Mimi Dye is a violist, violinist, composer, and educator whose music bridges classical tradition and global jazz. Blending improvisation, chamber music, and rhythms from cultures around the world, her work invites listeners into a soundscape where classical precision meets creative freedom.
New Album Out March 20th!
Violist and Composer Mimi Dye Releases One Beautiful Light, A Bold Jazz Viola Concerto Bridging Classical and Jazz Traditions
Tulsa-based violist, composer, and educator Mimi Dye announces the release of her new album One Beautiful Light, an ambitious and genre-blending work that brings the viola into a vibrant conversation with jazz improvisation and chamber music.
Set for release on March 20, 2026, the album centers on a three-movement jazz viola concerto that unites solo viola, jazz trio, and string quintet, creating a distinctive musical landscape where classical structure and jazz spontaneity meet. The roughly twenty-minute concerto unfolds through three movements, Prophecy, Vision, and Fulfillment each exploring a different emotional and musical dimension of the work.
The concerto is performed by an ensemble of distinguished musicians including violinists Ronnamarie Jensen and Jennifer Sherman, violist Vesselin Todorov, cellist Kari Caldwell, bassist Marc Facci, pianist Max Holm, bassist Jordan Hehl, and percussionist Gerald Scholl. Together they form a dynamic hybrid ensemble that moves fluidly between chamber precision and jazz interplay.
Completing the album is “Adora Memoria,” a tango-inspired chamber piece for oboe, viola, and clave. Commissioned in 2024 by oboist Lise Glaser, the work blends nostalgia and rhythmic vitality, offering an intimate counterpart to the concerto’s expansive scope.
Recorded at Wild Mountain Studios in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the album was produced by Mimi Dye and Mark Kuykendall, who also engineered, mixed, and mastered the recording.
Dye, founder of the Topaz Jazz Ensemble, has built an international reputation as a performer and composer whose work spans classical performance, jazz innovation, and intercultural collaboration. Her performances have taken her from concert halls across the United States to stages including the Sydney Opera House and San Francisco’s Herbst Theatre.
With One Beautiful Light, Dye expands the expressive possibilities of the viola while illuminating the shared language between classical composition and jazz improvisation. The result is a luminous, genre-defying work that celebrates collaboration, memory, and the power of musical dialogue.
Album Information
Album: One Beautiful Light
Artist: Mimi Dye
Release Date: March 20, 2026
Recorded: Wild Mountain Studios | Tulsa, Oklahoma
Formats: Digital (All Streaming Platforms, Bandcamp)
Tracklist
Prophecy (Movement I)
Vision (Movement II)
Fulfillment (Movement III)
Adora Memoria
Critical Reception
“Mimi Dye Brings Hildegard alive and present in our midst with a purity of sound and a passion of soul.”- Matthew Fox, Illuminations of Hildegard of Bingen
“She demonstrated her command of the instrument persuasively,…and played with concentration, skill and confidence.” - New York Times
“…delivered exquisitely…” “Her work was recognized by prolonged applause.”- Sacramento Bee
“…played with agility and tonal lustre.”- New York Newsday
“…excellent…” - Seattle Times
“…with such purity of style and warmth of tone…”- Denise Levertov
“…eloquent performer.” - San Francisco Chronicle
“…superb violist…” - The Star-Ledger
“…the swinging was visceral…” - The Oregonian
About Her Work
A former student of Itzhak Perlman, Mimi Dye is a renowned viola soloist and chamber music artist who has performed in music festivals and concerts throughout the United States and Europe. For her New York Debut at Carnegie Recital Hall, she commissioned Tapasya by composer Janice Giteck for viola and percussion which was recorded and released on the New Albion CD entitled “Home (revisited)”.
As founder of the ensemble Topaz, Mimi Dye has been recognized in the Bay Area for blending classical chamber music, jazz improvisation, and world-music influences in collaborative performances and original compositions.
Her projects and performances continue to bring together musicians from diverse traditions, creating a body of work that celebrates both the classical viola repertoire and the evolving language of jazz and global music.
