Pannonica is a Thelonious Monk jazz ballad that first appeared on the 1957 album Brilliant Corners, where Monk plays a delicate, lullaby‑like version on celeste. The tune is named for Baroness Pannonica de Koenigswarter, known as Nica, a member of the Rothschild family who became Monk’s devoted patron after meeting him in 1954; she supported him for decades and inspired more than one Monk piece. The A section resolves quietly but ends a half step higher than it begins, and the B section shifts through several keys before returning to A, giving the piece a quiet yet restless mood. A famous quartet version appears on the Les Liaisons Dangereuses film soundtrack (1959), with Charlie Rouse, Sam Jones, and Art Taylor, which darkens the mood compared to the solo edition. The tune has been covered many times, including Chick Corea’s brisk interpretation and Peter Bernstein’s live version, and it stands as a high point of Monk’s composing—enchanting, surprising, and deeply lyrical.
