French Ambassador Pierre Vimont presented Wynton Marsalis the insignia of chevalier of the Legion of Honor medal, France’s highest distinction, in a very special ceremony at the French Embassy in New York by French Cultural Services.

Following the presentation guests were treated to a performance by Wynton’s quintet with saxophonist Walter Blanding Jr. and Ellis Marsalis at the Steinway Piano with his son.

In attendance were Bill Cosby, George Wein, Jean-Louis Gilhaumon, George Avakian and Wynton’s Father Mr. Ellis Marsalis.

More Info

Video: Legion of Honor Presentation

Video provided by Jon Hammond

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About The Video

In a recently posted YouTube video, jazz trumpeter – and now artistic director of Jazz At The Lincoln Center – Wynton Marsalis mentioned the lineup to be presented October 29th-31st, 2009. In his description of the songs to be performed, he pointed out that they would be playing music that he has written in the past for this three day period.

Jazz At The Lincoln Center has always performed music of all artists and styles, but when you’re the artistic director, I guess you have the say in what gets played. That’s a great idea, and Marsalis’ music sure does bring in the crowds.

What was interesting about the YouTube video presentation was that toward the end, Marsalis talks about the different elements that he wanted to put into the shows – elements or choirs and jazz tap. He mentioned that this was similar to what he group up with in New Orleans, and he wanted to bring these elements – things that you don’t typically have in modern jazz – back into view.

Commentary

That got me to thinking about a couple different questions:

(1) When and why did these things begin to disappear?
(2) Is it right to try to “get those elements back into modern music”?

Marsalis commented that he remembers these things as being crucial parts of the jazz scene when he was growing up in New Orleans. Maybe it was just jazz at the time, and it’s something that is not done as much any more. Or maybe this is purely unique to New Orleans jazz. After all, while we can put the label of “jazz” on a lot of music, there are still different categories – and even subcategories – of jazz. But he’s right, these elements have seemed to sneak out of the mainstream.

As for “getting those elements back into modern music,” well that’s something a little different. If there are different categories of jazz, and these types of elements happen to be unique to New Orleans jazz, why try to infuse them into “modern jazz.” Don’t get me wrong, I like New Orleans jazz, and I love Wynton Marsalis’ compositions, but is he trying to force something that should be left alone?

If we are not talking about elements unique to New Orleans jazz, then might we be talking about the direction that jazz has taken in its natural evolution? I really like the idea of bringing back some of these elements, especially for sentimental reasons, but the idea of bringing them back to modern jazz caught my attention, and I had to comment on it. It doesn’t seem like the elements mentioned by Marsalis are conducive to “modern jazz” – whatever may fall under this loosely defined category. I guess it just doesn’t seem natural. Your thoughts?

Original Video at jalc.org

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Recorded in High Definition by HDNet, Willie Nelson and Wynton Marsalis Play the Music of Ray Charles gives music lovers a front-row seat to the sold-out concert, including never-before-seen rehearsal footage, interviews and photos. It can be seen in select cinemas from October 15th and arrives in-stores on both Blu-Ray and DVD on October 20th from A&E Home Entertainment for $19.95 (SD) and $29.95 (BD).

The concert event, including a half-hour backstage, behind-the-scenes interview special, airs on HDNet in true high definition on October 18th at 8:00 p.m. ET and on SIRIUS XM’s Real Jazz channel, SIRIUS channel 72 and XM channel 70 on October 18th at 8:00 pm ET. Blue Note Records will release a live album of the concert in Spring 2010.

Pre-Order Yours Today at Amazon
- DVD
- Blu-Ray

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The Band:

Comprised of 15 of today’s finest jazz soloists and ensemble players, the band has been the Jazz at Lincoln Center resident orchestra for more than 18 years. The orchestra performs a vast repertoire, from rare historic compositions to Jazz at Lincoln Center-commissioned works. The orchestra has performed in over 300 cities on six continents, sharing an amazing treasure of musical sophistication and tradition with thousands of passionate jazz fans.

The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra includes: Marsalis, music director, trumpet; Sean Jones, trumpet; Ryan Kisor, trumpet; Marcus Printup, trumpet; Vincent R. Gardner, trombone; Elliot Mason, trombone; Chris Crenshaw, trombone; Sherman Irby, saxophones; Ted Nash, alto and soprano saxophones, clarinet; Walter Blanding Jr., tenor and soprano saxophones, clarinet; Victor Goines, tenor and soprano saxophones, Bb and bass clarinets; Joe Temperley, baritone and soprano saxophones, bass clarinet; Dan Nimmer, piano; Carlos Henriquez, bass and Ali Jackson, drums.

About OCPAC:

The Orange County Performing Arts Center presents a wide variety of the most significant national and international productions of music, dance and theater to the people of Southern California. It is committed to supporting artistic excellence on all of its stages and offering unsurpassed experiences, engaging the entire community in new and exciting ways through the unique power of live performance and an array of inspiring programs.

