Friday, March 19, 2010
Photo Essay of Mary Lou Williams
By: Katherine Landergan
Chuck Stewart, a photographer, had the opportunity to photograph a recording session with Mary Lou Williams at Old Capitol Records Studio, in New York City. The musical recordings were never released to the public.
“She was already a legend-she could do no wrong,” Stewart said. “Mary Lou Williams was very low key, very quiet. She knew what she wanted.”
Stewart captivates his perception of Williams in this series of eight photos. These images suggest that Williams was a patient, introverted woman who had a passion for musical composition. In the essay, she quietly explains to her colleague (with a slight smile on her face) how she would like the drums to be played. In the other photos, she sits away from the rest of her colleagues, and seems to be deeply thinking about how to rework the arrangements.
The year was 1957. Earlier in the decade, Williams toured both England and France; the two tours were extensively covered in the European jazz press. A year before these photos were taken, Williams underwent a spiritual conversion to Catholicism, and gave up playing jazz to focus on her spirituality. Then in 1957 she played with Dizzy Gillespie at the Newport Jazz festival. To the public’s dismay, Williams performed quite infrequently for the following ten years.
Also featured in this photo essay is Melba Liston, a female jazz composer, who earlier in her career played in the high profile bands of Count Basie and Dizzie Gillespie. In his description of the essay, Stewart notes that Liston arranged all the pieces in the recording session. The other two individuals featured are drummer Ed Thigpen and Roulette Records producer Rudy Traynor.
Here is the link to the photo essay- hope you enjoy it!
http://newarkwww.rutgers.edu/ijs/mlw/stewart.html
Works Cited:
http://newarkwww.rutgers.edu/ijs/mlw/intro3.html
Chuck Stewart, a photographer, had the opportunity to photograph a recording session with Mary Lou Williams at Old Capitol Records Studio, in New York City. The musical recordings were never released to the public.
“She was already a legend-she could do no wrong,” Stewart said. “Mary Lou Williams was very low key, very quiet. She knew what she wanted.”
Stewart captivates his perception of Williams in this series of eight photos. These images suggest that Williams was a patient, introverted woman who had a passion for musical composition. In the essay, she quietly explains to her colleague (with a slight smile on her face) how she would like the drums to be played. In the other photos, she sits away from the rest of her colleagues, and seems to be deeply thinking about how to rework the arrangements.
The year was 1957. Earlier in the decade, Williams toured both England and France; the two tours were extensively covered in the European jazz press. A year before these photos were taken, Williams underwent a spiritual conversion to Catholicism, and gave up playing jazz to focus on her spirituality. Then in 1957 she played with Dizzy Gillespie at the Newport Jazz festival. To the public’s dismay, Williams performed quite infrequently for the following ten years.
Also featured in this photo essay is Melba Liston, a female jazz composer, who earlier in her career played in the high profile bands of Count Basie and Dizzie Gillespie. In his description of the essay, Stewart notes that Liston arranged all the pieces in the recording session. The other two individuals featured are drummer Ed Thigpen and Roulette Records producer Rudy Traynor.
Here is the link to the photo essay- hope you enjoy it!
http://newarkwww.rutgers.edu/ijs/mlw/stewart.html
Works Cited:
http://newarkwww.rutgers.edu/ijs/mlw/intro3.html
Mary Lou Williams is known worldwide for her jazz music. With this being said, she didn’t always think that the type of music she was playing was exactly holy, even calling it the “devil’s own music” therefore almost quitting making jazz for good. After she converted to the Roman Catholicism, a priest convinced her that she was too talented to let her gift go to waste, thus helping her play music again. This was great considering she had a lot of talent to offer to her faith, and God. She was right to think of herself as a "soul" player—a way of saying that she never strays far from melody and the blues.” Also when she said “"I am praying through my fingers when I play…I get that good 'soul sound,' and I try to touch people's spirits", she could not have been more right. One such example of song in which she does that is “St. Martin de Porres.”
Her album Mary Lou Williams Presents St. Martin de Porres was the first to present her sacred music compositions. The title track captures the eerie, yet soothing essence that can be found in traditional sacred music. The vocals are very smooth and solemn. About two-thirds into the song she plays a little piano, that differs somewhat from the vocals, yet with her being the genius she is, she makes it works. Overall Mary Lou Williams contributed a lot to the genre of jazz, but it’s the sacred music that can really capture the heart.
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,870827,00.html
http://newarkwww.rutgers.edu/ijs/mlw/religious_1.html
Kadeem Jeudy
Her album Mary Lou Williams Presents St. Martin de Porres was the first to present her sacred music compositions. The title track captures the eerie, yet soothing essence that can be found in traditional sacred music. The vocals are very smooth and solemn. About two-thirds into the song she plays a little piano, that differs somewhat from the vocals, yet with her being the genius she is, she makes it works. Overall Mary Lou Williams contributed a lot to the genre of jazz, but it’s the sacred music that can really capture the heart.
