Since his debut release on Mack Avenue Records in 2013, pianist-composer Aaron Diehl has mystified listeners with his layered artistry. He reaches into expansion. At once temporal and ethereal — deliberate in touch and texture — his expression transforms the piano into an orchestral vessel in the spirit of beloved predecessors Ahmad Jamal, Erroll Garner, Art Tatum, and Jelly Roll Morton.
Moment to moment, he considers what instrument he’s moved to evoke. “This is a singular voice here, but maybe this section is a saxophone soli, or this piece here are high winds or low brass in the bass,” says the Steinway artist, describing his concept on the bandstand.
Following three critically-acclaimed leader albums, the American Pianist Association’s 2011 Cole Porter fellow now focuses his attention on what it means to be authentic, to be present within himself.
His most recent release on Mack Avenue, The Vagabond, reveals his breadth as who The New York Times calls “a composer worth watching.” Across nine original tracks and works by Philip Glass and Sergei Prokofiev, Aaron leans into imagination and exploration. His forthcoming solo record, poised for release in spring 2021, promises an expansion of that search in a setting at once unbound and intimate.
In his sound, Aaron finds evolving meaning in the briefest phrases. He conjures three-dimensional expansion of melody, counterpoint and movement through time. Rather than choose one sound or another, one genre or another — one identity or another — Aaron invites listeners into the chambered whole of his artistry. His approach reflects varied ancestral lineages and cultural expressions. And he remains committed to independence and self-discovery.
Born in Columbus, Ohio, a young Aaron flourished among family members supportive of his artistic inclinations. His grandfather, piano and trombone player Arthur Baskerville, inspired him to pursue music and nurtured his talent.
In 2003, Aaron traveled to New York; following his success as a finalist in Jazz at Lincoln Center’s 2002 Essentially Ellington competition and a subsequent European tour with Wynton Marsalis, he began studying under mentors Kenny Barron, Eric Reed, and Oxana Yablonskaya, earning his Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies at the Juilliard School.
His love affair with rub and tension prompted a years-long immersion in seemingly disparate sound palettes he found to be similar in depth, resonance and impulse to explore, from Monk and Ravel to Gershwin and William Grant Still. Among other towering figures, Still in particular inspires Aaron’s ongoing curation of Black American composers in his own performance programming, unveiled this past fall at 92nd St. Y.
This ongoing project, along with his recent and widely lauded trio interpretations of Glass’ iconic repertoire, has propelled Aaron into the next phase of self-actualizing. He embraces the challenge of drawing on other artists’ visions and expressions, then interpreting those within the framework of his own personal aesthetic.
As thoroughly a collaborator as he is a leader, Aaron has appeared at such celebrated international venues as The Barbican, Ronnie Scott’s, Elbphilharmonie, and Philharmonie de Paris, as well as domestic mainstays Jazz at Lincoln Center, The Kennedy Center, The Village Vanguard, and Walt Disney Hall. Jazz Festival appearances comprise performances at Detroit, Newport, Atlanta, and Monterey, for which he received the 2014 festival commission. Orchestral performances include hits at New York Philharmonic, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, and the Philadelphia Orchestra.
Aaron’s appetite for expansion has afforded him passing and extended associations with some of the music’s most fascinating and enduring figures including Wynton Marsalis, Benny Golson, Jimmy Heath, Buster Williams, Branford Marsalis, Wycliffe Gordon, and Philip Glass. His formative association with multi-Grammy award-winning artist Cecile McLorin Salvant only enhanced his study and deeply personal delivery of the American Songbook.
Recent highlights have included appearing at the New York premiere of Philip Glass’ complete Etudes at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, collaborating with flamenco guitarist Dani De Morón in Flamenco Meets Jazz (produced by Savannah Music Festival and Flamenco Festival) and performing with the New York Philharmonic and the Cleveland Orchestra as featured soloist on George Gershwin’s Piano Concerto in F.
The New York Times lauded the “brilliance” of his performance: “The roomy freedom of [his] playing in bluesy episodes was especially affecting. He folded short improvised sections into the score, and it’s hard to imagine that Gershwin would not have been impressed.”