Location:
Orange County Performing Arts Center
600 Town Center Drive
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
(714) 556-2121
www.ocapc.org

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Time is very much at the heart of He and She: the swift passage of time over the course of one’s life, the mood-altering shifts of time in the duration of a song. It’s an ambitious effort, combining spoken word and music, and Marsalis has given his quintet some formidable charts. The album is tempered with flashes of humor and plenty of swing. There’s ease and elegance and more than a little wisdom in these grooves.

The new album draws its greatest power from telling a familiar story in such a compelling and richly entertaining manner, a uniue variation on a theme that everyone, in some way, knows. Listening at the album track by track, or as one large work, one can detect the sound of all our love stories and experiences.

Artist: Wynton Marsalis
Album: He and She
Label: Blue Note
Release Date: March 24th, 2009

- Artist information at www.wyntonmarsalis.org.
- Listening samples at On Target Media Group.

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Pulitzer Prize-winning composer, trumpeter, and bandleader Wynton Marsalis will release his fifth Blue Note recording, He And She. The album is an ambitious, featuring 22 tracks that combine spoken word and music. Tempered with flashes of humor and plenty of swing centered around the compelling and most elemental of subjects, the album explores the relationship between a man and a woman.

Before heading into the studio, the Wynton Marsalis Quintet traveledto the Iron Horse in North Hampton, MA to perform the new material in front of a live audience. The quintet subsequently cut the tracks live over a two-day period. The minimally edited result became He and She.

- 22 tracks of Wynton’s signature jazz style as well as spoken word / poetry
- Album centered around the compelling theme of the relationship between man and woman
- Wynton’s fifth Blue Note Records release
- Wynton is a Pulitzer Prize winner, the first time for a jazz recording
- Wynton is a 9-time Grammy Award® winner across multiple genres

- See Album Review
- Artist information at www.wyntonmarsalis.org.
- Listening samples at On Target Media Group.
- Latest News! Full streaming album available at www.ilike.com.

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One of the world’s premiere jazz orchestras will be in the Twin Cities for two days of student clinics and concert hall performances, March 6th-7th. The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, directed by trumpeter and jazz icon Wynton Marsalis, will present clinics and workshops for selected high school bands, a free afternoon family concert, and two different evening concert programs during their residency, all at Minnesota Orchestra Hall in downtown Minneapolis.

Jazz At The Lincoln Center (JALC) will host a “Minnesota Orchestra Jazz Festival” for five invited high school bands on Friday, March 6th. Selected through competitive application, the school bands include Duluth Central High School, Rosemount High School, St. Paul Central High School, Annandale High School and Minneapolis South High School. Throughout the day, student musicians will attend clinics and have the opportunity to perform on the Orchestra Hall stage.

On Saturday afternoon (2 pm), JALC will present “Jazz for Young People: What Is Jazz?” The audience was selected through a random drawing in December, and will learn about the rhythms, melodies and musicians who characterize jazz.

On Friday and Saturday evenings, JALC presents two different concert programs. Friday, the orchestra celebrates the music of the great and eccentric bebop composer, Thelonious Monk, as part of the Piper Jaffrey Jazz Season. On Saturday night, JALC presents an evening highlighting the virtuoso soloists of the orchestra in a concert sponsored by Target.

About The Group:

Perhaps the most readily recognized name in jazz today, Wynton Marslis was the first jazz composer to win the Pulitzer Prize (for 1994’s Blood on the Fields) and the only artist to receive both jazz and classical Grammies in the same year. New Orleans native Marsalis is one of four musician sons of pianist/educator Ellis Marsalis. In addition to leading the JALC, Wynton leads his septet and serves as a U.N. Messenger of Peace and a cultural ambassador through the State Department’s CultureConnect program. His series of “Standard Time” recordings are considered modern classics.

The JALC Orchestra also includes: Sean Jones, Ryan Kisor, and Marcus Printup, trumpets; Vincent Gardner, Chris Crenshaw, and Elliot Mason, trombones; Sherman Irby, Ted Nash, Walter Blanding, Jr., Victor Goines, and Joe Temperley, saxes and reeds; Dan Nimmer, piano; Carlos Henriquez, bass; and Ali Jackson, drums.

Location:
Minnesota Orchestra Hall
1111 Nicollet Mall
Minneapolis, MN 55403
(612) 371-5641
http://www.minnesotaorchestra.org/new_home/index.cfm

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The jazz industry is asking Washington for a bailout package and major subsidies on par with that of the auto sector.As such, jazz musicians also want access to credit and tax breaks to stimulate investment and help the development of new recording and performance opportunities.

“This recession has really got me dragged, ya dig?” says Luther “Hip Bones” Jones III, a New York City saxophonist and a cornerstone of the little known Wall Street Avant-Garde jazz scene.
“I mean, now that gigs aren’t a flowin’ like they used, I actually have to get up before noon and find a way to make some coin!”

Similarly, Jones’ associate Willie “Fat Cheeks” Hughes comments that with the economy in near chaos, the demand for his jazz bagpipe skills has waned considerably.
Hughes also comments that with a sluggish economic situation, he will soon have to find another girlfriend or else face certain “homelessness.”

