10/22/23 – Naples, FL – Trinity By-The-Cove Episcopal Church
02/24-25 – Miami Beach, FL – New World Symphony*
Aaron Diehl on Tour
09/29-30 – Indianapolis, IN – Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra at Schrott Center for the Arts*
10/07/23 – Boston, MA – Boston Symphony Orchestra at Symphony Hall – Opening Night Gala
10/14-15 – Newark, NJ – New Jersey Symphony Orchestra at NJPAC
10/19-20 – Jacksonville, FL – Beaches Fine Arts Series at St. Paul’s By-The-Sea
10/22/23 – Naples, FL – Trinity By-The-Cove Episcopal Church
10/28/23 – Chicago, IL – Chicago Humanities Festival with Tyshawn Trio
10/30/23 – New York, NY – Jazz at Lincoln Center with Tyshawn Sorey
10/31- 11/5 – New York, NY – Village Vanguard with Tyshawn Sorey
01/21/24 – St. Louis, MO – St. Louis Symphony Orchestra *
02/01/24 – Orlando, FL – Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra
02/03/24 – Orlando, FL – Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra
02/05/24 – Orlando, FL – Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra*
02/24-25 – Miami Beach, FL – New World Symphony*
05/18/24 – Washington DC – Washington Performing Arts & The United States Air Force Band *
180-gram Limited Edition Vinyl Available in Partnership with the American Pianists Association
Accomplished jazz pianist and composer Aaron Diehl releases his new album Zodiac Suite, the first fully-fledged professional recording of Mary Lou Williams’ 1945 arrangement and orchestration of this landmark work. A limited edition 180-gram vinyl version of the project will be released in partnership with the American Pianists Association. Zodiac Suite is the fourth album from Diehl on Mack Avenue Records, available today on CD, vinyl and digitally, and can be ordered here.
On Zodiac Suite, the 2011 American Pianists Association’s Cole Porter Fellowship in Jazz winner pays homage to swing and bebop icon, composer, and pianist Mary Lou Williams. Zodiac Suite is best known in the trio incarnation that Williams recorded for the Asch label; within the same year she also performed the piece, each of its movements inspired by an astrological sign and dedicated to her friends — Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington, Art Tatum, Eartha Kitt, President Franklin D.Roosevelt and others — in expanded versions for chamber-jazz ensemble at The Town Hall in New York City. The performance fusing jazz and classical music should have been celebrated but a lack of preparation and rehearsal time led to a compromised performance, leaving Williams frustrated, and she never performed it again.
New York Times music critic Seth Colter Walls recently lauded the project’s importance, as an aural artifact unearthing the moment “…when Black composers with sway in jazz circles dared to pursue hybrid musical styles, all while meeting various forms of resistance or disrespect.” Diehl expands, “Mary Lou Williams was one of the great composers of the 20th century, albeit highly underrated. It is my hope that this recording gives an insight into her musical ambitions at the time, while also yielding the question of what could have developed under better circumstances. The process of resurrecting this almost forgotten version of Zodiac Suite has been a long yet rewarding journey.”
Diehl is joined by the orchestral collective The Knights, led by Eric Jacobsen with special guests Evan Christopher (clarinet), Nicole Glover (tenor sax), Brandon Lee (trumpet), and Mikaela Bennett (soprano), together they breathe vibrant new life into a masterwork. In an interview with the Pittsburgh Tribune, Diehl said, “To me, this arrangement is a microcosm of Mary Lou’s life story, both personally and professionally, that came with significant triumphs and setbacks.” He continues, “I think the ‘Zodiac’ really, in a way, is like one of her tour de force pieces. But in particular, this arrangement really speaks to what her sights were set on at this period of time, expanding beyond the swing tradition that she came out of.”
“It’s an ongoing challenge, even today, to incorporate the language of Black American folk music into this very Eurocentric identity with all its nuances,” Diehl said. “I can only do my small part to celebrate Mary Lou Williams’ music whenever it’s possible because she was such a brilliant artist. It’s important to keep advocating on behalf of these folks who are no longer with us and to keep their music in people’s ears for generations to come.”
Zodiac Suite Tracklisting
1. Aries
2. Taurus
3. Gemini
4. Cancer
5. Leo
6. Virgo
7. Libra
8. Scorpio
9. Sagittarius
10. Capricorn
11. Aquarius
12. Pisces
Aaron Diehl on Tour
09/29-30 – Indianapolis, IN – Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra at Schrott Center for the Arts*
10/07/23 – Boston, MA – Boston Symphony Orchestra at Symphony Hall – Opening Night Gala
10/14-15 – Newark, NJ – New Jersey Symphony Orchestra at NJPAC
10/19-20 – Jacksonville, FL – Beaches Fine Arts Series at St. Paul’s By-The-Sea
10/22/23 – Naples, FL – Trinity By-The-Cove Episcopal Church
10/28/23 – Chicago, IL – Chicago Humanities Festival with Tyshawn Trio
10/30/23 – New York, NY – Jazz at Lincoln Center with Tyshawn Sorey
10/31- 11/5 – New York, NY – Village Vanguard with Tyshawn Sorey
01/21/24 – St. Louis, MO – St. Louis Symphony Orchestra *
02/01/24 – Orlando, FL – Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra
02/03/24 – Orlando, FL – Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra
02/05/24 – Orlando, FL – Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra*
02/24-25 – Miami Beach, FL – New World Symphony*
05/18/24 – Washington DC – Washington Performing Arts & The United States Air Force Band *
*Features Full Performance of Zodiac Suite