When he’s not at the studio or on the road, he’s likely in the air. A licensed pilot, Aaron holds commercial single- and multi-engine certificates.
By the Way Berkshires is a digital magazine exploring creative life and community — art and performance, food and the outdoors — and I’m writing it for you, with local voices, because I’ve gotten to know this rich part of the world as a writer and journalist, and I want to share it with you.
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Stella Levi tells Michael Frank stories of the Juderia, the neighborhood on the Greek island of Rhodes where she’d grown up in a Jewish community that had thrived there for half a millennium.
Stella Levi tells Michael Frank stories of the Juderia, the neighborhood on the Greek island of Rhodes where she’d grown up in a Jewish community that had thrived there for half a millennium.
Bud Wobus, professor emeritus of Geology at Williams College, leads a geology presentation and walk looking at thje history of the granite slabs of the Manton Research Center and Tadao Ando-designed Clark Center.
Adapted from Kent Haruf’s novel, 'Our Souls at Night,' this World Premiere musical tells the joyful story of a man and a woman who, in advanced age, come together in a search for happiness and family.
Along with the Clark’s major summer exhibition, Edvard Munch: Trembling Earth, Manton Curator Anne Leonard presents the Clark’s full set of Munch's works on paper.
Adapted from Kent Haruf’s novel, 'Our Souls at Night,' this World Premiere musical tells the joyful story of a man and a woman who, in advanced age, come together in a search for happiness and family.
The Clark offers free watercolor painting — walk through Edvard Munch: Trembling Earth and pick up a miniature watercolor kit and try plein air painting outdoors.
The West Stockbridge Farmers Market offers fresh produce — fruits and vegetables in season, eggs, meats and cheeses, breads and baked goods, fudge and jams and more.
The museum serves local brews in artist Dean Baldwin’s-sculpture-turned-river-side-beer-garden, one night each week, with live local music outdoors under the stars.
Mass MoCA Senior Curator Susan Cross holds a conversation with American photographer Holly Lynton on Lynton’s first book, Bare Handed, a portrait of rural life throughout 21st-century America.
Murder and madness will haunt the Tina Packer Playhouse as Shakespeare & Company presents a three-performance reading of William Shakespeare’s tragedy.
The Sheffield Farmers Market returns outdoors with some 20 vendors — from pickles, seasonings and garlic, to Naji’s Mediterranean Cuisine, baked fresh wheat-free breads, local meats, honey and maple syrup and more.
Naumkeag will lead a Mindfulness in Nature series each Friday in summer, July 7 through September 8, with Sandrine Harris, meeting in the Afternoon Garden.
The Knights return to the Clark to celebrate the Edvard Munch with a selection of music from fellow Norwegian Edvard Grieg, Antonín Dvořák, Frederick Delius (a friend of Munch's) and more.
Anima, an immersive multidisciplinary installation by French visual artist/photographer Noémie Goudal, theater director Maëlle Poésy, circus artist Chloé Moglia, and composer Chloé Thévenin, reflects on the history of the earth’s climate.
Interweaving the classic songs and jams of The Grateful Dead, The Allman Brothers Band and The Band, Dead Man’s Waltz celebrates the crossover between The Dead, The Allmans and The Band.
Murder and madness will haunt the Tina Packer Playhouse as Shakespeare & Company presents a three-performance reading of William Shakespeare’s tragedy.
Explore author Edith Wharton's estate, including the woods, wetlands, and meadows that may have inspired her writing, and learn to know birds by sight and sound.
The West Stockbridge Farmers Market offers fresh produce — fruits and vegetables in season, eggs, meats and cheeses, breads and baked goods, fudge and jams and more.
The Sheffield Farmers Market returns outdoors with some 20 vendors — from pickles, seasonings and garlic, to Naji’s Mediterranean Cuisine, baked fresh wheat-free breads, local meats, honey and maple syrup and more.
Naumkeag will lead a Mindfulness in Nature series each Friday in summer, July 7 through September 8, with Sandrine Harris, meeting in the Afternoon Garden.
