Nov 3, 2020 9:00 AM
Benson, McBride And Metheny Among Readers Poll Winners
DownBeat is proud to announce the results of its 85th Annual Readers Poll.
Readers have voted to induct…
Ellis Marsalis (1934–2020)
(Photo: Courtesy of Nu Jazz Agency)Pianist Ellis Marsalis, the head of a New Orleans family that significantly impacted how jazz is seen and heard across the world, died Wednesday. He was 85.
The elder Marsalis reportedly suffered COVID-19 symptoms and was awaiting test results.
“Ellis Marsalis was a legend. He was the prototype of what we mean when we talk about New Orleans jazz,” New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell said in a statement. “The love and the prayers of all of our people go out to his family, and to all of those whose lives he touched. He was a teacher, a father, and an icon—and words aren’t sufficient to describe the art, the joy and the wonder he showed the world. This loss cuts us deeply. May we wrap his family in our love and our gratitude, and may we honor his memory by coming together in spirit—even as the outbreak keeps us apart, for a time.”
About a year ago, Marsalis appeared with his sons—Branford, Wynton, Delfeayo and Jason Marsalis—at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. Its 2020 edition likely will be rescheduled.
The pianist, also a lauded educator in New Orleans, was the namesake of a piano competition, as well as an NEA Jazz Master. Fittingly, he was enshrined along with his family in 2011.
In addition to playing on several of his sons’ albums, he also recorded many discs as a leader himself, including Ellis Marsalis Trio (Blue Note, 1991), Whistle Stop (Columbia, 1994) and On The First Occasion (Elm, 2013). DB
George Benson is the newest inductee in the DownBeat Hall of Fame.
Nov 3, 2020 9:00 AM
DownBeat is proud to announce the results of its 85th Annual Readers Poll.
Readers have voted to induct…
Unreleased recordings of the Dave Brubeck Quartet—saxophonist Paul Desmond (left), pianist Dave Brubeck, drummer Joe Morello and bassist Eugene Wright—are set for release on Dec. 4.
Oct 23, 2020 9:45 AM
First released on Dec. 14, 1959, The Dave Brubeck Quartet’s Time Out achieved prominence in popular culture in a…
Pianist Keith Jarrett is set to release the archival Budapest Concert on Oct. 30 through the ECM imprint.
Oct 21, 2020 11:16 AM
Renowned pianist Keith Jarrett, whose 1975 ECM album The Köln Concert remains one of the most recognizable jazz albums…
The fusion of musical ideas on Cindy Blackman Santana’s latest album “transcends any kind of veil that we put between us,” the drummer said.
Oct 23, 2020 8:46 AM
When drummer and bandleader Cindy Blackman Santana makes music, it’s in pursuit of something deeply spiritual.
…
Shabaka Hutchings is among the 25 artists DownBeat thinks will help shape jazz in the decades to come.
Oct 28, 2020 9:00 AM
Shabaka Hutchings’ M.O. is to spend much of each year on the road, circling the globe at the helm of three…
