Benjamin James Aronov (October 16, 1932 – May 3, 2015) was an American jazz pianist, professionally known as Ben Aronov or Benny Aronov.
Early life
Aronov was born in Gary, Indiana. He played in local jazz and dance ensembles as a teenager in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He was a student at the University of Tulsa in 1951 and 1952, then was conscripted into the United States Army and was stationed in
Texas, where he played in a military band. After leaving the Army, he attended the Manhattan School of Music, earning a bachelor's degree in music in 1966.
Career
In 1954, Aronov moved to Los Angeles and began playing at the Lighthouse and with
Terry Gibbs,
June Christy, and
Lena Horne. In 1961, he moved to New York City. He worked with
Al Cohn,
Benny Goodman, Jim Hall,
Morgana King,
Lee Konitz,
Peggy Lee,
Liza Minnelli,
George Mraz, Mark Murphy, the National Jazz Ensemble,
Ken Peplowski,
Tom Pierson,
Zoot Sims,
Carol Sloane, and Warren Vaché Jr.
He played piano in the Broadway production of
Cats from 1982 to 2000.
After this, he moved to
Aix-en-Provence, where he remained until his death in 2015.
- Footnotes
- General references
-
Gary W. Kennedy, "Ben Aronov". The New Grove Dictionary of Jazz. 2nd edition, ed. Barry Kernfeld.