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,870827,00.html
http://newarkwww.rutgers.edu/ijs/mlw/religious_1.html
Kadeem Jeudy
Mary Lou Williams: A Great Influence
By Stephanie Sousa
Mary Lou Williams is considered the First Lady of Jazz which clearly is not a title so easily acquired. Mary Lou grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania alongside ten half brothers and sisters. Considered a child prodigy, she taught herself to play piano and had extremely developed pitch and musical memory skills by the age of four years old. By age six, Mary Lou was performing in wealthy family's homes around her neighborhood. At the age of twelve, she substituted for a pianist in a vaudeville show and soon after started touring with many major musicians, becoming a professional musician in her teenage years.
As a musician myself, I cannot even imagine the work that must have gone into her career, especially being an African-American woman during her time. When you read about Mary Lou and see all of the musicians that she had worked with, you realize the importance of her talent. She worked with such musicians as Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, Charlie Parker, Benny Goodman, Duke Ellington and many many more. In seeing all these muscians she worked with, it really struck me how she was the only woman among all these men and unlike many other musicians who focused on only one type of jazz, Mary Lou changed throughout her life through the many different phases of jazz and blues that had emerged. All of this seems so much for one person to be able to take on throughout their life. As said by Mary Lou much later in her life, "I did it, didn't I? Through muck and mud".
I hold a great amount of respect to this woman. She is an incredibly talented musician whose many compositions of all different styles continue to keep her alive with us today. Performances such as one at Stonehill College played by the Aardvark Jazz Orchestra truly help her influence on jazz reach many people that it may not have reached before. I know this concert greatly affected my outlook on jazz and Mary Lou Williams in a positive way. Once people attend a concert such as this one, I believe they will understand the true importance of this impeccable woman.
Mary Lou Williams is considered the First Lady of Jazz which clearly is not a title so easily acquired. Mary Lou grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania alongside ten half brothers and sisters. Considered a child prodigy, she taught herself to play piano and had extremely developed pitch and musical memory skills by the age of four years old. By age six, Mary Lou was performing in wealthy family's homes around her neighborhood. At the age of twelve, she substituted for a pianist in a vaudeville show and soon after started touring with many major musicians, becoming a professional musician in her teenage years.
As a musician myself, I cannot even imagine the work that must have gone into her career, especially being an African-American woman during her time. When you read about Mary Lou and see all of the musicians that she had worked with, you realize the importance of her talent. She worked with such musicians as Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, Charlie Parker, Benny Goodman, Duke Ellington and many many more. In seeing all these muscians she worked with, it really struck me how she was the only woman among all these men and unlike many other musicians who focused on only one type of jazz, Mary Lou changed throughout her life through the many different phases of jazz and blues that had emerged. All of this seems so much for one person to be able to take on throughout their life. As said by Mary Lou much later in her life, "I did it, didn't I? Through muck and mud".
I hold a great amount of respect to this woman. She is an incredibly talented musician whose many compositions of all different styles continue to keep her alive with us today. Performances such as one at Stonehill College played by the Aardvark Jazz Orchestra truly help her influence on jazz reach many people that it may not have reached before. I know this concert greatly affected my outlook on jazz and Mary Lou Williams in a positive way. Once people attend a concert such as this one, I believe they will understand the true importance of this impeccable woman.
Mary Lou Williams and her Conversion to the Roman Catholic Church
Mary Lou Williams was very influential during the early 20th century with her Big Band Jazz style. This all changed, however, on May 7, 1957 when she was baptized into the Roman Catholic Church. Williams first made her connection to the Catholic Church with the Reverend John Crowley whom she was introduced to by Dizzy Gillespie. Crowley was a jazz-loving priest that Gillespie had met in South America in 1956 and he urged Williams to “offer up her playing as a prayer for others” rather than leaving music all together. The other priest that was most influential in Williams’ life was Father Anthony S. Woods who became her first spiritual mentor in the Our Lady of Lourdes Church on 142nd Street in Harlem.Fr. Woods baptized and confirmed Williams in May and June of 1957 respectively.
With a new-found strong connection with the Church, Williams began to assert her musical influence in important ways. In 1958 Mary Lou founded the Bel Canto Foundation to help New York-area musicians with substance abuse problems. She also established thrift stores in Harlem to raise money to help these artists return to their art as well as contributing 10 percent of her own earnings.
After her conversion to Roman Catholicism her music combined two important themes of the time: the post-Vatican II upheaval of in the church and the civil rights movement. Her first sacred work was created in 1962 and was titled Black Christ of the Andes. It celebrated St. Martin de Porres, a seventeenth-century Dominican brother and the first black saint canonized by the Roman Catholic Church. In the Spring of 1967 briefly returned to Pittsburgh to compose her first Mass known as The Pittsburgh Mass. She wrote her second mass, Mass for the Lenten Season, the following year. In 1969 Monsignor Joseph Gremillion, secretary of the Pontifical Commission on Justice and Peace contracted Mary to write a Mass using texts from the Votive Mass for Peace which was called Music for Peace. This piece was also reworked by renowned choreographer Alvin Ailey in 1971 to be used in his dances of praise which he called Mary Lou’s Mass. Williams performed Mary Lou’s Mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral on February 18, 1975 and it included a 60-voice youth choir and concluded with “spontaneous applause that transformed the solemn proceedings”. All in all, Mary Lou Williams continued her influential musical career even after she converted to Roman Catholicism. After she was baptized, she used her gift as a way to bring people together that shared similar beliefs and to spread the spiritual message she held so dear.
