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Jessica Jennifer Williams (March 17, 1948 – March 10, 2022) was an American jazz pianist and composer.
Early life
Williams was born in
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
, Maryland, on March 17, 1948. She started playing the piano at age four, began music lessons with a private teacher at five, and at age seven was enrolled into the
Peabody Preparatory
The Peabody Institute of The Johns Hopkins University is a private conservatory and preparatory school in Baltimore, Maryland. It was founded in 1857 and opened in 1866 by merchant/financier and philanthropist George Peabody (1795–186 ...
. She studied classical music and
ear training
Ear training or aural skills is a music theory study in which musicians learn to identify pitches, intervals, melody, chords, rhythms, solfeges, and other basic elements of music, solely by hearing. The application of this skill is analogous t ...
with Richard Aitken and George Bellows at the
Peabody Conservatory of Music
The Peabody Institute of The Johns Hopkins University is a private conservatory and preparatory school in Baltimore, Maryland. It was founded in 1857 and opened in 1866 by merchant/financier and philanthropist George Peabody (1795–1869) ...
.
Williams showed an ability to see each note's color as she heard it, consistent with
synesthesia. She discussed how this inspired her early interest in the piano in a televised interview with the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
. Williams also had the
ability to play anything she heard. At age twelve, she was listening to
Dave Brubeck,
Miles Davis
Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of musi ...
, and
Charles Mingus. She knew she was destined to become a
jazz pianist
Jazz piano is a collective term for the techniques pianists use when playing jazz. The piano has been an integral part of the jazz idiom since its inception, in both solo and ensemble settings. Its role is multifaceted due largely to the instru ...
.
Williams began performing
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...
in her teens, playing with
Richie Cole,
Buck Hill, and
Mickey Fields. In a radio interview with
Marian McPartland
Margaret Marian McPartland OBE ( Turner;Hasson, Claire"Marian McPartland: Jazz Pianist: An Overview of a Career" PhD Thesis. Retrieved 12 August 2008. 20 March 1918 – 20 August 2013), was an English–American jazz pianist, composer, and wri ...
on
NPR
National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...
's
Piano Jazz
''Piano Jazz'' is a weekly one-hour radio show produced and distributed by National Public Radio (NPR). It began on June 4, 1978, and was hosted by jazz pianist Marian McPartland (1918–2013) until 2011. It is the longest-running cultural pro ...
, she stated that her main influences were not pianists, but horn players, especially Miles Davis and
John Coltrane
John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist, bandleader and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music.
Born and raise ...
.
Musical career
In June 1976, Williams began performing regularly with the
"Philly Joe" Jones band in
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
, and with
Lex Humphries
Lex Humphries (August 22, 1936 – July 11, 1994) was an American jazz drummer. He worked with two musicians known for mixing world music with jazz: Sun Ra and Yusef Lateef. As a member of Sun Ra's "Arkestra" he appeared in the film '' Space Is ...
in Philadelphia and New York City, before moving to the
West Coast in October 1976.
In 1977, Williams moved to San Francisco, where she played in house bands at the
Keystone Korner
Keystone Korner was a jazz club in the North Beach neighborhood of San Francisco, which opened in 1972 and continued operation until 1983. Many live recordings were made at the club. Jessica Williams was the house pianist for a number of years. ...
. She worked with
Eddie Harris,
Tony Williams,
Stan Getz,
Bobby Hutcherson, and
Charlie Haden
Charles Edward Haden (August 6, 1937 – July 11, 2014) was an American jazz double bass player, bandleader, composer and educator whose career spanned more than 50 years. In the late 1950s, he was an original member of the ground-breaking ...
, eventually leading her own
jazz trio
A jazz trio is a group of three jazz musicians, often a piano trio comprising a pianist, a double bass player and a drummer. Jazz trios are commonly named after their leader, such as the Bill Evans Trio.
Variants and examples
Famous examples incl ...
, and recording regularly for several decades.
In 1997, Williams established her own record label, Red and Blue Recordings. She also started her publishing company, JJW Music/
ASCAP, and an internet mail order business.
Williams appeared at the 2004 and 2006 "
Mary Lou Williams
Mary Lou Williams (born Mary Elfrieda Scruggs; May 8, 1910 – May 28, 1981) was an American jazz pianist, arranger, and composer. She wrote hundreds of compositions and arrangements and recorded more than one hundred records (in 78, 45, an ...
Women in Jazz Festival" at the
John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (formally known as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, and commonly referred to as the Kennedy Center) is the United States National Cultural Center, located on the Potom ...
in Washington, D.C. She also appeared in festivals and venues worldwide, including The
Purcell Room
The Purcell Room is a concert and performance venue which forms part of the Southbank Centre, one of central London's leading cultural complexes. It is named after the 17th century English composer Henry Purcell and has 370 seats. The Purcell Roo ...
in London, The Bern Jazz Festival, The
Monterey Jazz Festival, The
New Morning
New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created.
