Watching Wynton Marsalis perform with the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra at their sold‑out Sheldon Concert Hall show felt like opening the first page of Rick Warren’s The Purpose Driven Life. From the downbeat, Marsalis made it clear: “It’s not about you.”
The world‑renowned trumpeter, composer, educator and global ambassador of jazz spent most of the night tucked in the back row of the bandstand. He let co–musical directors Chris Lewis and Alexa Tarantino guide the audience, rarely speaking and blending into the ensemble in a black suit, powder‑blue shirt and striped tie. If he weren’t Wynton Marsalis, he could have passed for any other talented sideman — which was exactly the point.
It was JALC’s first St. Louis appearance since Marsalis announced he would step down as artistic director of the institution he helped build into the world’s leading steward of jazz. He didn’t mention the transition, offering only a wry, “I used to be the youngest member. Now I’m the oldest.”
St. Louis has long been a second home for Marsalis and the orchestra.
“For more than 40 years, The Sheldon has been Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra’s ‘home away from home,’” said Executive Director Peter Palermo. “We’re proud to have played a part in his incredible legacy — bringing America’s homegrown art form to music lovers throughout the region.”
Marsalis’ ties to St. Louis run even deeper through JALC alum and lifelong friend Victor Goines, now president and CEO of Jazz St. Louis.
Photos by Jon Gitchoff
Courtesy of The Sheldon Concert Hall
The orchestra settled into The Sheldon like it was their own living room. The program leaned heavily on Duke Ellington and intentionally centered Africa — fitting for a concert held just two days before Black History Month. It felt like an extension of last year’s “Mother Africa” season.
One exception to the Ellington focus was South African pianist and composer Nduduzo Makhathini’s piece whose title translates to “Conscious.” The work blended jazz harmony with the quartal voicings, blues inflections and spiritual overtones that define South Africa’s choral tradition. Its harmonic movement and modal improvisation honored the country’s deep musical lineage.
Then came the gift: a rare full performance of Ellington’s Togo Brava Suite.
“This suite was written in gratitude to the nation of Togo,” Lewis explained, noting that the country issued commemorative stamps honoring Bach, Debussy, Beethoven — and Ellington. “Duke responded by writing a four‑part suite.”
Togo Brava stands apart in Ellington’s catalog. Rather than a single extended theme, he uses additive form, stacking contrasting textures, rhythmic feels and tonal colors like scenes in a film. It’s orchestration as storytelling.
Among the highlights was “Amore,” a sultry, piano‑driven movement that let Dan Nimmer show off the left‑hand independence and touch that make him one of the finest pianists of his generation. Flute and muted trumpets added shimmer to the harmonic palette.
In “Naturally,” Sherman Irby’s alto saxophone solo — full of bebop language, rhythmic displacement and sheer fire — brought the crowd to its feet. His whole body rocked as he navigated the horn with the kind of technical command and soul that can’t be taught. The band snapped back into Ellington’s signature swing, brass punching through the final chorus with authority.
“We’re going from Togo to Liberia,” Lewis said as they shifted into a movement from Ellington’s Liberia Suite, written in 1947 for the country’s centennial. Trombonist Christopher Crenshaw took center stage.
“For those unaware of the history of the ‘ya‑ya’ trombone, Chris is going to break it down in these 133 measures,” Lewis joked.
Paul Nedzela’s baritone saxophone opened with a deep, velvet groove before Crenshaw’s trombone provided a blues‑drenched response. Marsalis followed with a trumpet solo full of piercing staccato attacks — a call‑and‑response of timbre and attitude. The horns collided in a triumphant finale.
Lewis then shared a story about seeing JALC as a teenager and being mesmerized by a reed player juggling a bass clarinet, clarinet and soprano sax — all with mastery. That musician was Victor Goines, who joined the band onstage for a reimagined “A Train” steeped in New Orleans blues. Slowed to a crawl, the arrangement revealed new harmonic angles of the Ellington‑Strayhorn classic. Goines played with the emotional clarity of an Abbey Lincoln vocal — every note intentional, every phrase a sermon.
The night closed with “Cottontail” from the Blanton‑Webster era. Tenor saxophonist Abdias Armenteros delivered a marathon solo — full of breath control, harmonic daring and rhythmic agility. At times his horn mimicked a trumpet’s bite; at others, it danced through complex riffs with impossible ease.
“Tell your friends that people are still out here swinging in these United States,” Marsalis said as he sent the crowd home.
For more information about upcoming shows at The Sheldon Concert Hall, visit www.thesheldon.org.
Living It content is produced with funding by the ARPA for the Arts grants program in partnership with the Regional Arts Commission of St. Louis and the Community Development Administration.