With a new-found strong connection with the Church, Williams began to assert her musical influence in important ways. In 1958 Mary Lou founded the Bel Canto Foundation to help New York-area musicians with substance abuse problems. She also established thrift stores in Harlem to raise money to help these artists return to their art as well as contributing 10 percent of her own earnings.
After her conversion to Roman Catholicism her music combined two important themes of the time: the post-Vatican II upheaval of in the church and the civil rights movement. Her first sacred work was created in 1962 and was titled Black Christ of the Andes. It celebrated St. Martin de Porres, a seventeenth-century Dominican brother and the first black saint canonized by the Roman Catholic Church. In the Spring of 1967 briefly returned to Pittsburgh to compose her first Mass known as The Pittsburgh Mass. She wrote her second mass, Mass for the Lenten Season, the following year. In 1969 Monsignor Joseph Gremillion, secretary of the Pontifical Commission on Justice and Peace contracted Mary to write a Mass using texts from the Votive Mass for Peace which was called Music for Peace. This piece was also reworked by renowned choreographer Alvin Ailey in 1971 to be used in his dances of praise which he called Mary Lou’s Mass. Williams performed Mary Lou’s Mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral on February 18, 1975 and it included a 60-voice youth choir and concluded with “spontaneous applause that transformed the solemn proceedings”. All in all, Mary Lou Williams continued her influential musical career even after she converted to Roman Catholicism. After she was baptized, she used her gift as a way to bring people together that shared similar beliefs and to spread the spiritual message she held so dear.
Mary Lou the Pianist Lisa Krastins
“She sits a bit forward on the piano bench, her feet away from the pedals, marking off tempo while she nods to the sense of balance that combines drive and relaxation. A half smile lights up the high cheekbone nearest the listener. If she is playing with a band there is sometimes a slight inclination of the head in awareness. But the concentration is in the hands; slender, strong fingers reaching unerringly for the note, the chord, the mood” Charles Edward Smith
Mary Lou Williams also known as the first lady of jazz, was an American jazz pianist, composer and arranger. Mary Lou Williams had a tough upbringing and was forced to become a woman before she was ready. Her family never seemed to give the motivation Mary was longing for and instead received praise from other musicians. No matter how much Mary accomplished, “she could not crack the carapace of her parents’ fundamental indifference to the fact of her existence” (Dahl 3). People say that from the time Mary was a child, she had a sense of her own talent and the significance of the African American musical heritage. Mary is also described as having a funny side, but remained intensely private about her personal life. She very rarely ever discussed the hurtful events of her private life publicly. The way people found out about her personal life was through letters and notebooks where she had made an attempt to write an autobiography. In the bottom of this box, where the letters and notebook were kept, there was a piece of paper that said:
“Jazz created for all people.
Jazz created through suffering.
Got beaten everyday
And school-Amy Frank” (Dahl 8).
When this short statement was discovered, people saw it as Mary Lou’s own personal philosophy that she lived by and it showed deep roots to her difficult upbringing. This short statement exemplifies Mary’s desire to be accepted by everyone. This also shows her strong connection she felt to jazz. Duke Ellington stated “Mary refuses to bow to any ethnocentrism, any limitations, from any side- she only reluctantly accepted the designation “jazz” for the music that was born of African Americans” (Dahl 12). Mary saw jazz as world music and something that was universally accessible.
Mary Lou Williams also known as the first lady of jazz, was an American jazz pianist, composer and arranger. Mary Lou Williams had a tough upbringing and was forced to become a woman before she was ready. Her family never seemed to give the motivation Mary was longing for and instead received praise from other musicians. No matter how much Mary accomplished, “she could not crack the carapace of her parents’ fundamental indifference to the fact of her existence” (Dahl 3). People say that from the time Mary was a child, she had a sense of her own talent and the significance of the African American musical heritage. Mary is also described as having a funny side, but remained intensely private about her personal life. She very rarely ever discussed the hurtful events of her private life publicly. The way people found out about her personal life was through letters and notebooks where she had made an attempt to write an autobiography. In the bottom of this box, where the letters and notebook were kept, there was a piece of paper that said:
“Jazz created for all people.
Jazz created through suffering.
Got beaten everyday
And school-Amy Frank” (Dahl 8).
When this short statement was discovered, people saw it as Mary Lou’s own personal philosophy that she lived by and it showed deep roots to her difficult upbringing. This short statement exemplifies Mary’s desire to be accepted by everyone. This also shows her strong connection she felt to jazz. Duke Ellington stated “Mary refuses to bow to any ethnocentrism, any limitations, from any side- she only reluctantly accepted the designation “jazz” for the music that was born of African Americans” (Dahl 12). Mary saw jazz as world music and something that was universally accessible.
Mary Lou Williams: An Inspiration to All Musicians
"I'm the only living musician that has played all the eras," Mary Lou Williams once said, "Other musicians lived through the eras and they never changed their styles."
When the Aardvark Jazz Orchestra came to Stonehill to dedicate a concert to the famous musician Mary Lou Williams, I had a lot of mixed feelings. I didn't know whether I would enjoy this big band jazz, or if it would be my type of music. Throughout the concert I realized how creative Mary Lou Williams was and how brilliant her music is. I really enjoyed the concert and came out with a totally different outlook on big band jazz and of course Mary Lou Williams. The man who composed that night talked about Mary Lou William's life between every couple of songs which helped me to come more associated with her.
