Father and Son Marsalis Pay Tribute to the Birthplace of Jazz at Tanglewood

Delfeayo Marsalis

Delfeayo Marsalis

(LENOX, Mass.) – Jazz pianist Ellis Marsalis, Jr. — patriarch of the Marsalis musical dynasty — and one of his jazz royalty sons, trombonist Delfeayo Marsalis, along with their quartet, bring a program entitled “The Last Southern Gentlemen” to Ozawa Hall at Tanglewood on Sunday, August 17, 2014, at 8 p.m. performing standards and original compositions from their album of the same name.

Ellis Marsalis, who originally studied clarinet, honed his piano skills in the U.S. Marine Corp in the Corps Four, a Marines jazz quartet. Ellis Marsalis has six sons – Branford, Wynton, Ellis III, Delfeayo, Mboya and Jason. He spent 37 years teaching music to high school and college students, and his son Delfeayo has created extensive after-school music programs in New Orleans, as well as composing over 80 songs that help introduce kids to jazz.

“The Last Southern Gentlemen” is a landmark recording for Delfeayo Marsalis, pairing father Ellis Marsalis, Jr. with son on a collaborative album for the first time. The music is relaxed, thoughtful and provocative, acknowledging the love and respect of all people shared by Louis Armstrong and most early jazz entertainers. This sense of humanity and humility is at the center of the Southern lifestyle that birthed the original American music.

In January 2011, Delfeayo and the Marsalis family (father Ellis and brothers Branford, Wynton and Jason) earned the nation’s highest jazz honor – a National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Masters Award.

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