New or NEW may refer to:
Music
* New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz
Albums and EPs
* ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013
* ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...
in Paris,
Spivey Hall
Spivey Hall was built in 1991 on the campus of Clayton State University in Morrow, Georgia, near Atlanta, Georgia. Its seating capacity is 492 (476 in the orchestra and 16 box seats). It presents jazz and classical music to the metro Atlanta are ...
in Georgia, and hundreds of other venues. She was a guest on
NPR
National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...
's
Fresh Air
''Fresh Air'' is an American radio talk show broadcast on National Public Radio stations across the United States since 1985. It is produced by WHYY-FM in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The show's host is Terry Gross. , the show was syndicated to ...
with
Terry Gross
Terry Gross (born February 14, 1951) is an American journalist who is the host and co-executive producer of '' Fresh Air'', an interview-based radio show produced by WHYY-FM in Philadelphia and distributed nationally by NPR. Since joining N ...
, and
Marian McPartland
Margaret Marian McPartland OBE ( Turner;Hasson, Claire"Marian McPartland: Jazz Pianist: An Overview of a Career" PhD Thesis. Retrieved 12 August 2008. 20 March 1918 – 20 August 2013), was an English–American jazz pianist, composer, and wri ...
's ''Piano Jazz'' on NPR, as well as being interviewed by the BBC in
Brecon
Brecon (; cy, Aberhonddu; ), archaically known as Brecknock, is a market town in Powys, mid Wales. In 1841, it had a population of 5,701. The population in 2001 was 7,901, increasing to 8,250 at the 2011 census. Historically it was the coun ...
, Wales.
In 2012, Williams had a
Spinal fusion
Spinal fusion, also called spondylodesis or spondylosyndesis, is a neurosurgical or orthopedic surgical technique that joins two or more vertebrae. This procedure can be performed at any level in the spine (cervical, thoracic, or lumbar) and pre ...
with internal instrumentation at
Swedish Hospital's Neurosurgery Unit in Seattle, WA, and subsequently lost her ability to perform. She lived with her husband in the
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Tho ...
, and no longer toured. She continued to make new music, including
electronic music
Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroa ...
and
neoclassical music
Neoclassicism in music was a twentieth-century trend, particularly current in the interwar period, in which composers sought to return to aesthetic precepts associated with the broadly defined concept of "classicism", namely order, balance, c ...
, and remained a lifelong advocate of
civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life o ...
.
Death
Williams died on March 10, 2022, a week before her 74th birthday.
Origin Artist: Jessica Williams
'. In: originarts.com, access date March 15, 2022.
Awards and honors
* Grammy nomination, ''
Nothin' But the Truth'', 1986
* Grammy nomination, ''
Live at Yoshi's, Vol. 1'', 2004
* Grant,
National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal ...
* Grant,
Rockefeller Foundation, 1989
* Grant, Alice B. Toklas Grant for Women Composers, 1992
*
Guggenheim Fellowship, 1995
* Keys to the City, Sacramento, California
* Keys to the City, San Mateo, California
* Artist of the Year, Santa Cruz County, California, 2002
* Jazz Record of the Year, ''Jazz Journal International'' Reader's Poll
Selected discography
* 1976 ''Portal of Antrim'' (
Adelphi)
* 1978 ''Portraits'' (Adelphi)
* 1979 ''Orgonomic Music'' (Clean Cuts)
* 1980 ''Rivers of Memory'' (Clean Cuts)
* 1982 ''Update'' featuring
Eddie Harris (Clean Cuts)
* 1986 ''Nothin' But the Truth'' (BlackHawk)
* 1990 ''And Then, There's This'' (
Timeless)
* 1992 ''Live at Maybeck Recital Hall, Vol. 21'' (
Concord Jazz
Concord Jazz is a record company and label founded in 1973 by Carl Jefferson, the former owner of Jefferson Motors Lincoln Mercury dealership in Concord, California. The label was named after the city in the East San Francisco Bay area, and the j ...
)
* 1993 ''Next Step'' (
Hep)
* 1993 ''Arrival'' (Jazz Focus)
* 1994 ''Momentum'' featuring
Dick Berk and
Jeff Johnson (Jazz Focus)
* 1994 ''Song That I Heard'' (Hep)
* 1994 ''In the Pocket'' (Hep)
* 1994 ''Encounters'' featuring
Leroy Vinnegar
Leroy Vinnegar (July 13, 1928 – August 3, 1999) was an American jazz bassist. Born in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, the self-taught Vinnegar established his reputation in Los Angeles, California, during the 1950s and 1960s. His trade ...