Mary Lou Williams loved to play the piano and keyboard and actually learned by ear, able to play note for note what her mother played for her. Her stepfather James P. Johnson taught her the blues, but at age 13 Mary Lou ran away from home. At the early age of 16, Mary Lou Williams was already married. She became an inspiration to musicians all over the world, and people would travel to see her perform. She was brilliant on the piano, which we saw in the concert in the songs "Anima Christi" and "St. Martin de Porres." The compositions she put together were truly beautiful and I got nothing but enjoyment from listening to her music be played.
Later on in her life, Mary Lou donated money to musicians that were detrimented by drugs and alcohol. These donations helped to get musicians back on their feet once they were out of their addiction. One of my favorite pieces put together by Mary Lou Williams were "Swing Hard" and "Roll 'Em." Overall, Mary Lou Williams is a great inspiration to musicians all over the world and she truly was an amazing performer. As Duke Ellington put it, "Mary Lou Williams is perpetually contemporary. Her writing and performing are and always have been just a little ahead throughout her career... Her music retains a standard of quality that is timeless. She is like soul on soul."
-Justin Coonan
When the Aardvark Jazz Orchestra came to Stonehill to dedicate a concert to the famous musician Mary Lou Williams, I had a lot of mixed feelings. I didn't know whether I would enjoy this big band jazz, or if it would be my type of music. Throughout the concert I realized how creative Mary Lou Williams was and how brilliant her music is. I really enjoyed the concert and came out with a totally different outlook on big band jazz and of course Mary Lou Williams. The man who composed that night talked about Mary Lou William's life between every couple of songs which helped me to come more associated with her.
Mary Lou Williams loved to play the piano and keyboard and actually learned by ear, able to play note for note what her mother played for her. Her stepfather James P. Johnson taught her the blues, but at age 13 Mary Lou ran away from home. At the early age of 16, Mary Lou Williams was already married. She became an inspiration to musicians all over the world, and people would travel to see her perform. She was brilliant on the piano, which we saw in the concert in the songs "Anima Christi" and "St. Martin de Porres." The compositions she put together were truly beautiful and I got nothing but enjoyment from listening to her music be played.
Later on in her life, Mary Lou donated money to musicians that were detrimented by drugs and alcohol. These donations helped to get musicians back on their feet once they were out of their addiction. One of my favorite pieces put together by Mary Lou Williams were "Swing Hard" and "Roll 'Em." Overall, Mary Lou Williams is a great inspiration to musicians all over the world and she truly was an amazing performer. As Duke Ellington put it, "Mary Lou Williams is perpetually contemporary. Her writing and performing are and always have been just a little ahead throughout her career... Her music retains a standard of quality that is timeless. She is like soul on soul."
-Justin Coonan
The Mary Lou Williams Center: A Place to Become Enriched in Culture
Erin Kelly
The Mary Lou Williams Center for Black Culture was built to raise awareness for “Black People, Black History, and Black Culture.” The center was established in 1983 as a “safe, welcoming, and supportive space that reflects the core values, culture, mission, and perspectives of Duke’s Black Community.” Mary Lou Williams taught at Duke University as an Artist-in-Residence from 1977 until her death. This center was built in honor of her and her achievements as a woman, and artist, a scholar, and a leader. At this center there are programs designed to portray the significance of Black experiences. These programs all correspond to a major theme- jazz.
There are four different types of programs offered: Signature, Jazz, Annual, and Thematic. Signature programs are “annual opportunities to showcase our commitment to scholarly, activist, and artistic presentations centered around Jazz and Social Justice.” One event is called Speaking of Hope. This is an inaugural dialogue where students can become open-minded and are able to share experiences of work of hope and philanthropy. Speaking of Hope was created on the 25th anniversary of the Mary Lou Williams Center. Another event, titled Measure of Grace, is an annual jazz concert where renowned musicians Gerri Allen and Patricia Barber perform their version of Williams’ Zodiac Suite. This concert remembers Williams, and celebrates her legacy as a jazz pioneer. The Jazz programs offered are enjoyable and great experiences. The agenda ranges from annual concerts, to information groups and discussions, to jam sessions every Wednesday evening. These jam sessions are not to be missed. Local performers, as well as Duke students play live performances of great jazz pieces.
The thematic section contains four events; two are called Brother to Brother and Sister to Sister. Brother to Brother is for Black males to talk about the future beyond Duke. Also, “The sessions offer various topics related to Black men's health, academics and relationships, creating an opportunity for the men to build greater connections and share notable commonalities.” Sister to Sister is very similar, but it is for Black women who are undergraduates. Women in this program first attend a retreat, and then it is a “space for the women to come together and support each other’s growth, challenges, and healing through these regularly scheduled opportunities.”