Chocolate peanut butter cookies, fresh flowers, jams and pickles and cheeses ... the North Adams Farmers Market returns weekly with more than a dozen farmers and makers.
Housatonic Heritage explores the past, present and future in the Berkshires, in open spaces and downtowns, historic sites and trails. Walks set out from many places between Pittsfield and Northwest Connecticut, and all of them are free.
Housatonic Heritage explores the past, present and future in the Berkshires, in open spaces and downtowns, historic sites and trails. Walks set out from many places between Pittsfield and Northwest Connecticut, and all of them are free.
Hershey Felder’s Beethoven takes audiences on a journey through Beethoven's life and work as a composer in 19th century Vienna, from his boyhood to his last years.
Naumkeag's horticulturist will lead a after-hours tour of the gardens while sipping on a glass of wine. Each month will offer a different topic for the garden.
The West Stockbridge Farmers Market offers fresh produce — fruits and vegetables in season, eggs, meats and cheeses, breads and baked goods, fudge and jams and more.
Alyssa Sakina Mumtaz speaks on Verse of Light: Resonances Between Islamic Art and the Shakers, along with the Stillness and Light Photography Exhibition.
Mass MoCA's artists-in-residence show their work at The Studios — where you may wander into surreal worlds, find kindship in nature and multimeda performance, follow an artist's journey from Delhi to Lahore ...
The Sheffield Farmers Market returns outdoors with some 20 vendors — from pickles, seasonings and garlic, to Naji’s Mediterranean Cuisine, baked fresh wheat-free breads, local meats, honey and maple syrup and more.
On a summer night, in the middle of a field on their midwest farm, a long-married couple sits on folding chairs to observe the seven stages of a lunar eclipse.
Funk, rock and reggae group the Feathers are back after seven years with Berkshire musicians Jordan Weller, Rob Sanzone, Joe Rose, Miles Lally and Tom Parker.
Chocolate peanut butter cookies, fresh flowers, jams and pickles and cheeses ... the North Adams Farmers Market returns weekly with more than a dozen farmers and makers.
On a summer night, in the middle of a field on their midwest farm, a long-married couple sits on folding chairs to observe the seven stages of a lunar eclipse.
Dewey Hall and Michael Lesko are partnering to revive a monthly open-mic-meets-variety show with an open creative soirée and a talented headlining act.
The West Stockbridge Farmers Market offers fresh produce — fruits and vegetables in season, eggs, meats and cheeses, breads and baked goods, fudge and jams and more.
Justin Adkins and Arianna Alexsandra Collins of HooRWA will lead a walk along the Hoosic River, identifying wild edible and medicinal plants and fungi.
Botanist Ted Elliman will lead a workshop and field trip to look closely at kinds of goldenrods and asters, striking and vivid blooms in late summer and fall landscapes.
Dream Away invites you to start your weekend jumping early with dance grooves all night long. Come to the deep woods disco and let it all hang out with DJ BFG.
FreshGrass returns with a lineup of classic bluegrass, folk, world and international musicians — Grammy-winning vocalist and banjoist Rhiannon Giddens, the Dropkick Murphys and many more.
The Sheffield Farmers Market returns outdoors with some 20 vendors — from pickles, seasonings and garlic, to Naji’s Mediterranean Cuisine, baked fresh wheat-free breads, local meats, honey and maple syrup and more.
Sonoro performs a blend of jazz, latin, and classical music, bringing a jazz-like freedom and Latin emotion to classical works to make them new and unexpected.
On a summer night, in the middle of a field on their midwest farm, a long-married couple sits on folding chairs to observe the seven stages of a lunar eclipse.
The Black Legacy Projct band kicks off their first tour with an album release show on Fridayat the Guthrie Center - literally where the Black LP journey began.
FreshGrass returns with a lineup of classic bluegrass, folk, world and international musicians — Grammy-winning vocalist and banjoist Rhiannon Giddens, the Dropkick Murphys and many more.
Chocolate peanut butter cookies, fresh flowers, jams and pickles and cheeses ... the North Adams Farmers Market returns weekly with more than a dozen farmers and makers.
