She was ahead of her time, a genius. During an era when Jazz was the nation's popular music, Mary Lou Williams was one of its greatest innovators. As both a pianist and composer, she was a font of daring and creativity who helped shape the sound of 20th century America. And like the dynamic, turbulent nation in which she lived, Williams seemed to redefine herself with every passing decade.
From child prodigy to "Boogie-Woogie Queen" to groundbreaking composer to mentoring some of the greatest musicians of all time, Mary Lou Williams never ceased to astound those who heard her play. But away from the piano, Williams was a woman in a "man's world," a black person in a "whites only" society, an ambitious artist who dared to be different, and who struggled against the imperatives of being a "star."
Carol Bash is the Founder and President of Paradox Films, a media production company based in Peekskill, New York. She is an award winning documentary filmmaker with over 20 years of experience. Her current project on the film festival circuit, Blueprint For My People, is a visual poem that interweaves spoken-word narration of Margaret Walker’s poem, “For My People” with contemporary images and rare 19th century cyanotypes (blue photographic prints known as “blueprints”). Also on the film festival circuit is the music video Windows that she wrote, produced, edited and co-directed (with Christopher Fox), which is a song on Future One's latest album, Do We Need Another Psycho. Her short film which showcases the natural beauty of a local farm, Morning at Hemlock Hill Farm, screened at film festivals and art exhibitions in the Hudson Valley, New York area. Her feature documentary, Mary Lou Williams: The Lady Who Swings the Band, on this renowned yet unsung jazz genius, is currently available on Showtime. Currently, Carol serves as the Programming Coordinator at Black Public Media. She is also a Peekskill Arts Alliance Board Member and an Organizer/Programmer of the annual Peekskill Film Festival. Carol is a former Black Public Media artist-in-residence and a Firelight Media Documentary Lab fellow.