These are just a few of the many programs The Mary Lou Williams Center offers. All allow students and faculty alike to become enriched in the Black culture as well as gaining knowledge of the main theme- jazz. All of these in some way remember the legacy of Mary Lou Williams, who was such an important figure in history, as well as at Duke University. Her achievements and accomplishments will never be forgotten.
http://www.studentaffairs.duke.edu/mlw
The Mary Lou Williams Center for Black Culture was built to raise awareness for “Black People, Black History, and Black Culture.” The center was established in 1983 as a “safe, welcoming, and supportive space that reflects the core values, culture, mission, and perspectives of Duke’s Black Community.” Mary Lou Williams taught at Duke University as an Artist-in-Residence from 1977 until her death. This center was built in honor of her and her achievements as a woman, and artist, a scholar, and a leader. At this center there are programs designed to portray the significance of Black experiences. These programs all correspond to a major theme- jazz.
There are four different types of programs offered: Signature, Jazz, Annual, and Thematic. Signature programs are “annual opportunities to showcase our commitment to scholarly, activist, and artistic presentations centered around Jazz and Social Justice.” One event is called Speaking of Hope. This is an inaugural dialogue where students can become open-minded and are able to share experiences of work of hope and philanthropy. Speaking of Hope was created on the 25th anniversary of the Mary Lou Williams Center. Another event, titled Measure of Grace, is an annual jazz concert where renowned musicians Gerri Allen and Patricia Barber perform their version of Williams’ Zodiac Suite. This concert remembers Williams, and celebrates her legacy as a jazz pioneer. The Jazz programs offered are enjoyable and great experiences. The agenda ranges from annual concerts, to information groups and discussions, to jam sessions every Wednesday evening. These jam sessions are not to be missed. Local performers, as well as Duke students play live performances of great jazz pieces.
The thematic section contains four events; two are called Brother to Brother and Sister to Sister. Brother to Brother is for Black males to talk about the future beyond Duke. Also, “The sessions offer various topics related to Black men's health, academics and relationships, creating an opportunity for the men to build greater connections and share notable commonalities.” Sister to Sister is very similar, but it is for Black women who are undergraduates. Women in this program first attend a retreat, and then it is a “space for the women to come together and support each other’s growth, challenges, and healing through these regularly scheduled opportunities.”
These are just a few of the many programs The Mary Lou Williams Center offers. All allow students and faculty alike to become enriched in the Black culture as well as gaining knowledge of the main theme- jazz. All of these in some way remember the legacy of Mary Lou Williams, who was such an important figure in history, as well as at Duke University. Her achievements and accomplishments will never be forgotten.
http://www.studentaffairs.duke.edu/mlw
Thursday, March 18, 2010
The Originality of Mary Lou
Mary Lou Williams is no doubt one of the great American Jazz composers in history. Her ability to arrange the instruments in such a successful manner is some of the appeal of her music. We have seen the evolution of the jazz orchestra from a small band of about seven musicians to ones that grew as large as twenty members and larger. It is this texture and variety of instruments that I find so appealing of Mary Lou's music. Not only that, but how she manipulates such instruments in her compositions is equally impressive.
Her band had somewhat of a stereotypical setup: drums, piano, guitar, bass, trumpets, trombones, and saxophones. I feel that Mary Lou established herself as such a significant composer because she was able to take the standard jazz orchestra a make it sound new and exciting. In her song "Roll 'Em," for example, Mary Lou allows a great deal of improvisation in the tenor saxophone and vocals, which allows for additional creativity and originality. However, she is able to unite the piece by never straying too far from the main theme.
Mary Lou Williams is known for creating traditional jazz, blues jazz, sacred jazz, gospel music, and non-traditional contemporary jazz. Her piece "Scorpio," for example, incorporates a flute which adds a more exotic mood to jazz music. There are few musicians and composers who are able to take a standard set of instruments and make them sound original and new. She cannot be classified under one style because she is multiple styles at once. As is quoted in the program for the Aardvark Jazz Concert by Duke Ellington, "Mary Lou Williams is perpetually contemporary. Her music retains a standard of quality that is timeless. She is like Soul on Soul." Her skill, passion, and originality will preserve her music for all time.
Mike Prisby
Her band had somewhat of a stereotypical setup: drums, piano, guitar, bass, trumpets, trombones, and saxophones. I feel that Mary Lou established herself as such a significant composer because she was able to take the standard jazz orchestra a make it sound new and exciting. In her song "Roll 'Em," for example, Mary Lou allows a great deal of improvisation in the tenor saxophone and vocals, which allows for additional creativity and originality. However, she is able to unite the piece by never straying too far from the main theme.
Mary Lou Williams is known for creating traditional jazz, blues jazz, sacred jazz, gospel music, and non-traditional contemporary jazz. Her piece "Scorpio," for example, incorporates a flute which adds a more exotic mood to jazz music. There are few musicians and composers who are able to take a standard set of instruments and make them sound original and new. She cannot be classified under one style because she is multiple styles at once. As is quoted in the program for the Aardvark Jazz Concert by Duke Ellington, "Mary Lou Williams is perpetually contemporary. Her music retains a standard of quality that is timeless. She is like Soul on Soul." Her skill, passion, and originality will preserve her music for all time.
