All press News

Ellis: The Elder

Publication: Columbia Daily Tribune
Author: Aarik Danielsen
Date: February 6, 2011

Just two months in, 2011 has already been a banner year, a true benchmark, for jazz’s first family. Last month, the five musical Marsalises — pianist and patriarch Ellis, world-famous trumpeter and composer Wynton, versatile saxophonist Branford, trombone great Delfeayo and dynamic drummer Jason — were collectively named one of the National Endowment for the Arts’ Jazz Masters, the highest honor an American jazz musician can hold. It was the first time the honor was bestowed upon a group. Despite the unbelievable musical wattage each member possesses, when the time came to pick a spokesman for the brood, there was no doubt who would take center stage.New York Times writer Nate Chinen set the scene, detailing how Ellis the elder delivered a humble, wistful acceptance speech that paid tribute to jazz masters “past and passed on.” He and his sons then took the bandstand together for a surprisingly rare collaboration, “a brightly buoyant finale.”

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Submitted by Bobby on February 7th, 2011 — 04:17pm

Marsalis Family Among 2011 NEA Jazz Masters

Publication: NPR.com
Author: Associated Press
Date: January 12, 2011

America’s first family of jazz — patriarch Ellis Marsalis Jr. and four of his sons — were presented the nation’s highest jazz honor Tuesday night at the 2011 National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Masters Awards Ceremony.

It marked the first time the NEA had ever presented a group award since it launched its Jazz Masters program in 1982. The other 2011 Jazz Masters honored in the concert at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Rose Theater were flutist Hubert Laws, saxophonist and educator David Liebman, composer-arranger Johnny Mandel, and record producer and author Orrin Keepnews. Read more »

Submitted by Bobby on January 21st, 2011 — 03:10pm

New Names on Jazz's Honor Roll

Publication: New York Times
Author: Nate Chinen
Date: January 12, 2011
Jazz is a living art, its lexicon in a perpetual state of renewal. But it also has a clear, strong center, as an art form and as a set of practices. That’s one reason for the aftershocks that inevitably follow the loss of an important jazz elder. And it’s one more reason for the continuing cultural value of the NEA Jazz Masters awards, which have been bestowed each year since 1982 by the National Endowment for the Arts. Read more »

Submitted by Bobby on January 21st, 2011 — 03:14pm

Marsalis family named Jazz Masters

Publication: CBS News.com
Date: January 12, 2011

 

Jazz pianist Ellis Marsalis Jr.  and four of his

 accomplished musician sons — Wynton, Branford, Delfeayo and Jason — have received the highest jazz honour in the U.S.

The National Endowment for the Arts honoured the family of New Orleans musicians as Jazz Masters at a ceremony Tuesday night in New York, at the Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Rose Theater. Read more »

Submitted by Bobby on January 21st, 2011 — 03:10pm

A Family of Masters

Publication: Jazziz.com
Date: January 6, 2010

Pretty much everyone in the Marsalis family who plays an instrument, from patriarch Ellis on down, will be honored with a National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Masters Award on January 11 at the Rose Theater of Jazz at Lincoln Center. The Award is given to living legends that have made significant contributions to jazz. Certainly the Marsalis’ fit the criteria. Both individually and collectively, they have long been highly visible champions of preserving and expanding jazz through music education, production and musicianship. 

On Monday, January 10 at 1 p.m., the 2011 Jazz Masters will present a panel discussion moderated by A.B. Spellman open to the public on a first come, first served basis in the Varis-Leichtman Studio at Jazz at Lincoln Center. Read more »

Submitted by Bobby on January 7th, 2011 — 04:08pm