Branford marsalis biography of alberta

Home / Celebrity Biographies / Branford marsalis biography of alberta

But for the easy-going, conciliatory boy, the more practical lesson was the one he received from his parents about bottom-line accomplishment. He then returned to Asia twice in the spring of 2016, first for his debut collaboration with the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong, followed by a trip to Kuala Lumpur where he performed two concerts with the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra at the Petronas Twin Towers.

But jazz pianist Geri Allen, who sat in with the Tonight Show band, spoke for many when she expressed gratitude for Marsalis's generosity. More important to some Marsalis devotees was the fact that Branford took pianist Kirkland with him on this pop/soul/bop exploration, fracturing Wynton's quintet. From these multifaceted sources, Marsalis developed an appreciation for all types of music that would later explain his spirited sorties beyond traditional jazz.

After graduating from high school in 1978, Marsalis attended Southern University, a black college in Baton Rouge, where he studied under renowned jazz clarinetist Alvin Batiste.

In the process, he has become an avatar of contemporary artistic excellence winning three GRAMMY Awards, a Tony nomination for his work as a composer on Broadway, a citation by the National Endowment for the Arts as Jazz Master, and a 2021 Primetime EMMY nomination for the score he composed for the Tulsa Burning documentary.

Growing up in the rich environment of New Orleans as the oldest son of pianist and educator, the late Ellis Marsalis, Branford was drawn to music along with siblings Wynton, Delfeayo and Jason.

Musical director of The Tonight Show With Jay Leno, NBC, 1992--; host of Friday Night Videos, NBC, 1992--. In 2023 Branford performed with symphonies in Miami, Greensboro, Toledo and Corpus Christi, as well as with the Warsaw Philharmonic and Calgary Philharmonic. It's your choice.'"

Though music played a central role in the family's orbit, Marsalis's early ambitions cast him as a football player, lawyer, or historian.

Later that year, he performed John Williams’ Escapades in Tanglewood’s celebration of Williams’ 90th birthday. But if Branford makes pop music, he's compared to Coltrane, and told that he's wasting his talent, which is obviously a double-standard."

Considered one of the few bright spots in Sting's project, Marsalis recorded and toured with the rock star off and on for three years, a period in which his pop currency blossomed, laying the foundation for appearances with Tina Turner, Public Enemy, the Neville Brothers, and the Grateful Dead, among many others.

From his initial recognition as a young jazz lion, he has expanded his vision as an instrumentalist, composer, bandleader and educator, crossing stylistic boundaries while maintaining unwavering creative integrity. "Branford has this wonderful opportunity to access the mainstream American audience," she told Fred Shuster of Down Beat, "and this music is getting out there every night.

Although Marsalis rediscovered what he called the "philosophy of improvisation," his 1989 Trio Jeepy, according to Down Beat critic Art Lange, was amateurish and lacked emotional intensity.

Marsalis bounced back with his 1990 Crazy People Music, about which J. D. Considine wrote in Rolling Stone, "Marsalis has been able to sort out his influences and been able to arrive at a sound of his own....

The Branford Marsalis Quartet, formed in 1986, remains his primary performance vehicle. Some critics have lamented Marsalis's musical wanderings, claiming that the talented saxman is spreading himself too thin. In the same spirit, he also recorded behind Dizzy Gillespie, toured with pianist Herbie Hancock's VSOP II quintet, and provided what some critics thought were the only redeeming tracks on Miles Davis's 1984 electro-synth album Decoy.

Marsalis had less success striking out on his own.

He has also taught at Michigan State University and San Francisco State University and continues to conduct workshops throughout the world.

In the wake of the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina, Branford, along with friend Harry Connick, Jr., conceived of “Musicians’ Village,” a residential community in the Upper Ninth Ward of New Orleans. Member of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers, 1980-81; member of Wynton Marsalis quintet, 1982-1985; toured and recorded with Sting, 1985-1989; performed with numerous artists, including Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Tina Turner, Public Enemy, and the Neville Brothers, beginning in 1984.

That says a whole lot about him as a person."

Branford Marsalis's Career

Branford Marsalis's Awards

Grammy Award for best jazz instrumental by an individual or group, 1993.

Famous Works

Selective Works
(With Ellis Marsalis) Fathers and Sons Columbia, 1981.
Scenes in the City Columbia, 1984.
(With Miles Davis) Decoy Columbia, 1984.
(With the English Chamber Orchestra) Romances for Saxophone 1986.
Royal Garden Blues Columbia, 1986.
Renaissance Columbia, 1987.
Random Abstract Columbia, 1988.
Trio Jeepy Columbia, 1989.
Crazy People Music Columbia, 1990.
Music From Mo' Better Blues 1990.
The Beautyful Ones Are Not Yet Born (includes "Cain and Abel"), Columbia, 1991.
I Heard You Twice the First Time Columbia, 1992.
(Contributor) Weird Nightmare: Meditations on Mingus Columbia, 1992.
Bloomington Columbia, 1993.
With Dizzy Gillespie Closer to the Source Atlantic.
New Faces GRP.
With the Jazz Messengers Keystone 3 Concord, 1981.
Live at Montreux and Northsea Timeless.
With Wynton Marsalis Wynton Marsalis Columbia, 1982.
Think of One Columbia, 1983.
Hot House Flowers Columbia, 1984.
Black Codes (From the Underground) Columbia, 1985.
With Sting Bring on the Night A&M, 1985.
Dream of the Blue Turtles A&M, 1985.
Nothing Like the Sun A&M, 1987.

Recent Updates

September 9, 2003: Marsalis's album, Romare Bearden Revealed, was released.

The Center uses music as the focal point of a holistic strategy to build a healthy community and to deliver a broad range of services to underserved children, youth and musicians from neighborhoods battling poverty and social injustice. He first appeared with the New York Philharmonic in the summer of 2010, and was again invited to join them as soloist in their 2010‐2011 concert series where he unequivocally demonstrated his versatility and prowess, bringing “a gracious poise and supple tone… and an insouciant swagger” (New York Times) to the repertoire.

If he screws up, he still has a job.