When real ground is broken in jazz, it rarely happens in the study hall or the practice room. It is carved out slowly, during nightly jam sessions and club dates, those once-in-a-lifetime, live performances when everything finally comes together. And if the Wynton Marsalis quintet plays in Webster Hall tonight the way they have in the past, this concert will certainly be one to remember.
Marsalis is one of the most accomplished and respected trumpeters today and perhaps the most celebrated since Miles Davis. A graduate of the Julliard School of Music, he is an eight-time Grammy winner and the first to win in both jazz and classical categories.
At 33, he is the artistic director of Lincoln Center's jazz program (since 1987) and has appeared as a leader on 17 jazz and eight classical recordings. He is a technical genius of the trumpet, and can play the entire spectrum of jazz tunes - standards, ballads, blues, be-bop and avante-garde in addition to original compositions.
Recently, he finished "Citi Movement," an original score from the Griot New York ballet which received rave reviews for its originality, complexity and unique blend of jazz and classical music. Outside the bandstand, Marsalis makes active contributions to organizations like the NAACP and the Center for Battered Women. He played at dozens of inner city high-schools, seeking out and honing young talent.
He is a musician committed to advancing the art form of jazz and yet expanding and redefining its language. His style tends to be traditional, following in the examples of musicians like Duke Ellington, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis and John Coltrane. But what sets him apart is his classical training which is beginning to give him his own voice on the trumpet, not one based on Miles Davis.
New York magazine once described his music as "hard, deep-blue American music without apologies, fog machines, or effects pedals," He has come a long way from spending nights at smoky clubs with drummer Art Blakey, when his technique was developed but his articulation still lacked originality. Today, he is a self-confident, mature performer who no longer looks for standards set 40 years ago. His style has developed to a point where it is dynamic, though it maintains strong roots in the past.
Tonight Marsalis will appear with a quintet derived from the usual seven-instrument setting, which promises some of the "cool" club jazz that is reminiscent of the late 1950s. Featured in the rhythm section will be Eric Reed (piano), Reginald Veal (bass), and Herlin Riley (drums). The soloists will include Marsalis (trumpet) and either Walter Blanding (tenor, soprano saxophones), Wes Anderson (alto saxophone), or Wycliffe Gordon (trombone). Marsalis and his quintet are incredible live performers. The concert promises to be a night filled with great music, excitement, and energy.
This concert is sponsored by the Programming Board. Tickets are available at J.B. Jammin, Strawberries, and Collis Center, for $14 each.