Mike Prisby
Mary Lou Williams' personal philosophy
By Lisa Krastins
“She sits a bit forward on the piano bench, her feet away from the pedals, marking off tempo while she nods to the sense of balance that combines drive and relaxation. A hald smile lights up the high cheekbone nearest the listener. If she is playing with a band there is sometimes a slight inclination of the head in awareness. But the concentration is in the hands; slender, strong fingers reaching unerringly for the note, the chord, the mood” Charles Edward Smith
Mary Lou Williams also known as the first lady of jazz, was an American jazz pianist, composer and arranger. Mary Lou Williams had a tough upbringing and was forced to become a woman before she was ready. Her family never seemed to give the motivation Mary was longing for and instead received praise from other musicians. No matter how much Mary accomplished, “she could not crack the carapace of her parents’ fundamental indifference to the fact of her existence” (Dahl 3). People say that from the time Mary was a child, she had a sense of her own talent and the significance of the African American musical heritage. Mary is also described as having a funny side, but remained intensely private about her personal life. She very rarely ever discussed the hurtful events of her private life publicly. The way people found out about her personal life was through letters and notebooks where she had made an attempt to write an autobiography. In the bottom of this box, where the letters and notebook were kept, there was a piece of paper that said:
“Jazz created for all people.
Jazz created through suffering.
Got beaten everyday
And school-Amy Frank” (Dahl 8).
When this short statement was discovered, people saw it as Mary Lou’s own personal philosophy that she lived by and it showed deep roots to her difficult upbringing. This short statement exemplifies Mary’s desire to be accepted by everyone. This also shows her strong connection she felt to jazz. Duke Ellington stated “Mary refuses to bow to any ethnocentrism, any limitations, from any side- she only reluctantly accepted the designation “jazz” for the music that was born of African Americans” (Dahl 12). Mary saw jazz as world music and something that was universally accessible
“She sits a bit forward on the piano bench, her feet away from the pedals, marking off tempo while she nods to the sense of balance that combines drive and relaxation. A hald smile lights up the high cheekbone nearest the listener. If she is playing with a band there is sometimes a slight inclination of the head in awareness. But the concentration is in the hands; slender, strong fingers reaching unerringly for the note, the chord, the mood” Charles Edward Smith
Mary Lou Williams also known as the first lady of jazz, was an American jazz pianist, composer and arranger. Mary Lou Williams had a tough upbringing and was forced to become a woman before she was ready. Her family never seemed to give the motivation Mary was longing for and instead received praise from other musicians. No matter how much Mary accomplished, “she could not crack the carapace of her parents’ fundamental indifference to the fact of her existence” (Dahl 3). People say that from the time Mary was a child, she had a sense of her own talent and the significance of the African American musical heritage. Mary is also described as having a funny side, but remained intensely private about her personal life. She very rarely ever discussed the hurtful events of her private life publicly. The way people found out about her personal life was through letters and notebooks where she had made an attempt to write an autobiography. In the bottom of this box, where the letters and notebook were kept, there was a piece of paper that said:
“Jazz created for all people.
Jazz created through suffering.
Got beaten everyday
And school-Amy Frank” (Dahl 8).
When this short statement was discovered, people saw it as Mary Lou’s own personal philosophy that she lived by and it showed deep roots to her difficult upbringing. This short statement exemplifies Mary’s desire to be accepted by everyone. This also shows her strong connection she felt to jazz. Duke Ellington stated “Mary refuses to bow to any ethnocentrism, any limitations, from any side- she only reluctantly accepted the designation “jazz” for the music that was born of African Americans” (Dahl 12). Mary saw jazz as world music and something that was universally accessible
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Bop To The Top: Mary Lou Williams and Bob Jazz
By: Peter Hoye
Bob, or Bebop Jazz as it was also known, was a form of jazz that emerged in the 1940’s. A major contrast to big band jazz, bop jazz featured smaller groups of musicians, often between 4-6, as opposed to the 10 plus found in big bands. In having less musicians, it allowed for greater solo opportunities within the songs. The music could be identified by it’s by melodies and chord progressions that were different from those of big bands in that they were much more complex. The music also tended to be more irregular, thus making it difficult to dance to, but easy to listen to for enjoyment (Bebop). What made this new form of jazz so radical was that the melody now became secondary and improvisations were based around harmonies and chords. Bop has been referred to as the birth of modern jazz (McPhearson).
One of the most influential musicians of this new jazz was the piano prodigy, Mary Lou Williams. After leaving Andy Kirk, and having written some major jazz hits such as Walkin’ and Swingin’ and Scatchin’ the Gravel. Following her time with Kirk, Williams was asked to work with Duke Ellington. However, “after some dozen years, Williams was ready for a change of musical scene” (Mary Lou Williams-Soul on Soul), and it was then that she was hired by Barney Josephson, owner of Café Society, a Greenwich Village night club famous for its outstanding jazz and blues. With the help of Josephson Williams acquired her own radio show. “Her program figured into Mary's composing one of the more interesting compositions (and reflecting Duke Ellington's movement toward creating extended works), The Zodiac Suite” (Mary Lou Williams-Soul on Soul). Following a poorly intended performance of the Suite she was coaxed by Dizzy Gillespie to complete the remaining 9 parts of the intended 12 part suite (Dizzy Gillespie (featuring Mary Lou Williams): Selections from Zodiac Suite). It in her collaborating with Dizzy that Mary moved into the modern jazz era. She was quoted as saying “bop came along with a more modern thing, and the blues and that swing part, but it was just more colorful…they were beautiful like riding around and taking in the scenery, rather than just having a steady beat going” (Gillespie 150-151). Mary Lou Williams found her place in the bebop revolution in that “she had gradually modernized her style and by the early to mid-'40s was actively encouraging the young modernists who would lead the bebop revolution, including Thelonious Monk, Bud Powell, Tadd Dameron, and Dizzy Gillespie.” (Mary Lou Williams:Biography).