Housatonic Heritage explores the past, present and future in the Berkshires, in open spaces and downtowns, historic sites and trails. Walks set out from many places between Pittsfield and Northwest Connecticut, and all of them are free.
FreshGrass returns with a lineup of classic bluegrass, folk, world and international musicians — Grammy-winning vocalist and banjoist Rhiannon Giddens, the Dropkick Murphys and many more.
Hancock Shaker Village will celebrate the beauty of Autumn in the Berkshires at their annual Country Fair with family entertainment, live music and dance performances, workshops and more.
Berkshire potters will open their studios, welcoming all comers to meet the makers and learn about the craft in a free weekend with demonstrations and guest artists.
Housatonic Heritage explores the past, present and future in the Berkshires, in open spaces and downtowns, historic sites and trails. Walks set out from many places between Pittsfield and Northwest Connecticut, and all of them are free.
On a summer night, in the middle of a field on their midwest farm, a long-married couple sits on folding chairs to observe the seven stages of a lunar eclipse.
A collective of formerly incarcerated women and theater artists are co-creating an original theater piece, working with theater makers through the 2nd Street organization in Pittsfield.
A collective of formerly incarcerated women and theater artists are co-creating an original theater piece, working with theater makers through the 2nd Street organization in Pittsfield.
A collective of formerly incarcerated women and theater artists are co-creating an original theater piece, working with theater makers through the 2nd Street organization in Pittsfield.
In Sanaz Toossi's 2023 Pulitzer prizewinning play, four students meet regularly in a classroom in Iran, preparing to take the Test of English as a Foreign Language proficiency exam.
The West Stockbridge Farmers Market offers fresh produce — fruits and vegetables in season, eggs, meats and cheeses, breads and baked goods, fudge and jams and more.
Before her appearance at the 2023 Brooklyn Book Festival, Finnish illustrator, writer and visual artist Marika Maijala joins Mass MoCA for an artist talk on Rosie Runsand hands-on silkscreen with Gary Lichtenstein.
Winner of the Tony Award for Best Play, Copenhagen, explores the events surrounding a fateful meeting between two of the most brilliant minds of the 20th century: Niels Bohr and Werner Heisenberg.
In Sanaz Toossi's 2023 Pulitzer prizewinning play, four students meet regularly in a classroom in Iran, preparing to take the Test of English as a Foreign Language proficiency exam.
The Sheffield Farmers Market returns outdoors with some 20 vendors — from pickles, seasonings and garlic, to Naji’s Mediterranean Cuisine, baked fresh wheat-free breads, local meats, honey and maple syrup and more.
Winner of the Tony Award for Best Play, Copenhagen, explores the events surrounding a fateful meeting between two of the most brilliant minds of the 20th century: Niels Bohr and Werner Heisenberg.
On a summer night, in the middle of a field on their midwest farm, a long-married couple sits on folding chairs to observe the seven stages of a lunar eclipse.
In Sanaz Toossi's 2023 Pulitzer prizewinning play, four students meet regularly in a classroom in Iran, preparing to take the Test of English as a Foreign Language proficiency exam.
Chocolate peanut butter cookies, fresh flowers, jams and pickles and cheeses ... the North Adams Farmers Market returns weekly with more than a dozen farmers and makers.
On a summer night, in the middle of a field on their midwest farm, a long-married couple sits on folding chairs to observe the seven stages of a lunar eclipse.
In Sanaz Toossi's 2023 Pulitzer prizewinning play, four students meet regularly in a classroom in Iran, preparing to take the Test of English as a Foreign Language proficiency exam.
Winner of the Tony Award for Best Play, Copenhagen, explores the events surrounding a fateful meeting between two of the most brilliant minds of the 20th century: Niels Bohr and Werner Heisenberg.
On a summer night, in the middle of a field on their midwest farm, a long-married couple sits on folding chairs to observe the seven stages of a lunar eclipse.
Band leader Isaac Stanford brings fellow Philadelphia musicians, including David Streim and Freddie Berman from the Amos Lee band, to learn a selection of old steel guitar instrumentals.
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