September 9, 2026 – Today, GRAMMY and Emmy Award-winning musician, singer, composer, legendary live performer, and multi-platinum best-selling artist, Harry Connick, Jr., announces Babe: Elaboratio, a deeply personal new orchestral album honoring the life and legacy of his mother, Anita-Francis Livingston Connick, affectionately known as “Babe,” whom he lost to ovarian cancer when he was only 13 years old. The album, set for release on September 25 and available to pre-order HERE, further expands Connick’s heartfelt musical and literary tribute to the woman whose love and influence have shaped his life and artistry. To coincide with the announcement, Connick has shared an excerpt from Act I: New York, giving fans a taste of what to expect from the forthcoming new music – listen here.

Written, arranged, and produced entirely by Connick, the three-part, large-scale orchestral work traces his mother’s remarkable journey through the places and experiences that shaped her life: New York, Morocco, and New Orleans. Babe’s story unfolds as a magnificent symphony, rich with emotion and layered with history. From her early childhood in New York to the serendipitous meeting with her husband in Morocco to the impressive career as one of the first female judges in New Orleans, Babe’s life was a testament of love, determination, and wisdom. Connick recorded the album in Melbourne's Iwaki Auditorium with 70+ musicians from Orchestra Victoria and the Harry Connick, Jr. Big Band, conducted by Jessica Gethin.

Connick first unveiled Babe: Elaboratio during his long-awaited Carnegie Hall debut performances on May 22 and 23, 2026, on what would have been his mother’s 100th birthday. Having declined opportunities to perform on the iconic main stage at the venue throughout his career, he chose the profoundly meaningful occasion to finally step onto the Carnegie Hall stage, fulfilling his mother’s dream that her tiny piano prodigy would one day perform there. 

The music is accompanied by Connick’s forthcoming book, Babe: Elaboratio A Tribute to My Mother, set for release on September 29, through Harper Celebrate – pre-order HERE. Featuring personal photography and measures from the score, the book is a tribute to Babe, a celebration of music, and a meditation on the power of a mother’s love to shape a life forever, offering an intimate look into the emotional and creative journey behind its creation.

Together, the Babe: Elaboratio album, Carnegie Hall performances, and forthcoming book stand as the fulfillment of a lifelong promise and a testament to the ways a mother’s love can reverberate across time, finding new expression in art, sound, and story. As poignantly conveyed by JubileeCast, the project “represents the fulfillment of a promise carried since childhood - one tied not to awards, prestige, or accomplishment, but to a mother who believed in her son before the world ever knew his name.”

ACT I: NEW YORK
The story begins in New York City, where Anita spent her childhood and early years.

ACT II: MOROCCO
In her twenties, Anita move to Morocco in search of adventure, where she met and married Harry’s father.

ACT III: NEW ORLEANS
Anita’s final chapter brought her to New Orleans, where she built a loving home and raised her two children, Suzanna and Harry. It was there that she nurtured Harry’s extraordinary musical gifts, guiding and inspiring the beginning of Harry’s lifelong journey in music.

Babe: Elaboratio will be available to stream everywhere and on CD beginning September 25, with vinyl release details to be announced.

Harry Connick Jr.’s career has exemplified excellence across multiple platforms in the entertainment world over the past three decades. His live and recorded musical performances, achievements in film and television, and appearances on Broadway as both an actor and a composer have received Grammy and Emmy Awards, as well as Tony Award nominations. The foundation of Connick’s art is the music of his native New Orleans, where he began performing as a pianist and vocalist at the age of five. He continues to establish himself as a best-selling musician and singer, composer, actor (in over 20 films, Broadway, TV shows), and legendary live performer, with millions of recordings sold around the world.