REFERENCES:
"Bebop." Hyper Music-History of Jazz. 04/17/2004. Web. 4 Mar 2010..
"Dizzy Gillespie (featuring Mary Lou Williams): Selections from Zodiac Suite." Jazz.com . Web. 4 Mar2010.
.
Gillespie, John Birks, and Al Fraser. To Be, or not...To Bop-Dizzy Gillespie. Minneapolis, MN.: University of Minnesota Press, 1979. 150-151. Print.
LastMcPherson, Ian Gordon. "Bob Jazz." The Salt of the Earth . 2000. Web. 4 Mar 2010.
.
"Mary Lou Williams: Biography." MSN Music. 2010. Web. 4 Mar 2010..
"Mary Lou Williams - Soul on Soul." Modern Jazz & Cafe Society. 2001. Rutgers University Libraries, Web. 4 Mar 2010..
Bob, or Bebop Jazz as it was also known, was a form of jazz that emerged in the 1940’s. A major contrast to big band jazz, bop jazz featured smaller groups of musicians, often between 4-6, as opposed to the 10 plus found in big bands. In having less musicians, it allowed for greater solo opportunities within the songs. The music could be identified by it’s by melodies and chord progressions that were different from those of big bands in that they were much more complex. The music also tended to be more irregular, thus making it difficult to dance to, but easy to listen to for enjoyment (Bebop). What made this new form of jazz so radical was that the melody now became secondary and improvisations were based around harmonies and chords. Bop has been referred to as the birth of modern jazz (McPhearson).
One of the most influential musicians of this new jazz was the piano prodigy, Mary Lou Williams. After leaving Andy Kirk, and having written some major jazz hits such as Walkin’ and Swingin’ and Scatchin’ the Gravel. Following her time with Kirk, Williams was asked to work with Duke Ellington. However, “after some dozen years, Williams was ready for a change of musical scene” (Mary Lou Williams-Soul on Soul), and it was then that she was hired by Barney Josephson, owner of Café Society, a Greenwich Village night club famous for its outstanding jazz and blues. With the help of Josephson Williams acquired her own radio show. “Her program figured into Mary's composing one of the more interesting compositions (and reflecting Duke Ellington's movement toward creating extended works), The Zodiac Suite” (Mary Lou Williams-Soul on Soul). Following a poorly intended performance of the Suite she was coaxed by Dizzy Gillespie to complete the remaining 9 parts of the intended 12 part suite (Dizzy Gillespie (featuring Mary Lou Williams): Selections from Zodiac Suite). It in her collaborating with Dizzy that Mary moved into the modern jazz era. She was quoted as saying “bop came along with a more modern thing, and the blues and that swing part, but it was just more colorful…they were beautiful like riding around and taking in the scenery, rather than just having a steady beat going” (Gillespie 150-151). Mary Lou Williams found her place in the bebop revolution in that “she had gradually modernized her style and by the early to mid-'40s was actively encouraging the young modernists who would lead the bebop revolution, including Thelonious Monk, Bud Powell, Tadd Dameron, and Dizzy Gillespie.” (Mary Lou Williams:Biography).
REFERENCES:
"Bebop." Hyper Music-History of Jazz. 04/17/2004. Web. 4 Mar 2010.
"Dizzy Gillespie (featuring Mary Lou Williams): Selections from Zodiac Suite." Jazz.com . Web. 4 Mar2010.
Gillespie, John Birks, and Al Fraser. To Be, or not...To Bop-Dizzy Gillespie. Minneapolis, MN.: University of Minnesota Press, 1979. 150-151. Print.
LastMcPherson, Ian Gordon. "Bob Jazz." The Salt of the Earth . 2000. Web. 4 Mar 2010.
"Mary Lou Williams: Biography." MSN Music. 2010. Web. 4 Mar 2010.
"Mary Lou Williams - Soul on Soul." Modern Jazz & Cafe Society. 2001. Rutgers University Libraries, Web. 4 Mar 2010.
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Mary Lou Williams’ Religious Conversion
After suffering an emotional breakdown in Europe, Mary Lou Williams decided to retire from public musical performance. She experienced much financial strain and hardship in her musical career: it was her only source of income, and so she could not stop making recordings. Greatly distressed, she turned to the Abyssinian Church in 1955, but she finally found solace in the Roman Catholic Church. Mary Lou Williams was baptized and confirmed as a Roman Catholic in 1957 by Father Anthony S. Woods. Taking advice from her friend Dizzy Gillespie, Williams decided to offer up her music as a prayer to others rather than leaving music altogether. In 1962, she wrote "Black Christ of the Andes (Hymn in Honor of St. Martin de Porres)", her first sacred work. Father Woods wrote the lyrics; her piece celebrated St. Martin de Porres, the first black canonized by the Roman Catholic Church in the seventeenth-century.