While this crisis has been brewing for some time, a recent spike in the number of trombonists delivering pizzas in New York’s Greenwich Village has recently brought this dire situation to the public’s attention.

Last week, however, jazz advocate Wynton Marsalis met with President George W. Bush and the White House economic team to discuss the worsening situation for America’s jazz artists and a possible stimulus package.

Marsalis was quoted as saying: “I think it’s important for the government to understand that our musical recession has actually been worsening since the demise of New York’s 52nd Street scene in the early 50’s and thanks to the racket these kids call “Hip Hop”. They really should have seen this coming. Once Miles went electric, it’s all been down hill.” As Marsalis continued,”I think that a strong monetary stimulus package and a mandatory listening of Duke Ellington records should encourage a healthy economic recovery.”

President Bush responded to these comments by replying that: “Mr. Margolis has a very good point here. The country will be in dire straights if we lose our “jazzy” beats. I mean, personally, I always enjoy a little Kenny G in the evening while I try to woo the First Lady.”

Bush also commented that a global consensus on the state of the jazz economy will have to be reached. “The way things stand, America’s jazz artists just can’t compete with the lower paid jazz artists currently flooding the market from China.”

In related news: America’s Blues musicians report an increase in depressing lyrics. “Indicates a reflection of the times” claims one downtrodden guitarist whose wife recently left him and whose dog has died.

Also let us know what you think about the role of jazz in our current economy (click here to vote and share your throughts).

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The interview started off a little awkward, with Marsalis being very persistent to share his ideas that are included in his new book. Like always, Colbert has a way of catching guests (and the audience) off-guard and decided to turn most of his statements into jokes based on simplified humor. At first it appeared that Marsalis was a little uneasy and frustrated; however as the interview progressed, Colbert did address some pretty interesting points, including what role jazz can play in a society that is in economic disparity as well as what jazz can do to resolve racial intolerance.

Regarding what jazz can do for people, Marsalis replied very simply, stating that Jazz forces people to listen, and this listening is something that needs to be done given the economic controversies that currently face our nation. That means listening to what the current situation is, what is happening around as, and understanding that while a great majority of people in this country are in a distress about the economy and their own personal financial situation, the government is doing their part to help those that do not really deserve it. His main comments regarded $150 in pork that was essentially the government stealing money from the peoples’ pockets.

Regarding racial intolerance, he remarked (again) that listening is a huge step that can be seen two achieve success in both areas. “When we listen to others, we begin to see our commonalities.” He added that jazz is a very dignified art and that the same attention we give to it can be directed to every other person in our society.

The interview concluded with a duet between Marsalis and Colbert. Marsalis had his trumpet handy, and Colbert (with mic in hand) counted it off, adding a surprisingly complimentary and in-tune harmony with a trumpet sound he was making with his mouth. Yes, he made a trumpet sound – and it was believable. You just never know what Colbert is going to do next.

The crowd loved the duet, and I think that the end of the interview was a little more relaxed for Marsalis. If you watch the Colbert Report, you know that guests’ interviews can turn on a dime, changing radically from what they intend to talk about to antics that give Stephen Colbert his trademark comic approach. Most guests go along with it, but it is easy to see how this could frustrate the guest – if they are truly trying to get their message across. Just how well Marsalis took the entire interview is up to interpretation, but from body language, it seemed that he was not exactly in his comfort zone.

Watch the video:

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October 29th & 30th, 2008 bring two two master classes as well as a couple of performances to Berklee, and the featured artist of this Jam will be world-famous trumpeter Sean Jones. Both collaborators are hoping to continue the success of its last meeting, which took place in April of this year.

Background:

Marsalis Jams was conceived by Branford Marsalis as an initiative to provide meaningful interaction between established musical ensembles and dedicated student musicians at the high school and college levels. These consist of mini-residencies that include classroom interaction, and culminate in performance/jam sessions in which the visiting band follows an opening set of its own music by inviting student musicians on stage to play. Marsalis Jams provides a rare opportunity for students to play with working groups and opens a window into the music’s creative process for members of the audience. Since 2003, the program has been successfully presented in colleges and high schools in Florida, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and Texas.

What Make This Event Different Than Other Similar Collaborations Between Musicians & Students?

Rather than focusing on individual artists mixing with college and high school bands, the approach is to bring individual students into contact with professional bands. This twist makes it a very unique approach to collaboration between professional musicians and students, and its success has already been noted in the similar programs that have been established since inception in 2003. Marsalis Jams are meant to team these professionals up with many universities as well as some high school programs, making it not only an outreach program focusing on the talent of up-and-coming musicians, but also striving to communicate the role of music as a means of professional and individual development.

Event & Ticket Information:

While the master classes are reserved strictly for
students of Berklee College, there will be two public
appearances by Sean Jones & his band:

Dates:
October 29th & 30th
8:00 pm each night

Location:
Cafe 939
939 Boylston Street
Boston, MA

Tickets are $10.00
Tickets are available through Ticketmaster,
just click which date you would like to attend:
October 29th
October 30th

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