Williams, Mary Lou

Williams, Mary Lou

 orig. Mary Elfrieda Scruggs

(born May 8, 1910, Atlanta, Ga., U.S.—died May 28, 1981, Durham, N.C.) U.S. pianist, composer, arranger, and bandleader. A child prodigy, she had her professional debut with big bands at age 12. Beginning in 1929, Williams wrote arrangements for many swing bands, including those of Andy Kirk (1898–1992) and Duke Ellington. Her 12-movement Zodiac Suite was performed by the New York Philharmonic in 1946. A pianist with strong roots in the blues and early jazz, Williams embraced the innovations of bebop and later free jazz, performing with a diverse array of jazz musicians, including Dizzy Gillespie and Cecil Taylor (b. 1933). In the 1960s and '70s she composed a number of liturgical pieces for jazz ensembles, including Music for Peace (1970), popularly known as “Mary Lou's Mass.”

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Williams, Mary Lou (b. Mary Elfrieda Scruggs) (1910–81) jazz musician; born in Atlanta, Ga. She was an important arranger and pianist with Andy Kirk from 1929–41, and wrote arrangements for Duke Ellington and Benny Goodman in the 1930s and 1940s. She later embraced the bebop style and wrote several sacred works, including "Mary Lou's Mass" in 1970.