Pianist Horace Silver, born September 2, 1928, in Connecticut, played tenor saxophone and piano in school, and received his first national recognition when his trio was hired to play with saxophonist Stan Getz in 1950. His career received a major boost when he became part of the original Jazz Messengers with Art Blakey, and recorded his first hit composition, The Preacher. He toured with Blakey until 1956, when he left to start his own quintet, which featured his prolific compositional talents, and launched the careers of numerous younger players over the ensuing decades. He is one of the musicians credited with launching the hard bop style.