Lynne Arriale

Lynne Arriale is a pianist/composer whose career is characterized by a love for melody and a passion for musical discovery. Arriale’s music is a thrilling musical experience. Her style is both vibrant and hard-driving but intimate and lyrical. She is a consummate storyteller and instantly connects with her listeners via emotionally-charged performances. She has a special connection with her audience and that energy flows both way. Arriale’s emotional authenticity enables her audience to feel and think with her” (JazzTimes). Her music is intimate and accessible, “emitting a complexity not created by multiple layers, but multiple layers, which captures the imaginations music lovers around the world.” “There is no jazz musician today that brings a wider range of musical ideas to the link of mind and soul” (Jazz Police). Arriale’s charm lies in her warmth, humor, and ability to connect with her audience and her band. Her performances and recordings with her trio earned her the title of “the poet laureate her generation” (Jazz Police), but she is consistently praised for her “unique voice” as a pianist and leader, composer, arranger, and composer. Randy Brecker, a multi-Grammy winner and a recent collaborator said that she couldn’t compare her with anyone. Her music transcends the term “jazz” – it’s pure music. Arriale won the 1993 International Great American Jazz Piano Competition’s first prize. She soon began her recording and touring career. Since 2003, Motema’s 13 albums as a leader have topped Jazzweek Radio Charts. Inspiration and Nuance reached #1, Come Together #3, and Nuance #4, respectively. They were also included on many “Best Of” lists including The New Yorker and United Press International. LIVE (CD/DVD), her tenth recording as a trio, was named one UPI’s Top Jazz CDs and one of The New Yorker Magazines’ Best CDs of 2011. JAZZIZ Magazine named Solo one of the best CDs 2012, while JazzTimes named Convergence one of JazzTimes’ top 50 CDs 2011. For the past 20 years, she has toured around the world and was chosen to replace Marian McPartland on the 100 Golden Fingers Japan tour (Tommy Flanagan and Hank Jones), Junior Mance, Ray Bryant, Roger Kellaway and Roger Kellaway. Arriale has recorded and performed with jazz legends like George Mraz and Rufus Reid, as well as jazz musicians such as Benny Golson and Rufus Reid. International performances include Montreux and Burghausen, The Gilmore, Spoleto Art, Montreal, Monterey and North Sea, Stuttgart and Pori, San Francisco and Ottawa. She has toured all over the globe, including Brazil, Germany and Austria, Serbia. Poland, Switzerland. Austria, Croatia, France. Belgium. The Czech Republic. The Netherlands. Sweden. Denmark. Australia. Spain. Portugal. South Africa. England. Ireland. Scotland. Canada. Arriale has been featured as a guest on PBS Profile of a Recording Artist, NPR’s Weekend Edition, Jazz Set (with Dee Dee Bridgewater, Branford Marsalis), and Piano Jazz with Marion McPartland. She has also been featured in Billboard and Downbeat, JazzTimes and JAZZIZ Magazines. She has made live media appearances on CNN/FN’ Biz, NPR’s Jazz Piano Christmas Live from The Kennedy Center and other radio/TV interviews across the U.S. and Europe including Radio France, German National Television, and Radio France. Lynne Arriale, a dedicated educator and Yamaha artist is currently Associate Professor of jazz Studies and Director of small ensembles at The University of North Florida. As a faculty member of Jamey Aebersold Summer Jazz Workshops, Centrum Port Townsend Jazz Workshop, and the Thelonious Monk Institute, Aspen, as well as numerous clinics and workshops around the world, including the USA, UK, Europe and Canada. She is a member of The Jazz Education Network as a piano pedagogy representative. She has adjudicated The Montreux Jazz Competition (American Pianists Association Fellowship Award), The Kennedy Center’s Mary Lou Williams Competition, and the Jacksonville Piano Competition. She was mentored at The Mary Lou Williams Emerging Artist Workshop (Kennedy Center) by jazz legend Toshiko Aikiyoshi. Arriale was a natural talent for music, and especially the piano, even though she didn’t grow up in a jazz setting. She was adopted as an infant and grew up in Milwaukee, where she received a toy piano when she was 3. She learned songs from records and radio, mostly from Broadway musicals, and quickly developed a song repertoire. She studied classical music throughout her college and university years. After earning a master’s, she turned to jazz. Arriale said, “Discovering the unlimited creativity and artistic freedom of jazz changed my life.” She later learned that her mother was a jazz singer; maybe there’s something to her love of songful melodies. Jana Herzen, Motema founder, refers to Lynne’s “singer-like” ability connect with an audience… Arriale sings while she is writing and practicing. Arriale says that singing is the key to expressive play and spontaneous improvisation. No matter where spontaneity takes me, I always focus on the melody. I look for the heart of the song and find its special qualities. Then, I use that as my musical inspiration. Learning how to sing is a lifetime process. From www.lynnearriale.com

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