Biography

b. 29 May 1957, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. Playing and studying piano from an early age, Arriale took a Masters degree in classical music at Wisconsin Conservatory of Music. She performed classical music but was drawn to jazz and in particular to the music of her primary influences, Keith Jarrett and Herbie Hancock. Her reputation began to spread owing to national and international tours and a measure of her growing recognition among her peers was gained from her inclusion in the 100 Golden Fingers tour of Japan in 1991. Her companions during this prestigious event included veterans, Hank Jones, Tommy Flanagan, Cedar Walton, Kenny Barron and Monty Alexander. A further accolade arrived in 1993 when she won the International Great American Jazz Piano Competition. Throughout the 90s, Arriale continued to tour internationally and in addition to making several highly acclaimed records was also involved in education. She taught at master classes and clinics and became a faculty member of the Jamey Aebersold Summer Jazz Workshops. Arriale’s skills are never more evident than in her ability to combine jazz soul with superb technique in a manner that loses none of the emotional strengths of the former. Neither does she allow the brilliance of her playing to shade the depths and intensity of her creative skills. Almost any of her recordings, on many of which a frequent collaborator is drummer Steve Davis, can be taken as exemplifying her distinctive style and sound.