Birth of the American Orchestra
Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis
Rose Theater, January 9 – 10, 2015, 8pm
Winner of Downbeat’s 2014 Reader’s Poll in “Big Band” Category Perform the Music of Don Redman, Fletcher Henderson, Bill Challis, Duke Ellington, Benny Carter, Eddie Durham, Chico O’Farrill, and Gil Fuller
New York, NY – November 25, 2014 – On January 9 and 10, Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis explores its big band roots. Partly inspired by Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Managing & Artistic Director Wynton Marsalis’ Harvard University lecture, “Setting the Communal Table: The Evolution of the Jazz Orchestra”, delivered on September 26, 2013, the Birth of the American Orchestra concerts will explore the development of the American orchestra through the syncopated dance beats of New Orleans, innovative ensemble virtuosity, and the monumentality of swing and the blues.
Bebop pioneer Dizzy Gillespie once told Marsalis something that would forever change his perception of big bands: “One should not consider it an achievement to lose one’s orchestral tradition.” At the forefront of this celebration are Don Redman, Fletcher Henderson, Bill Challis, Duke Ellington, Benny Carter, Eddie Durham, Chico O’Farrill, and Gil Fuller. These jazz architects, along with Gillespie’s profound mantra, are the foundation of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra – an orchestra with an astonishing concentration of immensely talented musicians and a collective regarded as the “finest big band in the world today.”
The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis also celebrates its second consecutive win in the 2014 DownBeat Reader’s Poll ‘Big Band’ category. Marsalis garnered his second consecutive win in the ‘Trumpet’ category this year as well. The Birth of the American Orchestra concerts will take place in Frederick P. Rose Hall, home of Jazz at Lincoln Center, located at Broadway at 60th Street, New York, New York. The concerts will also stream live in high-definition audio and video for free to a global audience via jazz.org/live.
Jazz at Lincoln Center’s 2014–15 Concert and Education Season features a season-long journey “through the Americas.” Through a diverse array of concerts and programs, Jazz at Lincoln Center’s 27th season will explore how jazz has both integrated and influenced the rich musical traditions of the Caribbean and North, South, and Central America. Click here for the complete season schedule.
Tickets can be purchased through jazz.org 24 hours a day or CenterCharge at 212-721-6500, open daily from 10am to 9pm. Tickets can also be purchased at the Jazz at Lincoln Center Box Office, located on Broadway at 60th Street, ground floor. Box Office hours: Monday-Saturday from 10am to 6pm (or 30 minutes past curtain) and Sunday from noon to 6pm (or 30 minutes past curtain). Hot Seats, $10 seats for select shows in Rose Theater and The Appel Room (9:30pm performances only), are available for purchase to the general public on the Wednesday prior to each performance. Subject to availability. Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Hot Seats Ticket Discount Program is supported by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.
Jazz at Lincoln Center proudly acknowledges its major corporate partners: Amtrak, Bloomberg, Brooks Brothers, The Coca-Cola Company, Con Edison, Entergy, HSBC Premier, The Shops at Columbus Circle at Time Warner Center, and SiriusXM.