(Jazz Focus)
* 1995 ''Inventions'' (Jazz Focus)
* 1995 ''Joy'' featuring
Hadley Caliman
Hadley Caliman (January 12, 1932 – September 8, 2010) was an American jazz saxophone and flute player.[All ...](_blank)
(Jazz Focus)
* 1995 ''Intuition'' (Jazz Focus)
* 1996 ''Gratitude'' (Candid)
* 1996 ''Jessica's Blues'' featuring Jay Thomas,
Mel Brown and Dave Captein (Jazz Focus)
* 1996 ''Victoria Concert'' (Jazz Focus)
* 1997 ''Higher Standards'' (
Candid)
* 1998 ''Encounters, Vol. 2'' featuring
Leroy Vinnegar
Leroy Vinnegar (July 13, 1928 – August 3, 1999) was an American jazz bassist. Born in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, the self-taught Vinnegar established his reputation in Los Angeles, California, during the 1950s and 1960s. His trade ...
(Jazz Focus)
* 1998 ''Joyful Sorrow: A Solo Tribute to Bill Evans'' (BlackHawk)
* 1999 ''In the Key of Monk'' (Jazz Focus)
* 1999 ''Ain't Misbehavin' '' (Candid)
* 2000 ''Jazz in the Afternoon'' (Candid)
* 2000 ''Blue Fire'' (Jazz Focus)
* 2001 ''I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart'' (Hep)
* 2001 ''Some Ballads, Some Blues'' (Jazz Focus)
* 2002 ''This Side Up'' featuring
Victor Lewis
Victor Lewis (born May 20, 1950) is an American jazz drummer, composer, and educator.
Early life
Victor Lewis was born on May 20, 1950 in Omaha, Nebraska. His father, Richard Lewis, who played saxophone and mother, Camille, a pianist-vocalist ...
and
Ray Drummond (
Maxjazz
Maxjazz (corporately styled MAXJAZZ) was an American jazz record label founded in 1998 by investment banker Richard McDonnell. Maxjazz recordings are generally regarded as a "straight-ahead" acoustic style of jazz. It was based in St. Louis, Mis ...
)
* 2003 ''All Alone'' (Maxjazz)
* 2004 ''Live at Yoshi's, Vol. 1'' featuring
Victor Lewis
Victor Lewis (born May 20, 1950) is an American jazz drummer, composer, and educator.
Early life
Victor Lewis was born on May 20, 1950 in Omaha, Nebraska. His father, Richard Lewis, who played saxophone and mother, Camille, a pianist-vocalist ...
and
Ray Drummond (Maxjazz)
* 2004 ''The Real Deal'' (Hep)
* 2005 ''Live at Yoshi's, Vol. 2'' featuring
Victor Lewis
Victor Lewis (born May 20, 1950) is an American jazz drummer, composer, and educator.
Early life
Victor Lewis was born on May 20, 1950 in Omaha, Nebraska. His father, Richard Lewis, who played saxophone and mother, Camille, a pianist-vocalist ...
and
Ray Drummond (Maxjazz)
* 2006 ''Billy's Theme: A Tribute to Dr. Billy Taylor'' (
Origin
Origin(s) or The Origin may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
Comics and manga
* ''Origin'' (comics), a Wolverine comic book mini-series published by Marvel Comics in 2002
* ''The Origin'' (Buffy comic), a 1999 ''Buffy the Vampire Sl ...
)
* 2007 ''Unity'' (Red and Blue)
* 2008 ''Songs for a New Century'' (Origin)
* 2009 ''The Art of the Piano'' (Origin)
* 2010 ''Touch'' (Origin)
* 2011 ''Freedom Trane'' (Origin)
* 2012 ''Songs of Earth'' (Origin)
* 2014 ''With Love'' (Origin)
With
Charlie Rouse
Charlie Rouse (April 6, 1924 – November 30, 1988) was an American hard bop tenor saxophonist and flautist. His career is marked by his collaboration with Thelonious Monk, which lasted for more than ten years.
Biography
Rouse was born in Was ...
*''
Epistrophy'' (Landmark, 1989)
References
External links
* (abandoned as of 2021)
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Jessica
1948 births
2022 deaths
Post-bop pianists
American jazz pianists
Timeless Records artists
Musicians from Baltimore
Musicians from the San Francisco Bay Area
Women jazz pianists
Jazz musicians from Maryland
Jazz musicians from California
20th-century American women pianists
20th-century American pianists
21st-century American women pianists
21st-century American pianists