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The Marsalis Family

The Marsalis Family is an NEA Jazz Master

"It is with great pride and humility that I accept this award on behalf of the Marsalis family. The NEA Jazz Masters Fellowship Award has special meaning to me as I was a member of the jazz panel at the inception of this award and had the opportunity to cast subsequent votes for many of the surviving jazz giants during my tenure. At that time I had no idea that we would be so honored by the NEA and placed in the company of such an esteemed group of individuals.

"I hope my sons and I continue to exemplify the quality of excellence in the work that is expected from the recipient of such an honor. I wish to thank all of those panel members who consider our family worthy of this award and assure them we will not disappoint them in the future." - Ellis Marsalis for the Marsalis Family

It is not a surprise that the first group award of the NEA Jazz Masters has gone to the formidable Marsalis family—never before in jazz (or most any other art form) has a family produced so many masters of the form. The Adderleys, the Jones, even today's Clayton Brothers, all produced a few family members that excelled on their instruments—but five?

The story starts in New Orleans, with the birth of Ellis Marsalis, Jr. in 1934. Although the city was noted for Dixieland and rhythm-and-blues, Ellis was more interested in the bebop sounds coming from Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie. His first recording was modern jazz music performed with fellow New Orleans musicians Ed Blackwell (who eventually ended up drumming for Ornette Coleman), clarinetist Alvin Batiste, bassist Richard Payne, and saxophonist Harold Battiste as the American Jazz Quintet.

After earning a BA in music education from Dillard University in 1955, Ellis continued to play modern jazz with his local colleagues until enlisting in the Marine Corps the following year. He soon became a member of the Corps Four, a Marines jazz quartet that performed on television and radio to boost recruiting efforts.

After the Marines and a brief teaching stint in Breaux Bridge, Lousiania, he returned to New Orleans with his wife Dolores and four children to work in his father's motel business while freelancing at gigs around town, such as recording with the Adderley Brothers. From 1967-70, Ellis performed with trumpeter Al Hirt.

In the 1970s, he studied music education at Loyola University, eventually earning a master's degree. In 1974, he became the director of jazz studies at the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts high school, mentoring such contemporary artists as Reginald Veal, Terence Blanchard, and Harry Connick, Jr. (Branford, Wynton, Delfeayo, and Jason attended the center as well.) After three years teaching at the Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, he joined the University of New Orleans, where he spent 12 years heading the jazz studies department. To celebrate his retirement in 2001, the entire Marsalis family performed, captured on the release The Marsalis Family: A Jazz Celebration. In 2008, Ellis was inducted into the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame.

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Album Review

The Marsalis Family: A Jazz Celebration

Read "A Jazz Celebration" reviewed by Michael Fortuna


The Marsalis family--father Ellis on piano with sons Branford on tenor and soprano saxophones, Wynton on trumpet, Delfeayo on trombone, and Jason on drums--has put an indelible stamp on the world of jazz. One problem: they've never played together as a family. That changed in August 2001, when the University of New Orleans decided to mark Ellis' retirement as a teacher there, as well as the school's establishment of a chair in his name. ...

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Album Review

The Marsalis Family: A Jazz Celebration

Read "A Jazz Celebration" reviewed by Jim Santella


The First Family of Modern Jazz performed on August 4, 2001 at a concert hall in The Crescent City to mark the retirement of Ellis Marsalis from teaching duties at the University of New Orleans. Fortunately, the event was captured on tape.

As with most live performances, this celebration includes a fair amount of spontaneity along with tight ensemble partnerships. Branford’s “Cain and Abel” places his fluid tenor side by side with Wynton’s sparkling trumpet in a ...

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Album Review

The Marsalis Family: A Jazz Celebration

Read "A Jazz Celebration" reviewed by Mark F. Turner


The Marsalis family could arguably be called the first family of modern jazz. The name needs no introduction to people who know music, and in particular, jazz music. From the more recognizable names of Wynton and Branford, to the lesser known, but also talented siblings, Jason and Delfeayo; on August 4th 2001, the brothers aligned professional and personal schedules to honor, celebrate, and perform in a concert with their esteemed father: Ellis Marsalis.

A patriarch of gifted jazz musicians, Ellis ...

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Recording

The Marsalis Family, Music Redeems (CD Review)

The Marsalis Family, Music Redeems (CD Review)

Source: Between the Grooves with Philip Booth

All of the jazz-playing Marsalises together, on one stage? It rarely happens, but it's impressive when it does. My review of their new CD, documenting a live performance, was published this week in Las Vegas City Life. Click here to go to the paper's site, or read the full text below. The Marsalis Family, Music Redeems (Marsalis Music) Marsalis has become a brand name in music, denoting a New Orleans dynasty as well as a hard-fought commitment to playing deep-rooted ...

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