70 Year Magazine Archive

[Untitled jazz review of Wynton Marsalis — opening page(s) missing from dump]

by Tony Outhwaite

Share this story

cians he comes from a musical family, his father the New Orleans pianist (and longtime A1 Hirt sideman) Ellis Marsalis. Wynton began fooling with the trumpet only at age 12, yet two years later was advanced enough to perform the Haydn Trumpet Concerto with the New Orleans Symphony, and at 17 was named Outstanding Brass Soloist at the Berkshire Music Festival at Tanglewood. Scarcely a year after that he had dropped out of Juilliard to go on tour with drummer Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers.

In 1982 Wynton Marsalis became the first jazz musician ever signed by a major label (Columbia) as both a jazz and classical player. The company’s decision paid off, at least artistically, when Marsalis won two Grammies in 1984, one for his second jazz album, Think of One . . ., the other for his classical album Trumpet Concertos. So far he has appeared on a handful of classical recordings and made seven jazz albums, including Hot House Flowers, the obligatory jazz-with-strings item, and Live at Blues Alley (possibly his best), recorded at the Washington club late in 1988.

TO

About the Author

Comments

Advertisement

Advertisement