Marian McPartland was a renowned jazz pianist who was born in the United Kingdom but lived in America from 1945 after she married trumpeter Jimmy McPartland. She hosted a programme on National Public Radio titled 'Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz' from 1978 until 2011. She performed and recorded with a great many top jazz artists and she was lauded by many institutions as a player, broadcaster and teacher. She received the Grammy Trustees Award from the American recording academy in 2004, and she died aged 95 in New York City in 2013.
Born in Slough, England, she studied the violin as a child and turned to the piano in her teens, influenced by jazz pianists such as Duke Ellington and Fats Waller. She performed entertaining the Allied troops during World War II and met the American trumpet player who became her husband in 1945. After a stint in his hometown of Chicago, they settled in New York and she played with many stars such as trumpeter Roy Eldridge, saxophonist Coleman Hawkins and drummer Joe Morello.
She began teaching in the 1960s and started her radio career in New York City in 1964. After her 25-year stint hosting 'Piano Jazz', she went back to concerts and recordings. Her many releases include several concert albums and recordings of works by composers such as Billy Strayhorn, Benny Carter and Duke Ellington. Collaborators included her husband, Teddy Wilson, George Shearing, Tony Bennett and the Hickory House Trio. 'Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz Radio Broadcast With Steely Dan' (2005) went to number 29 on Billboard's Jazz Albums chart, '85 Candles: Live in New York' (2005) reached number 49, 'Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz Radio Broadcast With Elvis Costello' (2005) peaked at number 45 and 'Twilight World' (2008) hit number 16.
