times-Picayune, because he had influenced the careers of countless musicians and performers. He helped define the New Orleans sound