Mary also wrote several masses. In 1967 she composed her first Mass, known as The Pittsburgh Mass, as she was staying with her sister in Pittsburgh at the time. The following year, she wrote Mass for the Lenten Season, which she hoped would be performed during the 1969 mass at the Vatican honoring Martin Luther King Jr. Sadly, her hopes were crushed when church officials objected to the use of drums in her composition. In 1969, Mary was commissioned to write the mass Music for Peace, using texts for the Votive Mass for Peace. That work was later turned into a dance by choreographer Alvin Ailey in 1971. It was entitled Mary Lou’s Mass, and was performed at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in 1975.
References
http://newarkwww.rutgers.edu/ijs/mlw/religious_2.html
Murchison, Gayle. “Mary Lou Williams’ Hymn Black Christ of the Andes (St. Martin de Porres): Vatican II, Civil Rights, and Jazz as Sacred Music.” The Musical Quarterly 86.4. (2002): 591-629. Web. 2 March 2010.
By: Stacy Schipellite
Mary also wrote several masses. In 1967 she composed her first Mass, known as The Pittsburgh Mass, as she was staying with her sister in Pittsburgh at the time. The following year, she wrote Mass for the Lenten Season, which she hoped would be performed during the 1969 mass at the Vatican honoring Martin Luther King Jr. Sadly, her hopes were crushed when church officials objected to the use of drums in her composition. In 1969, Mary was commissioned to write the mass Music for Peace, using texts for the Votive Mass for Peace. That work was later turned into a dance by choreographer Alvin Ailey in 1971. It was entitled Mary Lou’s Mass, and was performed at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in 1975.
References
http://newarkwww.rutgers.edu/ijs/mlw/religious_2.html
Murchison, Gayle. “Mary Lou Williams’ Hymn Black Christ of the Andes (St. Martin de Porres): Vatican II, Civil Rights, and Jazz as Sacred Music.” The Musical Quarterly 86.4. (2002): 591-629. Web. 2 March 2010.
By: Stacy Schipellite
Tickle the Ivories
-By Daniel Curtiss
Mary Lou Williams was an iconic figure of her time, a blessed individual, and a piano prodigy. Her music spanned over a number of styles that included classic jazz, swing, bop, and even Sacred Jazz. Having some knowledge of jazz prior to learning about Mary, I am very aware of the talent that it takes to master even one of these styles, yet she seems to have mastered them all. By the mere age of twenty, she was a regular member of Andy Kirks band and contributed greatly to the groups dynamics and stardom. Her almost sporatic playing style attracted musicians in a way that no jazz pianist (let alone a woman jazz pianist) had done before. Reading about Mary Lou Williams is one thing, but to fully understand the depth of her genius, you need to hear her play.
The compositions of Mary Lou Williams are various and range from her most famous tunes such as "Roll 'Em" and "St. Martin de Porres" to other less known pieces. Regardless of what you are listening to however, I can assure you that you wont be dissapointed. Her piece "Scorpio" which was performed by the Aardvark Jazz Orchestra had an outworldly sound to it that stood out to me as very ahead of her time. Mary Lou Williams used her music to shed light on many facets of American culture, as you might imagine. Just her presence as an African American jazz musician and composer provided some well needed pushes in the musical, and social societies of America.
The First Lady of Jazz is quite the title to bestow upon someone, but I find it also quite fitting for the person that Mary Lou Williams was. Her work with Jazz musicians such as Duke Ellington and Benny Goodman helped bring her to the top, although it was undoubtably her immense skill that allowed her those opportunities in the first place. Even as an older women, Williams ability and speed astounded me. She is truly a master of her trade.
Mary Lou Williams was an iconic figure of her time, a blessed individual, and a piano prodigy. Her music spanned over a number of styles that included classic jazz, swing, bop, and even Sacred Jazz. Having some knowledge of jazz prior to learning about Mary, I am very aware of the talent that it takes to master even one of these styles, yet she seems to have mastered them all. By the mere age of twenty, she was a regular member of Andy Kirks band and contributed greatly to the groups dynamics and stardom. Her almost sporatic playing style attracted musicians in a way that no jazz pianist (let alone a woman jazz pianist) had done before. Reading about Mary Lou Williams is one thing, but to fully understand the depth of her genius, you need to hear her play.
The compositions of Mary Lou Williams are various and range from her most famous tunes such as "Roll 'Em" and "St. Martin de Porres" to other less known pieces. Regardless of what you are listening to however, I can assure you that you wont be dissapointed. Her piece "Scorpio" which was performed by the Aardvark Jazz Orchestra had an outworldly sound to it that stood out to me as very ahead of her time. Mary Lou Williams used her music to shed light on many facets of American culture, as you might imagine. Just her presence as an African American jazz musician and composer provided some well needed pushes in the musical, and social societies of America.
The First Lady of Jazz is quite the title to bestow upon someone, but I find it also quite fitting for the person that Mary Lou Williams was. Her work with Jazz musicians such as Duke Ellington and Benny Goodman helped bring her to the top, although it was undoubtably her immense skill that allowed her those opportunities in the first place. Even as an older women, Williams ability and speed astounded me. She is truly a master of her trade.
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